Informix and Pro-Bel Partnership Connects Broadcast Organizations With Digital Asset Management

Business Wire, April 20, 1999

LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 20, 1999--

Informix(R) Corporation (Nasdaq:IFMX), the technology leader in enterprise database-powered solutions, and Pro-Bel, part of the Chyron Corporation (NYSE:CHY), announced today a strategic partnership to combine the extensibility of Informix's database technology with Pro-Bel's MAPP media asset management solution.

This partnership offers broadcast customers unprecedented reliability and performance in managing archived video, live video feeds and data files throughout the entire organization.

As broadcasters move toward a completely digital environment, video servers are becoming the established medium to store and access all of an organization's video assets. Placing all this critical information under the control of a single database requires a powerful, reliable and scalable server to track the video and find a video clip at a moment's notice. This strategic partnership will allow current and potential customers to utilize Informix Dynamic Server(TM) with Universal Data Option(TM) as the robust database platform for Pro-Bel's MAPP Media Management applications.

"Informix technology is already at work at a number of customer broadcast sites and Informix continues to take the media industry very seriously," said Philip O'Ferrall, Head of Software Products & Business Partner Manager for Pro-Bel. "We wanted our solution to take advantage of Informix's expertise in the industry, as well as its ability to accept new data types and third party plug-ins."

Pro-Bel's MAPP system, currently in use at major broadcast organizations such as CNN, NBC and the BBC, fully automates media management operations so the entire enterprise can find and use incoming and stored media assets efficiently. This automation allows the technical personnel who record and broadcast the media to coordinate and communicate with the business organization in charge of content management and sales. In addition, the solution supports some forty different Windows NT-based applications, including applications for browsing low-bandwidth video on the desktop.

"Pro-Bel and Informix are looking to make it as easy as possible for broadcast organizations to migrate to a digital environment and connect their entire enterprise with a media asset management application," said Carolyn Layne, vice president of Informix's Media Business Unit. "The return on investment is significant. Not only does it save time, space and money, it allows staff to be better utilized and can reduce costly broadcast transmission errors."

Pro-Bel has become a member of the Informix Solution Alliance Partner program, and will mutually participate in early access technology programs between the two companies, as well as sales and co-marketing programs. In the future, Pro-Bel also intends to resell Informix's database technology with its MAPP system.

The joint MAPP solution will be demonstrated in the Informix booth at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention and exhibition, April 19-22, in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Informix booth (S-2073) is located in the Sands Expo Center. The Pro-Bel booth (L-24801) is located at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

About Pro-Bel

With installations across 48 countries Pro-Bel provides innovative control solutions for the distribution, storage and monitoring of multi-media signals and manufacture a wide range of routing, manipulation, processing and transmission products for managing high quality, high bandwidth video and audio signals within a broadcast facility.

About Informix

Informix Corporation, based in Menlo Park, California, provides innovative database products that assist the world's major corporations to attain competitive advantage. Informix is widely recognized as the technology leader for corporate computing environments ranging from small workgroups to very large parallel processing applications. Informix's database server application development tools, superior customer service , and strong partnerships enable the company to be at the forefront of major information technology solutions areas including media and publishing, data warehousing, high performance OLTP, and Web/e-commerce. For more information, contact the sales office nearest you or visit our Web site at http://www.informix.com/media.> Note to Editors: The following are trademarks of Informix Corporation or its affiliates, one or more of which may be registered in the U.S. or other jurisdictions: Informix(R), Informix Dynamic Server(TM) and Universal Data Option(TM).

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