Avid Delivers Media Composer Adrenaline HD

New Avid DNxcel Board and Powerful Software Enhancements Augment Industry-Leading System With Unprecedented High-Definition Capabilities

TEWKSBURY, MA -- 12/08/2004 -- Avid Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVID) today announced plans to ship the Media Composer® Adrenaline™ HD 2.0 system -- the next generation of its industry-leading Media Composer Adrenaline product -- worldwide later this month. This major upgrade brings powerful HD editing capabilities to Media Composer Adrenaline software for the first time. In addition, customers can augment their systems with the new Avid DNxcel™ HD board and experience extensive HD functionality, including comprehensive I/O and broad support for a range of formats and resolutions from all popular HD decks and cameras. The optional Avid DNxcel board installs into the open expansion slot on the Avid Adrenaline hardware.

The Avid DNxcel board also supports Avid’s mastering quality, 10-bit Avid DNxHD™ format, which is the only encoding technology on the market that maintains superior HD image quality throughout the postproduction process and enables professionals to work with 10-bit HD media in real time in a collaborative shared-storage environment. The Media Composer Adrenaline HD system also provides real-time multicamera functionality in both SD and HD, and allows customers to mix multiple HD, SD, and DV formats and resolutions in the same timeline.

Dave Ballard, president and owner of Atlanta-based postproduction facility LAB 601, said, “The fact that we can work in high-quality HD in the exact same environment any Avid editor is familiar with is a huge asset of the Media Composer Adrenaline HD system. With the Avid DNxHD format, we can continue sharing media using Avid Unity™ with virtually no storage impact. Also, by implementing HD across a range of products, Avid has made it easy for us to offer a wide range of options to fit different needs and budgets -- everything from a commercial that needs real-time HD with full color correction on Avid DS Nitris® to an independent film that needs DV capture, portability, and HD editing on Avid Xpress® Pro and output on Media Composer Adrenaline HD.”

Avid senior manager of product marketing Charlie Russell commented, “When we first introduced Media Composer Adrenaline at NAB in 2003, Avid customers and prospects praised the system’s hybrid architecture, which delivered significantly advanced performance and investment protection for the future. Now, with Media Composer Adrenaline HD, we’ve carried that evolution forward, building on the strengths of the Avid DNA™ architecture and putting our customers in the best possible position to pioneer the frontier of HD media production. Designed to meet the growing needs of a broad range of HD and SD customers, Media Composer Adrenaline HD offers 10-bit video capture and playback, real-time HD and SD multicamera editing, and support for the most popular HD formats -- including Panasonic DVCPRO HD and Avid DNxHD. Customers who choose Media Composer Adrenaline HD won’t be limited to working with one HD format or resolution. They’ll be able to handle anything that walks through their door.”

The HD functionality of the Media Composer Adrenaline HD system powered by the Avid DNxcel board includes the ability to:

-- Edit 10-bit Avid DNxHD media in real time and preview it on an HD monitor.
-- Capture from -- and output to -- all popular formats via an HD-SDI interface.
-- Down-convert to SD in letterbox, anamorphic, or center crop modes.
-- Use a Digital Visual Interface (DVI) output for low-cost HD monitoring.
-- Work with popular HD resolutions and frame rates: 720p/59.94, 1080p/23.976, 1080p/25, 1080i/50, and 1080i/59.94 will be initially
supported, with 720p/23.976, 1080p/24, 720p/50, and 720p/29.97 planned for 2005.
-- Capture and output DVCPRO HD media via an IEEE-1394 connection.

Enhanced software features of the Media Composer Adrenaline HD 2.0 system include new RGB offline capabilities for file-based workflows with the Avid DS Nitris system, IEEE-1394 support for DVCPRO 50 media, new SpectraMatte™ high-quality 16-bit HD/SD chroma keyer, and a rich effects and keying framework with the new AVX™ 2.0 effects architecture.
“With Media Composer Adrenaline HD, we’re taking our workhorse editing system into the next generation of HD postproduction,” added Russell. “And this is only the beginning: in 2005, upcoming versions of the system will support uncompressed HD and native HDV media, as well as additional resolutions and frame rates. Avid customers have come to expect the ultimate in performance, reliability, flexibility, and scalability -- and the Media Composer Adrenaline HD system delivers on all fronts.”

Pricing & Availability

The Media Composer Adrenaline HD 2.0 system -- which comprises the Media Composer Adrenaline HD 2.0 software and the Avid Adrenaline hardware -- is scheduled to ship later this month for $25,000 USMSRP. The optional Avid DNxcel board may be added for $9,995 USMSRP and is also scheduled to ship later this month. These products will initially be qualified for the HP xw8200 and xw8000 workstations, as well as other existing Media Composer Adrenaline Windows XP platforms. Support for the Mac platform is planned to follow in 2005.

Customers who do not require extensive HD I/O capabilities or real-time functionality for previewing HD effects -- but wish to import, natively edit, and render Avid DNxHD and DVCPRO HD media -- can purchase the Media Composer Adrenaline HD system without the Avid DNxcel board. Upgrades to the Media Composer Adrenaline HD 2.0 software are available for free to existing Media Composer Adrenaline customers on Avid Assurance.

About Avid Technology, Inc.

Avid Technology, Inc. is the world leader in digital nonlinear media creation, management, and distribution solutions, enabling film, video, audio, animation, games, and broadcast professionals to work more efficiently, productively, and creatively. For more information about the company’s Oscar®, Grammy®, and Emmy® award-winning products and services, please visit: www.avid.com.

© 2004 Avid Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Product features, specifications, system requirements, and availability are subject to change without notice. All prices are USMSRP for the U.S. and Canada only and are subject to change without notice. Contact your local Avid office or reseller for prices outside the U.S. and Canada. Avid, Digidesign, Film Composer, Pro Tools, Media Composer, Adrenaline, Avid DNA, Avid DNxcel, Avid DNxHD, Avid Unity, Nitris, Avid Xpress, SpectraMatte, and AVX are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Avid received an Oscar statuette representing the 1998 Scientific and Technical Award for the concept, design, and engineering of the Avid Film Composer® system for motion picture editing. Digidesign, Avid’s audio division, received an Oscar statuette representing the 2003 Scientific and Technical Award for the design, development, and implementation of its Pro Tools® digital audio workstation. Oscar is a trademark and service mark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Emmy is a registered trademark of ATAS/NATAS. Grammy is a trademark of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, Inc. All other trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

Contact Information

Alice Palmer

Avid Technology

Avid Technology

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