|

FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
Contact:
Roger Nelson/Antonia Graham/Vicky Parratt
Nelson Bostock
Communications
+44 (0)207
229 44 00
vicky@nelsonbostock.com
INTERACTIVE
INTERNET TV ARRIVES IN THE UK
ImaginOn
launches ImOn.comTV™;
Internet
TV station ‘in a box’
Video
on demand, interactivity and e-commerce combine to deliver
full ‘TV-to-transaction’ capabilities
LONDON,
19 June, 2000 -- Now, the ability to set up a global television
broadcasting company is within reach of any individual or
corporation in Britain, following the introduction of ImOn.comTV
to the UK market.
ImOn.comTV
enables people to set up their own broadcast organisation,
delivering live or taped video with the ability to sell
direct over the web.
ImOn.comTV
is the world’s first Internet TV station ‘in a box’ -- a
Web server, plus a complete suite of tools to put movies,
product videos and video games on the web, backed by ImOn’s
‘WebZinger™’ online research engine. WebZinger enables the
user to undertake a search while continuing to direct the
progression of a video.
ImOn.comTV
works within a standard browser on any new PC connected
to the Internet through a broadband connection of 128 kbps
or greater, and delivers up to 640x480 resolution at video
streaming rates of up to 30 frames per second. Unlike Windows
MediaPlayer, RealVideo, Apple QuickTime and other simple
video streaming products on the market, it includes sophisticated
levels of interactivity and click-ability to enhance user
power and choice.
Minimum
hardware requirements at the ‘broadcast’ end are a Sun or
Intel server, included in the turnkey package, and a digital
camcorder which means that expensive recording, studio and
broadcast equipment are not required for the transmission
of quality digital video.
Included in the package is the ability to develop and deliver:
- Video
on demand
- With
no downloading or waiting the user can watch whatever
they want, whenever they want.
- Live
video streaming
- Technology
that enables the user to access live webcasting and
video cameras to access up-to-the minute information.
- User-controlled
branching for a personalised TV experience
- Allowing
viewers to control the progression and direction of
videos by clicking at pre-defined critical breakpoints.
- Point-and-click
functionality to carry the viewer to any specified website
- Enables
users to find out more about the particular products
and retailers featured in the video they are watching.
- Financial
transaction capabilities to couple the sales potential
of broadcast TV advertising with the immediacy of web-based
e-commerce
- Viewer-directed
Internet television infomercials that connect to the
supplier’s web pages, maximising the impact of targeted
advertising.
A prime
market is the business community -- from SME businesses
to international corporations -- which would use ImOn.comTV
to deliver video on the web, or over an intranet or extranet.
Uses vary from staff training and induction through the
provision of corporate information to sales, marketing and
ecommerce solutions.
Alternatively,
providers of specialist information, would-be media moguls
or special interest clubs and organisations can use ImOn.comTV
to develop their own TV station, a previously-unthinkable
concept.
Companies
already using the product in America range from publishing
houses to travel and entertainment companies. Sony and Intel
are involved as key players in IMON’s strategic alliance
programme, taking advantage of the interactive TV software
for business to business and business to consumer services.
David
Schwartz, CEO of ImOn.comTV, in Europe to introduce the
product and to secure distribution and marketing arrangements,
sees the potential as huge, particularly as Britain is gearing
up for a broadband revolution that will potentially enable
everyone with a TV to enjoy Internet TV. “ImOn.comTV is
an exciting new development which is already spawning dozens
of next-generation TV companies across the United States.
The imminent roll-out of broadband services across the UK
means that the British market is ripe for interactive multimedia
services.”
“People
want different types of TV experiences whether they’re in
the living room or at their PCs. On TV, people want information
and entertainment; on the PC, people become ‘clickers’.
ImOn.comTV can deliver content over either PC or via a set-top
box, so it’s up to the imagination of potential broadcasters
to decide how to reach and satisfy their audiences - by
delivering an involving video experience or by selling products
and services via clickable interactivity.”
“Every
country, including the U.K., has extensive regulations pertaining
to television broadcast over the airwaves or on cable that
act as barriers to people or businesses that want to communicate
with video”, Schwartz said, “On the Internet, those regulations
simply do not exist in the Americas or Europe, leaving the
field wide open for entrepreneurs.”
ImOn.comTV
and WebZinger are trademarks of ImaginOn
and are protected under U.S. Patents.
Except
for the historical information presented herein, the matters
set forth in this press release are forward-looking statements
within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provision of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties
that may cause actual results to differ materially. These
risks include acceptance of ImaginOn software by developers
and users, the successful development of competitive software
to ImaginOn's, competitive pricing pressures for ImaginOn
software and services, and the availability of financing
to complete management's plans and objectives. In addition,
other risks are detailed in the Company's periodic reports
and in its Form S-1 registration statement declared effective
by the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 11, 2000.
These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date
hereof. The Company disclaims any intent or obligation to
update these forward-looking statements.
###
|