MediaShare adds MPEG video support to its ProductBase product information system; first implementation is an ''Electronic Briefcase'' for Hewlett-Packard sales reps

Business Wire, Dec 1, 1994

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 1, 1994--MediaShare Corp., a leading developer of electronic catalogs and interactive selling systems, Thursday announced that it has added MPEG video capability to its ProductBase product information system.

MPEG video is a compression standard defined by the Motion Picture Experts Group which permits full-motion video clips to be stored and displayed on laptop computers with limited disk storage. With the ability to run MPEG files, MediaShare clients can now incorporate a broader range of video content into their ProductBase presentations.

MediaShare is implementing this new feature as part of a custom- built ``Electronic Briefcase'' for Hewlett-Packard's Analytical Products Group. The Electronic Briefcase will allow HP sales, marketing and training personnel to access detailed product information directly from their laptop and desktop computers.

With scores of analytical instruments in its product line, HP's Analytical Products Group generates a tremendous volume of sales and marketing material. Due to its highly technical nature, this information can be difficult to digest, especially within the limited time of a sales call.

According to Bud Bromley, manager of BioScience Sales & Marketing for HP, his sales staff needed a better way of storing, retrieving and communicating this complex information.

``Trying to manage and distribute that much printed sales literature just isn't an efficient way to work -- especially if you've got a large sales force like we do,'' said Bromley. ``And for products like ours, which are very complex and dynamic, it's hard to capture the benefits in a static medium like paper.

``We wanted a better way of communicating with our customers, which is why we decided to develop an `Electronic Briefcase' with the help of MediaShare.''

Using its ProductBase technology, MediaShare is building a comprehensive database that unifies all of the Analytical Products materials into one easy-to-use, easy-to-manage resource. In addition to converting HP's existing brochures, spec sheets and other literature into an electronic format, MediaShare is developing new multimedia content that better demonstrates and illustrates the benefits of HP's analytical instruments.

Now, instead of trying to explain how their new N-Terminal Protein Sequencer works, HP sales reps can simply show the customer an animation sequence. They can also choose from almost 100 different MPEG video clips featuring testimonials from satisfied HP customers. ``In a few minutes of video, we can explain concepts that would otherwise take thousands of words and hours of study to get across,'' said Bromley.

A prototype of the Electronic Briefcase is now being tested through an HP pilot program with selected outbound sales representatives and in-house sales and marketing staffers. The outbound sales reps, who carry laptop computers, can access the information in the Briefcase using PBPro, a MediaShare application that provides several interactive features.

With PBPro, the user can ``explore'' and browse through the Briefcase using full text searches, links to related information and other navigational aids. PBPro also allows users to build and deliver their own presentations, as well as resequence and display media exported from other presentation programs.

In addition, PBPro allows sales reps to publish their own customized electronic catalogs by copying selected Briefcase documents onto floppy diskettes that customers can review at their own convenience.

``One of the most powerful features is the ability to launch other applications directly from PBPro,'' Bromley noted. ``That's very important to the Analytical Products Group, since most of our instruments are software-driven. In fact, demonstrating the software is often the most important part of the sales presentation.''

For HP's in-house staff, the Electronic Briefcase will be installed on a networked CD-ROM server that can be accessed by sales and marketing personnel using HP Vectra desktop computers. ``By placing the database on a server, we'll avoid the cost of installing CD-ROM drives at every desktop,'' said Bromley.

While it's still early to measure the benefits of HP's Electronic Briefcase, Bromley has no doubts about its potential for improving sales effectiveness: ``Based on the prototype, our group was given an internal HP award for Best Innovative Use of Technology. The people at MediaShare can take pride in the fact that their ProductBase is at the heart of it all.''

MediaShare is the industry's leading provider of electronic catalogs and interactive selling systems designed to enhance the buying and selling process through interactive multimedia technology. The unique multimedia database technology used to create these solutions was developed in-house by MediaShare

In addition, MediaShare owns and operates one of the nation's most sophisticated all-digital multimedia production and consulting facilities, which provides a one-stop source for the creation of electronic catalogs, electronic sales tools and other forms of interactive media. -0-