Macromedia Announces Next Generation of MX

New MX 2004 product family defines the experience layer forthe digital world

San Francisco, CA—Macromedia, Inc. (Nasdaq: MACR) recentlyunveiled the next generation of its award-winning MX product familyused by professional developers and designers to build web sites andapplications. Major new versions of the industry-leading MacromediaDreamweaver, Flash, and Fireworks tools will continue to move thedigital world from inaction to interactive experiences, while newproducts such as Macromedia Flash MX Professional 2004 will bring thepower of the Internet to a new class of advanced developers. The MX2004 family also includes new building blocks called the MX Elementsfor Flash and the MX Elements for HTML, along with a unique look andfeel for Internet applications called Halo.

"We launched Macromedia MX in 2002 with a challenge to the industryand to our customers: make digital experiences better. Our customersembraced this challenge and created content and applications thatsurpassed our expectations -- like they always do," said Rob Burgess,chairman and CEO, Macromedia. "We built MX 2004 based on the incrediblethings our customers did and the feedback they provided along the way.These new products and building blocks will give them the power to runwith their creativity and take digital experiences to whole new levels."

The MX 2004 family includes new releases of Dreamweaver, Flash andFireworks, and introduces a new product, Flash MX Professional 2004,which will enable a new segment of developers to create rich Internetapplications. Studio MX 2004 includes Dreamweaver MX 2004, Flash MX2004 (or Flash MX Professional 2004), Fireworks MX 2004, and FreehandMX. The new products are expected to ship in September. For moreinformation, visit www.macromedia.com/go/mx2004/.

"Developers are constantly being asked to do more with less, butstill create content and applications of the highest quality thatdeliver great experiences," said Rikki Kirzner, research director, IDC."They want an integrated toolset that provides a fluid, streamlinedworkflow for whatever type of project they are doing, not to reinventthe wheel every time. Companies that focus on productivity gains,decreased costs, and a commitment to making better content easier tocreate are on the right path."

Dreamweaver is the professional choice for building web sites andapplications. Dreamweaver MX 2004 continues this tradition ofinnovation with new and updated support for standards and servertechnologies such as Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), secure FTP, andASP.NET. Dreamweaver MX 2004 continues to simplify web site andapplication development.

Flash is the standard for creating rich interactive experiences onthe Internet. Flash MX 2004 makes it easier than ever before to createrich, interactive content and enables designers and developers toaccelerate projects, increase creative control, and extend theirworkspace with new functionality.

Flash MX Professional 2004 is a new product that builds on thestrengths of Flash with an entirely new development environment foradvanced application developers. Flash MX Professional 2004 providesvisual developers with a familiar forms-based programming metaphor,enabling them to build and deploy rich Internet applications. Flash MXProfessional 2004 also allows developers to deliver video-rich,interactive experiences.

Fireworks is the leading tool for designing and optimizing webgraphics. Fireworks MX 2004 delivers a broad array of new design toolsand effects for web graphics, and promotes collaboration throughexpanded integration with other MX products.

Macromedia Studio MX, first released in 2002, became the mostsuccessful product in the company's history by providing acomprehensive suite of design and development solutions for creatinggreat web sites and applications. Studio MX 2004 combines the new MX2004 tools with FreeHand MX to provide an integrated and convenientdevelopment suite with a workflow that will reduce time to value forour customers.

Each MX 2004 product shares consistent interface, design, anddevelopment elements, and functionality that enable developers to workmore efficiently across multiple products. Studio MX 2004 will includeeither Flash MX 2004 or Flash MX Professional 2004.

Macromedia is also expanding the MX universe with the availabilityof the MX Elements and Halo. The MX Elements are a series of interfacebuilding blocks and a new generation of embedded, interactive designpatterns and behaviors. The MX Elements for HTML and the MX Elementsfor Flash make it faster for customers to build effective interfaces bybringing together a range of technologies including components,templates, style sheets, and behaviors. The MX Elements, by default,have a distinctive new look and feel called Halo. The MX Elements andHalo give developers an opportunity to provide Internet users with anoptimized and consistent rich user experience. Halo is inspired by theproperties of light, and Macromedia believes Halo will make the digitalworld a brighter, friendlier place.

Other products in the MX family include ColdFusion MX 6.1, DirectorMX, Flash Player 7, FreeHand MX, and JRun.