Macromedia Announces Macromedia Director MX 2004

San Francisco, CA—Macromedia, Inc. (Nasdaq: MACR) announcedMacromedia Director MX 2004, the latest version of the industrystandard multimedia authoring tool. Macromedia Director has been at theforefront of multimedia development for more than a decade, and thislatest version adds support for JavaScript, Flash MX 2004 content,DVD-Video, and the ability to create pr ojector files for both Mac andWindows platforms in one simple step.

Macromedia Director MX 2004 enables developers to unleash theircreativity and build rich, interactive experiences that delivermeasurable results (see quote sheet). For more information, visitwww.macromedia.com/go/dirmx2004.

"Macromedia Director defined both this company and this industry,and it remains the most sophisticated multimedia authoring tool to thisday," said Norm Meyrowitz , president of products, Macromedia."Macromedia Director MX 2004 builds on the product's rich legacy andadds new features that will enable richer content and easierdevelopment due to its seamless workflow with other MX 2004 productsand the addition of an industry standard, widely used, scriptinglanguage."

Macromedia Director MX 2004 empowers professional multimediadevelopers, advanced Flash developers, professional DVD developers,e-learning designers, and game developers who need to create multimediacontent that can be deployed anywhere, whether it be CD, DVD,intranets, kiosks, or the Internet. Director MX 2004 supports mostmajor video, audio, bitmap, 3D, and vector formats to give developersthe broadest content palette from which to deliver sophisticated,compelling user experiences.

Extensive video capabilities within Director MX 2004 allowdevelopers to stream video files in DVD-Video, Windows Media,RealMedia, QuickTime, and Flash formats. DVD-Video functionality willenable developers to embed, control, and playback DVD-Video contentwithin multimedia projects. Director also has a powerful Xtras plug-inarchitecture, which enables developers to extend both the applicationand playback to add nearly limitless functionality.

"Gulfstream is using Director MX 2004 to develop our PlaneViewcockpit simulator which integrates real-time mapping information,global satellite positioning, and weather overlays," said Will Dent,manager, Gulfstream Aerospace. "The cockpit interface enables users todrill-down into the information, and we are heavily using the sharedcomponents between Flash and Director as well as the support forJavaScript in the development of this Interactive Sales Tool. Thissaves us at least five days of development time."

Macromedia Director MX 2004 is also tightly integrated with otherproducts and servers in the MX family. In addition to adding supportfor Flash MX 2004 content and applications, Director also has theability to launch and edit both Flash and Fireworks to enable aseamless workflow. Director also includes support for Flash MX 2004components, including user interface components. Flash content can beintegrated into Director projects, and Flash performance withinDirector projects has been dramatically improved over previousversions. Like other MX 2004 products, the workspace is entirelycustomizable and Director now offers the ability for users to evencustomize both the stage and movie-in-a-window interfaces for betterworkspace management.

"The ability to respond quickly to changing business requirements,to reduce development complexity, and to deploy an application orchanges quickly are essential to helping companies be more agile andcontrol development costs," said Rikki Kirzner, research director, IDC."The most valuable tools are those that not only help companies achievethese goals, but also use existing industry standards as well asallowing developers to deploy their applications to multipleplatforms."

The product has also added new features to make developers moreefficient and productive. Interactivity within projects can now bescripted directly using JavaScript, Lingo, or a combination of both.Content can be published to both Macintosh and Windows, and onlineacross different platforms, in one simple step. The ability to namesprites and channels enabled workflow efficiencies for the productionof content within Director. For a detailed list of new features inDirector MX 2004, visit www.macromedia.com/go/dirmx2004new.

"Apple and Macromedia share a commitment to helping creativeprofessionals achieve maximum results with maximum ease," said RonOkamoto, vice president of worldwide developer relations, Apple."Director breaks new ground by enabling video professionals using AppleFinal Cut Pro and DVD Studio Pro to deliver cross-platform Directorprojectors and web-based Shockwave content that can embed, playback,and control DVD video content."

PRICING AND AVAILABILITY

Macromedia Director MX 2004, expected to ship in English inFebruary, is priced at $1,199 for new users, and $399 for upgrades fromDirector 8.5 and Director MX. Education, government, and volumelicensing options are available. The software works on Mac OS X v10.2.6or higher, and for Windows 2000 or Windows XP. French, German, andJapanese versions will be available at a later date.

ABOUT MACROMEDIA

Experience matters. Macromedia is motivated by the belief that greatexperiences build great businesses. Our software empowers millions ofbusiness users, developers, and designers to create and delivereffective, compelling, and memorable experiences - on the Internet, onfixed media, on wireless, and on digital devices.