RioPort, Inc. Unveils RioPort.com, an Internet Destination for Complete Digital Audio Access; New Digital Audio Site Features Hot New MP3 and WMA-based Music and Word Content, Cool Interactive Demos, User Customization, 24/7 Customer Assistance and More

Business Wire, Oct 26, 1999

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 26, 1999--

RioPort, Inc. today announced that it has officially unveiled RioPort.com, an integrated, one-stop source for digital audio fans to access the widest range of popular and new music in both MP3 and Windows Media Audio (WMA) formats, as well as the Internet's widest selection of spoken audio programming, including comedy tracks, audio books, old time radio programs and more. In addition, people can download RioPort's easy-to-use RioPort Audio Manager jukebox software and experience interactive flash demos of new portable hardware from the site. RioPort will be delivering customized content from RioPort.com and special versions of its RioPort Audio Manager software to global branded partners, such as MTV Networks Online.

"As everyone knows, there are a plethora of sites on the Internet offering digital audio content. What's unique about RioPort.com is that it is an integral component of a complete digital audio platform, offering not only the deepest content selection on the Internet, but providing a means for people to quickly and easily obtain that content, to manage it the way that they want, and to transfer it for playback on their portable device or desktop. No other company offers this level of integration," said David Watkins, president of RioPort.com.

"Today, we're launching some new features that will make accessing digital audio content not only easier, but a whole lot more fun," said J.D. Heilprin, publisher and general manager of RioPort.com. "RioPort.com delivers digital audio in ways that are truly useful and compelling to a new generation of digital audio enthusiasts."

Hot New Music Available at RioPort.Com

RioPort provides music tracks, categorized under 20 genres, in both MP3 and WMA formats. The company is working closely with record labels including DreamWorks, TVT, Mammoth, Sub Pop, Roadrunner, Almo Sounds, V2 Records, Moonshine, and a slew of other independents, such as Side One/Dummy Recordings, Artemis Records and Vagrant Records. RioPort is also partnering with a vast array of content providers such as Emusic, Amplified, MP3.com, Cductive, Beatflow, Epitonic, Atomic Pop, EmagineMusic and MusicMaker. This enables RioPort to provide customers with music from popular artists as well as music from independent artists that have yet to break into the mainstream. Well-known artists currently featured on the site include Bush, Stone Temple Pilots, Eurythmics, Danzig, Buckcherry, Powerman 5000 and a duet from Carl Perkins and Willie Nelson.

The company provides copyright protection through its relationships with Reciprocal Music and Microsoft and is closely involved in working with InterTrust to deliver secure music distribution now and in the future. RioPort's new strategic relationships with MTV Network Online and Universal Music will result in the addition of a wide variety of popular digital audio content for RioPort users beginning this fall.

Best Selection of Spoken Audio on the Net

RioPort is the most comprehensive source on the Internet for all types of spoken audio content, with hundreds of tracks in 12 different genres, found under the "Word" area. RioPort has been working with the leading providers in every segment of audio publishing to deliver a plethora of intriguing, humorous, and thought-provoking audio to the public. RioPort users can listen to cutting-edge authors such as Henry Rollins, Nick Cave and Michelle Serros reading their own work in recordings from MP3Lit.com; hilarious live performances from up-and-coming comedians provided by Comedy.com; supercharge their brain through mind-blowing trance meditations from LifeQuest; or enjoy a classic episode of the Jack Benny Radio show from RadioSpirits.com.

Other available programming includes: popular audiobooks from Audible.com; educational and test preparation study guides from Kaplan; teachings from the Dalai Lama provided by the Tibet Center; literature study guides from Schoolbytes.com; numerous poetry selections from various artists and publishers; adult sex education tools from Sinclair Intimacy Institute; original erotica from Vivid Video; and historic recordings from the Michigan State and Columbia University oral history archives.

New Look and Feel

RioPort.com's internal creative team has created a virtual digital audio playground for consumers where they can play with interactive demos and actually hear the digital audio they've come for. RioPort.com features interactive flash demos of its own RioPort Audio Manager software, Casady & Green's SoundJam software for Macs and S3's Diamond Rio 500 hardware, allowing people to experiment and actually see how the products work prior to purchase.

"The RioPort.com site allows people to viscerally experience the world of digital audio without ever leaving the site," said Josh Rose, creative director at RioPort.com. "We've designed RioPort.com with icons, imagery and color schemes that make you want to push the next button, move around and explore, and to come back over and over again."