Novell Announces Licensing Agreement With Epson

Multimedia Home Computers Come Bundled With Novell Consumer Software

OREM, Utah--April 10, 1995--Novell, Inc. today announced a licensing agreement for its consumer division products with EPSON, a leading provider of technology products. The bundling agreement will provide consumers with the three R's of home education -- Read with Me 1& 2, Write with Me and Memphis Math: Treasure of the Tombs.

The three education products will be bundled on the EPSON ActionTower 7500 and 8200 machines beginning in May. The price range for the ActionTower computers is from $1,699 to $1,999.

Positioned as a PC line for all members of the family, the ActionTower line is targeted at the home market, including the personal and business user.

"As we look to expand our presence in the OEM market, our goal is to bundle with high-caliber companies like EPSON," said Jeff Mallett, vice president and general manager, consumer products division, Novell, Inc. "Developing a presence in the OEM market is an important part of Novell's vision of pervasive computing. Bundled products gain access to a large number of customers -- going into more homes and increasing the scope of computing."

"We selected the WordPerfect Main Street education products because they are quality products from a recognized name-brand vendor," said Michael DeNeffe, director of PC product marketing, EPSON. "The Main Street products cover the ever-important three R's of education at an age range of 3 to 14 years."

Memphis Math is a math adventure that focuses on fractions, decimals and percents while exploring the tombs of ancient Egypt. Read With Me 1& 2 gives children a head start on reading by helping them develop color, shape, number, letter and word recognition skills. Write with Me lets kids create cards, signs, letters and books while building alphabet familiarization, word recognition and overall writing skills.

Memphis Math recently received the Media& Methods certificate of distinction award, Parents' Choice approval and four-star ratings from Multimedia World, Electronic Entertainment and HOMEPC. It also received four and a half stars from Children's Software Revue. Read with Me 1& 2 recently received the Family PC Recommended seal.

These award-winning education titles were developed for Novell by the Waterford Institute, a nonprofit research center specializing in multimedia education software for children.

EPSON machines with the Main Street bundle will be available in regional retail and classic store-front dealers nationwide in May. Other products to be bundled with the EPSON ActionTowers include Sierra Outpost, Magic Theatre, Mayo Family Clinic Health Book, ClarisWorks, Quicken SE and EPSON FocalPoint user interface for Windows.

Main Street consumer software is also licensed by Hewlett-Packard, Pionex, Quantex and 3D Micro of Canada. Other software bundling agreements will be announced during 1995.

Novell consumer software continues to make home computers more practical and computing more pervasive with a wide range of titles in the areas of personal productivity, family entertainment and home education.

EPSON offers an extensive array of technology products including inkjet, laser and dot matrix printers, scanners, portable and desktop computers and, for the OEM market, a variety of component and electronic devices. Founded in 1975, Epson America, Inc. is an affiliate of Seiko Epson Corporation, a global manufacturer and supplier of high-quality technology products that meet customer demands for increased functionality, compactness, systems integration and energy efficiency.