face2face Revolutionizes Facial Animation; Lucent Technologies Venture First to Offer Accurate Lip Synch, Life-Like Characters

Business Wire, April 4, 2000

Business and Technology Editors

MURRAY HILL, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 4, 2000

Nickelodeon Initial Beta Customer for New Face2Face Software;

Cuts Production Time, Expense for TV, Internet

The face of animation is about to change. face2face(TM), a new venture formed by Lucent Technologies (NYSE: LU) today announced that it will license breakthrough software for professional television, electronic games, and Internet animators that delivers -- for the first time -- automated lip synchronization.

The face2face software will enable animators to create more lifelike characters in one-tenth the time of the traditional animation production cycle, reducing costs on a half-hour animated television program by tens of thousands of dollars. This will allow new animation opportunities for programmers, for example, to create immediate updates to Web animation content, fueling the already fast-growing market for Internet content development. Eventually, even consumers will be able to create high-quality, low-cost facial animation.

face2face animation investors include Lucent Technologies New Ventures Group, Saturn Asset Management, Inc. and US Interactive, Inc.

Nickelodeon, Inc., a subsidiary of Viacom, Inc., and a leading producer of television and Internet animation, is the first beta customer to use the face2face software, continuing their leadership in next-generation animation production.

The animation market will grow to $35 billion by 2001, and commercial-grade animation will represent 73 percent of this total market, according to the Roncarelli Report on the Computer Animation Industry. The global market for animation is exploding, as programmers and advertisers seek to gain viewer's attention through the use of animated characters.

face2face software can be used for a wide range of applications, including online visual chat, advertising, visual e-mail and e-commerce applications such as real-time customer support.

The face2face software is based on patented technology originally developed at Bell Labs, the renowned research and development arm of Lucent Technologies. The software will be available in the summer of 2000 in downloadable formats from the face2face Web site (www.f2f-inc.com) marking the first time that animation software has been licensed through an application service provider (ASP) model. The company will employ a revolutionary pricing structure, charging customers on a per-frame of processed animation basis without requiring any initial investment in software.

"Animators have been waiting for software that delivers the `holy grail' of perfect lip synch and works on Internet time -- and that's exactly what our face2face software does," said Stephen Clemente, CEO of face2face animation. "The television and Web animation industries have been converging for several years. With the face2face system, a standard 30-minute animated TV show could be produced in four weeks, saving as much as 25 percent of animation production costs. Programmers can easily transfer content created for television to the Web, and vice versa, without having to painstakingly repurpose content at great time and expense."

The face2face software is based on the emerging MPEG-4 standard that enables animators to transparently adapt content created for television, for example, to the Web instantly. Animators can use face2face software in conjunction with the most popular animation programs - including SoftImage - to deliver fully realized facial animation.

"Internet applications such as face2face software represent a great opportunity for Lucent to leverage the emerging Web animation market through world-class Bell Labs technology," said Tom Uhlman, president of Lucent's New Ventures Group. "This is the right time to launch this business."

NICKELODEON

Nickelodeon's Nick Digital interactive production studio is currently in beta test with the face2face software with some of its existing characters. Nick Digital director Joel Krasnove is exploring an animated talk show that would use the face2face software for the character's face animation.

"We strive to move the meter on animation production, and are always looking for new technology that will enable faster, more appealing character creation. The face2face software enables us to more easily develop animated characters whose facial expressions are truly human. This is a significant breakthrough for what we do, providing a creative platform for an entirely new type of animation," said Krasnove. "Animation is a hallmark of the Nickelodeon brand, and we have developed a particular look and feel over the years that greatly distinguishes us within the industry."

HOW TO USE FACE2FACE SOFTWARE

face2face software makes animation a more accessible option. After creating a face character, animators only need to videotape an actor speaking the lines, and the recorded lip and facial movements are then automatically processed by the face2face software for automatic lip synchronization to a selected animated face model. Multiple animated characters can be synchronized simultaneously. The face2face system does not require, for example, markers taped to actors' faces.