VBrick Systems Expands Business-Critical Digital Video Capabilities; New EtherneTV 3.0 Delivers Single Point of Control for Windows Media and MPEG; Intuitive Management Empowers Organizations to Harness Digital Video for Diverse Requirements

Business Wire, Sept 21, 2005

WALLINGFORD, Conn. -- VBrick Systems, Inc. (www.VBrick.com), an industry leader in affordable video over IP network solutions, today announced EtherneTV Media Distribution System 3.0, a turnkey platform to record, distribute, and manage digital video across IP networks. EtherneTV 3.0's integrated console for Windows Media and MPEG video empowers organizations to simplify enterprise IP video application management and tailor their IP video capabilities to support diverse requirements.

EtherneTV 3.0 features VBrick's new VB6000 WM Appliance for Windows Media, which delivers reliable video streaming and intuitive management capabilities that enable organizations to launch streaming video in minutes. VBrick empowers Information Technology (IT) staffs to optimize their Microsoft investments and also seamlessly access popular MPEG-format digital video. (In a concurrent release today, VBrick announced the VB6000 WM Appliance).

Additional EtherneTV 3.0 features enable users to harness digital video for applications such as automated tele-presence video sessions for weekly planning meetings, on demand DVD-quality training videos, and Internet streaming video presentations. New scheduling capabilities simplify EtherneTV 3.0 management while additional enhancements strengthen performance and scalability.

"From boardrooms to classrooms, digital video is quickly becoming the next critical application," said Sivakumar Muthuramalingam, industry analyst, Technical Insights, Frost & Sullivan. "To support the exciting collaboration and training opportunities effectively, organizations need to cohesively and centrally manage their growing networked video requirements. EtherneTV 3.0 will help organizations control and manage the supporting infrastructure to drive a seamless experience for the end user."

"Many organizations have not achieved digital video ubiquity due to the need for several digital video formats," said Rich Mavrogeanes, president and CTO of VBrick Systems. "EtherneTV 3.0's simplified, yet powerful IP media capabilities enable organizations to apply the right video technology quickly to specific business requirements."

EtherneTV 3.0 Features

VBrick's new EtherneTV 3.0 provides the performance and ease-of-use required for essential operations, including:

-- Portal access to essential digital video content:

        --  Enables users to access digital video seamlessly across
            multiple Windows Media release versions and MPEG
            standards. Importantly, users access both live streaming
            content and archived video. By eliminating video
            compatibility hurdles, organizations leverage IP video to
            increase operational efficiencies, training effectiveness,
            and collaboration

        --  Simplifies digital video management via an intuitive,
            browser-based interface to search, select, and play video
            content

    --  Powerful scheduling capabilities:

        --  Enables users to schedule video sessions and recordings.
            Features "set and forget" automated tele-presence video
            sessions for sales meetings, daily school announcements,
            etc. EtherneTV 3.0 automates all administrator-defined
            meeting requirements, including turning on compatible
            users' systems for the point-to-point meetings

        --  Distributes pre-recorded messages quickly for emergency
            broadcasts or other events

    --  Database enhancements: Features metadata searching
        capabilities and increased customization (e.g., customized
        video cataloging)

    --  Expanded security: Offers increased access and authorization
        management, including Single Sign On (SSO)

    --  Enterprise-strength video recording capabilities: Concurrent
        video recording session scalability supports expanding user
        requirements

    --  Expanded remote video connectivity: HyperText Transfer
        Protocol (HTTP) tunneling removes common firewall video
        connectivity barriers. EtherneTV 3.0 simplifies and expands
        remote network access to digital video content

    --  Closed captioning: EtherneTV 3.0 appliances are the only
        products that provide MPEG-4 closed captioning for PCs and set
        top boxes. EtherneTV 3.0 provides closed captioning for
        MPEG-1, 2, and 4

    --  Protect Microsoft investments: EtherneTV 3.0 Windows Media
        support enables users to extend their Microsoft infrastructure
        ecosystems and provide added management, performance, and
        flexibility to their Windows Media technologies

EtherneTV 3.0 Components

VBrick's standards-based solutions assure high performance and interoperability with existing IP-based infrastructures. EtherneTV 3.0's modular design enables users to expand their IP video capabilities quickly. EtherneTV 3.0 includes:

--  VB6000 WM Appliance for Windows Media: Provides
        enterprise-strength Windows Media performance that enables
        organizations to deliver live and stored video virtually
        anywhere. Powerful VBrick encoder multicasting capabilities
        eliminate the requirement for a separate Windows Media server.
        The VBrick appliance enables organizations to deliver a single
        video stream (multicast) to all networked desktops and support
        up to 200 separate (unicast) Windows Media sessions per
        appliance, allowing organizations to deliver live video
        virtually anywhere

    --  VBrick MPEG encoder appliances: Enables IP video capture and
        delivery via support for MPEG-1, 2, and 4 standards for
        high-performance, low-bandwidth connections

    --  EtherneTV 3.0 Media Control Server Product Suite: Delivers
        single point of control for simultaneous streamed and stored
        digital video. Also features intuitive scheduling and back-end
        management capabilities to align IP video with operations.
        Includes support for Windows Media Server and MPEG-1, 2, and
        4, and provides user access and authentication, as well as
        stored video retrieval and live channel access

    --  EtherneTV 3.0 - NXG Video-On-Demand Server: High-performance
        video-on-demand capabilities include up to four terabytes of
        storage to manage active digital libraries

    --  EtherneTV Set-Top Box 3.0: Enables televisions, flat panel
        displays, and projectors to display IP video. Intuitive remote
        control enables users to select video quickly and easily.
        Closed captioning capabilities expand video applications and
        support federal disabilities compliance requirements

    --  StreamPlayer: PC-based software that supports MPEG (MPEG-1, 2,
        and 4) and Windows Media from a single viewer