Beatnik and Mixman Announce Merger

US 08/11/99

November 4, 1999 - Beatnik, Inc., the leader in interactive audio technologies and content for the Web, today announced the signing of a definitive agreement to merge with Mixman Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of PC- and Mac-based consumer music creation products. Beatnik and Mixman share a vision that the promise of the Web will be realized when high-quality, interactive music and sound are part of the everyday Web surfer's experience. The Web will become "sonified" as music and sound is experienced in real time, "on the Web page," and not simply downloaded or streamed from it. Beatnik and Mixman's shared customer base and technologies will enable millions of professional Web designers, musicians and consumers to create and experience interactive audio on the Web. Together, Beatnik and Mixman will possess one of the most expansive music and sound libraries available on the Web, including both Top 40 artists and professional music catalogs. Mixman's suite of award-winning consumer software is the market leader for creating, recording, and remixing multi-track music, while Beatnik's authoring tools allow designers to incorporate music and sound into their Web pages. The Beatnik audio engine is the industry standard for digital audio playback and is licensed for use in TV set-top boxes, Internet appliances, Web browsers and Java Sound. "The addition of Mixman's exceptional products, engineering talent, and extensive customer base will have an enormously positive impact on Beatnik's position as the premier provider of interactive music and sound for the Internet," said Lorraine Hariton, president and CEO of Beatnik. "Combining Beatnik Web authoring solutions with Mixman's successful consumer products creates the kind of momentum that fuels content development and licensing agreements with top musical talent. Beatnik-sonified Web sites also will proliferate as our combined user base becomes more proficient with both Beatnik and Mixman tools." "We are thrilled to be joining Beatnik and helping to spearhead the revolution of bringing audio to the Internet," said Eric Almgren, CEO and co-founder of Mixman Technologies. "Having already begun to pool our talent and resources, Beatnik and Mixman is becoming a powerhouse for the leading music software, Web-based communities, Web audio technologies and content needed to sonify the Web." According to a recent report by Jupiter Communications, 80 percent of business executives interviewed cited that audio will become a standard feature on the Internet within the next two years. The report recommends Web sites immediately adapt audio to deliver a passive experience for utility, guidance, cueing and branding, as well as develop interactive audio content to serve as an active pull for consumers to experience music, information and narrative audio. "Interactive music and sound will soon be ubiquitous on the Web, making sonification a leading method for capturing and engaging a Web site audience. Beatnik and Mixman technologies increase the stickiness of a site, which is extremely significant, as twenty minutes spent on a Web page equals about two and a half hours, or eight times the value of the minute, of passive television viewing, " said Michael Moon, analyst at Gistics Research. "It is clear that interactive audio retains audiences longer, provides more meaningful impressions for advertisers and presents online companies the opportunity to sell more products and build larger Web communities." In the new Beatnik organization, Mixman co-founders Eric Almgren and Josh Gabriel will become Beatnik's senior vice president of sales and label relations, and chief product officer, both reporting to Beatnik CEO Lorraine Hariton. Beatnik and Mixman will retain all employees of both companies.

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