ANT Fresco Browser to Enable Internet Browsing Capabilities in ZapMedia's ZapStation Hardware Reference Design; To be Showcased at CES 2001 Booth No. 1781

Business Wire, Jan 3, 2001

Business Editors

CES 2001

LOS ANGELES & ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 3, 2001

ANT Limited, a leading provider of embedded communication software for Internet appliances, consumer electronics devices and e-commerce, today announced that its Fresco(R) browser will provide the Internet browsing capabilities in ZapMedia Inc.'s ZapStation(TM) hardware reference design.

The ZapMedia ecosystem which includes the hardware reference design, the ZapMediaEngine(SM) and the ZapMedia Portal provides an Internet-driven digital media experience through consumer's TVs and stereos. The ZapMedia ecosystem allows consumers to download, stream, store, manage and playback personalized entertainment and news content.

"The ANT Fresco browser's unique architecture is ideal for providing the Internet communication capabilities of ZapMedia's ZapStation hardware reference design," said Ken Lipscomb, founder and chairman of ZapMedia. "Our mission is to maximize the consumer's Internet entertainment experience and the ANT Fresco browser furthers the quality of the hardware's performance."

ANT Fresco is a small memory footprint, standards-compliant browser that enables OEMs to quickly and easily design a branded interface for Internet appliances.

It is platform-independent, so it can be used with any hardware or operating system environment, and is based on a patent pending three-layer architecture that enables it to overcome the power, memory and processor constraints inherent in such appliances. Fresco can be ported to a new operating system in weeks rather than months.

"We are delighted to be a part of ZapMedia's Internet broadcasting solution," said John Cherry, senior vice president, sales and marketing for ANT. "ZapMedia's expertise in the convergence area combined with our expertise in communications software was ideal for creating an advanced Internet appliance such as the ZapStation's hardware reference design."

ZapMedia licenses the ZapStation hardware reference platform and ZapMediaEngine(SM) software to major personal computer and consumer electronics OEMs. Further, ZapMedia is partnering with Internet service and broadband providers to assist in the rapid universal acceptance of broadband as a primary in-home conduit for multimedia data.

The ZapMedia ecosystem opens up a new category of products and services that combine the most popular digital media with traditional home-entertainment activities.

ANT Fresco is based on a three-layer architecture comprising the ANT Portability Environment (APE), which manages the interface to the hardware platform; the core standards-compliant browser code; and a graphical front end.

With ZapMedia's hardware reference platform, consumers will be able to capitalize on the ANT Fresco's Web communication capabilities. Users of the hardware device will be able to browse the Internet and download and stream audio and video files through their television or stereo in the comfort of their living rooms.

In addition, ANT recently announced that Fresco runs on the Java platform using the Java Native Interface (JNI) to interface with Java-based Internet devices. Fresco is written in ANSI C but this development will provide ANT's customers with a small footprint, fully customizable browser which will deliver the high performance advantage of a native browser to the Java platform.

About ZapMedia Inc.

ZapMedia (http://www.zapmedia.com) is a privately-held convergence technology company bringing the future of customized digital entertainment to consumers today. With ZapMedia's co-branded products and services, consumers of all ages can access movies, music, videos and the Web through existing TVs and stereos.

The ZapMedia ecosystem, developed in-house, consists of the ZapStation(TM) hardware reference design (Device), ZapMediaEngine(SM) (Software), ZapAccess(SM) (Service), and the ZapMedia Portal. For more information about ZapMedia's products and services, visit the Web site at www.zapmedia.com.

ANT Limited

ANT Limited (www.antlimited.com) is a leading provider of embedded communication appliance software for consumer electronics, Internet devices and eCommerce products. Core technology includes the ANT Fresco(R) browser and the ANT SimplEmail e-mail client, which employ high performance, highly portable and customisable architectures designed to meet the needs of Internet appliances and other networked products.

ANT's technology gives original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of Internet devices, and the technology partners that supply them, three significant advantages: far greater speed to market, reduced engineering costs, and freedom to leverage corporate identity.

The company's current customers and partners include: Aegis Broadband, Analog Devices, Bitstream, IBM Microelectronics, Pace Micro Technology, Sagem, Symbian, Tality and Wind River Systems.

ANT Limited: 20 Cambridge Place, Cambridge, UK, CB2 1NS.

Tel: +44 (0)1223 716400 Fax: +44 (0)1223 716401

In the United States, call: 949/363-5662

Fresco is a registered trademark of ANT Limited. All other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.