Sonic Foundry Launches Vegas[TM] Pro

Sonic Foundry (Nasdaq: SOFO), a leading developer and marketer of media authoring tools and digital audio software for Windows[R], announced today that it has initiated the worldwide launch of Vegas Pro, its technologically advanced, non-linear multitrack media editing system for Windows-based PCs. Vegas Pro uniquely combines unparalleled efficiency with truly superior processing performance to provide the ultimate audio/media production and Internet authoring environment.

Vegas Pro will make its official premiere in Sonic Foundry's booth (Meeting Room #3007) at the NAMM Show in Nashville (July 23 – 25) and will be available for purchase from U.S. retail stores and the Sonic Foundry Web site beginning July 30th. In adherence with its ongoing commitment to deliver truly global software solutions, Sonic Foundry also announced that it plans to deliver Japanese, French, Italian, German, and Spanish language versions of Vegas Pro by the Fall of 1999. These versions will feature the same functionality as the English-language version, and all components will be translated including the software, owner's manual, online help, and packaging.

Initially released in a sneak-preview beta format on June 11th, Vegas Pro has already received accolades from industry experts in both the digital audio and media authoring arenas. For example, according to Rip Rowan, Editor of ProRec, "Vegas Pro is probably the most important piece of audio software to be released this year. Definitely check it out." (Visit the ProRec WebZine @ http://prorec.com.) In addition, the overall response from those users who downloaded the Vegas Pro beta release was exceptionally positive.

The Vegas Pro system features a unique, multi-threaded architecture designed to squeeze 'over-the-top,' real-time performance from a standard Windows PC. With Vegas Pro, users can perform non-destructive edits during playback and run multiple plug-in effects, all in real time. Vegas Pro's complete flexibility and enhanced media handling also allow the mixing of file properties, bit depths, and sampling rates. A highly scalable solution, Vegas Pro will utilize multiple processors and extra RAM to achieve a level of performance that is unmatched by software-only multitracks. Additionally, disk throughput, the most critical aspect of any hard-disk recording system, is heavily optimized in Vegas Pro through its use of asynchronous I/O when available.

"The launch of Vegas Pro marks an important milestone for Sonic Foundry because with this release we have now expanded well beyond our traditional role as a digital audio software supplier to become an expert developer of advanced Internet authoring tools and media editing as well," said Sonic Foundry's Chairman and CEO, Rimas Buinevicius. "Vegas Pro effectively builds upon the proven technology of our existing products to provide a significantly more efficient production environment for audio/media professionals, and it is also fully capable of meeting the production needs of Internet content creators and broadcast media professionals worldwide."

The feature-packed Vegas Pro also provides 24-bit/96 kHz class performance to ensure precise audio definition, accommodates unlimited tracks, and includes DirectX Plug-In support for easy expandability. In addition, it supports .MP3 files and the seamless creation of streaming media content, including the ability to incorporate timeline metadata for both Windows Media Technologies 4.0 and RealNetworks RealSystem G2 file formats. Vegas Pro utilizes an intuitive interface for all editing and mixing, including the ability to scrub forward or backward easily in audio or media production projects.

Minimum system requirements for Vegas Pro include Microsoft Windows 9x/NT 4.0, a 200MHz Pentium processor (400 MHz recommended), 32 MB of RAM (128 MB recommended), 20 MB of available hard-disk space, a VGA display (24-bit color recommended), a CD-ROM drive, and a Windows-compatible sound card.