OT****
Interesting article about 3D digital cameras. Does this mean we will be wearing 3D glasses when we go e-tailing on the net? ;-) I trust this also means a demand for higher MB capacity compactflash cards.
( BW)(CA-METACREATIONS)(MCRE) Minolta and MetaCreations
Announce MetaFlash Licensing Agreement; Minolta to Develop 3-D Photo
Capture Device Enabling Scaling, Streaming of 3-D Web Imagery
Business Editors & High-Tech/Multimedia Writers
CARPINTERIA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 3, 1999--MetaCreations Corp.
(Nasdaq:MCRE) and Minolta Co. Ltd. (Tokyo Stock Exchange:7753) Wednesday announced
that Minolta will produce and distribute a 3-D digital camera utilizing MetaCreations' recently
announced MetaFlash(tm) technology.
This revolutionary camera will enable Web developers to easily and affordably capture
photo-realistic 3-D images for interactive use on the Internet and in other applications.
The companies believe that this agreement will dramatically reduce the time and cost involved in
producing photo-realistic 3-D Web images and, for the first time, give the Internet community an
integrated, end-to-end solution for the capture, transmission, viewing and manipulation of
photo-realistic 3-D content for a variety of applications, including electronic merchandising. As
part of this agreement, MetaCreations will receive royalties from Minolta.
MetaFlash(tm) is the combination of a flash attachment and powerful software that reconstructs
the digital pictures into high-quality, texture-mapped 3-D wire frame models. These models are
output in the MetaStream(tm) 3-D file format designed for Intel Architecture for transmission over
the Internet, and Web users can then view and manipulate the models with the MetaStream(tm)
client-side engine.
As announced on Nov. 30, 1998, the MetaStream(tm) engine will be shipped by Microsoft as
a component of Windows 98 and Windows 2000.
"We believe that the ability to produce photo-realistic 3-D images for the Internet will be an
important driver of future digital camera demand," said Mr. Nakai, general manager of DP
Business Division of Minolta Co. "We are excited to be at the forefront of this important
development."
"We are very pleased to partner with Minolta, a long-time leader in photographic technology,
to bring MetaFlash to market as part of a low-cost and practical 3-D solution for Web
developers and e-merchants, among others," said Gary Lauer, president and chief executive
officer of MetaCreations.
"We believe that Minolta's new MetaFlash(tm) camera, along with MetaStream(tm), will
provide an extremely powerful end-to-end 3-D solution for visually differentiating products
merchandised on the Internet."
"The rapid proliferation of photo-realistic 3-D content on the Web is a key goal for Intel," said
Ron Whittier, executive vice president of Intel. "We believe that the combination of
MetaFlash(tm) and the Intel performance PC platform has major implications for product
merchandising and other Web applications where realism and interactivity are critical."
The MetaFlash(tm) technology was developed under the leadership of Dr. Sasha Migdal, who
heads the MetaCreations Princeton Internet development facility. Migdal is a world-renowned
theoretical physicist and an expert in the fields of quantum gravity and quark confinement. He left
a Princeton University professorship to pursue full-time his vision for acquisition, streaming
transmission and use of 3-D objects via the Internet.
This vision was based largely on the unique dynamic triangulation theories Migdal had
developed during his research of quantum gravity at Princeton and as head of the Laboratory of
Computational Physics in the Cybernetics Council of the Soviet Academy of Sciences. These
concepts have already resulted in the development of the MetaStream(tm) open file format and
viewer, licensed by Microsoft and others.
MetaStream(tm) is MetaCreations' open graphics file format for scaling and streaming 3-D
objects via the Internet. In addition to being shipped with Microsoft Windows 98 and Windows
2000, the client-side engine is available as a free browser plug-in for Internet Explorer or
Netscape Communicator for Windows.
To see examples of MetaStream(tm) in action, visit metacreations.com or
metastream.com, hosted by MetaCreations.
About MetaCreations
MetaCreations, the Creative Web company, is focused on developing and marketing 2-D and
3-D visualization software for graphic artists, and the World Wide Web.
MetaCreations' Creative Web strategy is centered on the company's new MetaStream(tm) and
MetaFlash(tm) technologies, and employs an array of MetaCreations' software development tools
to accelerate the creation of 2-D and 3-D graphics for online applications, and to make fast,
interactive use of photo-realistic 3-D on the Web practical, viable and easy.
MetaCreations offers a complete product line of award-winning graphics desktop software for
both professional users and consumers, and its products are available in more than 70 countries.
The company has headquarters in Santa Barbara County, Calif., and has development centers in
Scotts Valley, Calif., and Princeton, N.J., as well as an International Operations Center in Dublin,
Ireland.
MetaCreations can be reached on the World Wide Web at www.metacreations.com.
About Minolta
Established in 1928, Minolta Co. is a leading manufacturer of photocopiers, printers and other
image information products; conventional cameras, digital cameras and other optical products;
radiometric instruments; and planetariums.
Based on an array of expertise in optical, sensing, mechatoronic and image technologies, the
company is recently emphasizing business in equipment and systems for inputting, outputting and
processing image-related information.
With headquarters in Osaka, Japan, Minolta has established a worldwide network of more
than 60 manufacturing facilities and marketing offices, including its U.S. headquarters for Minolta
Corp. in Ramsey, N.J., and Minolta Systems Laboratory Inc. in San Jose, Calif. Minolta Co. can
be reached on the World Wide Web at www.minolta.com.
This release contains forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially as a
result of a number of risks and uncertainties affecting the company's business. Such risks include,
but are not limited to, the following: that Minolta will not produce and distribute a 3-D digital
camera utilizing MetaCreations' MetaFlash technology; that this agreement will not dramatically
reduce the time and cost involved in producing photo-realistic 3-D images for the Web and other
applications; and that MetaCreations will not receive royalties from Minolta. For a more detailed
discussion of factors that affect MetaCreations' operating results, interested parties should review
MetaCreations' SEC reports, including MetaCreations' Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended Dec. 31, 1997, and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.
MetaCreations, MetaFlash and MetaStream are either registered trademarks or trademarks of
MetaCreations Corp. Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their
respective owners. (c)1999 MetaCreations Corp. All rights reserved. |
