LOS ANGELES - April 13, 1999 - Microsoft Corp. and Reciprocal^TM today announced a complete, end-to-end DRM solution from Reciprocal tailored for the music industry. This announcement marks the next step in the companies' strategic alliance to deliver digital rights management (DRM) solutions for the digital content economy. Today at the Windows^® Media Technologies 4.0 launch, executives from Microsoft and Reciprocal appeared onstage, with the Reciprocal representative demonstrating a prerelease version of the end-to-end DRM solution based on the Microsoft^® Windows Media Rights Manager, a component of Windows Media Technologies 4.0. The solution provides consumers with new ways of accessing, downloading and purchasing digital music over the Internet while enabling content providers to build new revenue streams.

The Windows Media Rights Manager helps artists, publishers and distributors derive long-term value from their content assets when distributing them over the Internet. The system enables copyright holders to package their songs or videos in such a way that end users can be informed of the authenticity of content and easily obtain a license for its use. Reciprocal's digital rights management solution offers all-encompassing DRM capabilities for content owners, aggregators and distributors that want to enter the digital marketplace quickly and on a scale and budget that meets their needs. The solution is a software and service offering that goes beyond addressing piracy issues; it creates a simple, robust environment for driving continual business opportunities and implementing sophisticated business models, such as digital subscriptions and limited-term promotional licenses, while providing cost-effective management of the associated back-office operations.

"We expect that consumer demand for music and video over the Internet will explode with the availability of Windows Media Technologies 4.0," said Paul Bandrowski, CEO and president of Reciprocal. "The challenge for content owners is to meet this growing demand with solutions that enable them to distribute their content profitably while providing a highly satisfying experience for the consumer. Our DRM solution for the music industry clearly illustrates that Reciprocal and Microsoft are uniquely qualified to meet the needs of both content owners and consumers. We look forward to working with Microsoft to enable new markets for digital content that will truly drive the content economy."

"As a strategic partner, Reciprocal plays an important role for Microsoft customers by providing a robust and comprehensive DRM solution. This solution enables content providers to make optimal use of the Internet as a profitable distribution channel for music," said Will Poole, senior director of marketing and business development for the Streaming Media Division at Microsoft. "We are pleased to be moving forward in our relationship with Reciprocal with the release of our technology platform and Reciprocal's comprehensive suite of applications and services."

Enabling Digital Commerce

The Reciprocal DRM solution, based on Windows Media Rights Manager, provides all the software, back-office infrastructure and professional services necessary to enable businesses to fully capitalize on the new and unique revenue opportunities of the digital content economy:

• Packaging of digital content. Advanced technology and processes ensure the protected distribution of any digital content through an encrypted "container" that continuously carries the content and access rules designated by the content owner.
• Hosting of digital content.The solution provides availability of turnkey hosting of digital content, which works seamlessly with the associated back-end reporting services.