Novell Announces PerfectHome Consumer Brand

New Consumer Initiative to Lead Novell into Home Software Market

ATLANTA -- April 24, 1995 -- Novell, Inc. today announced a new initiative that will lead the networking company into the home-based consumer software market, currently the fastest growing software category. Novell's PerfectHome brand will introduce consumers to an assortment of CD-ROM-based multimedia software titles that will begin appearing in stores beginning in June and July.

As part of its consumer initiative, Novell today also announced the establishment of a long-term partnership with Bertelsmann that will help augment Novell's presence internationally with new channels for distribution, sales, marketing, manufacturing and localization.

"Novell's vision of pervasive computing and the billion user network by the year 2000 goes well beyond the enterprise business environment," said Robert J. Frankenberg, Novell president, chairman and chief executive officer. "People want to act on information at anytime, and in anyplace and this includes the home. With PerfectHome, we are poised to not only introduce best-of-class applications to home computer users, we are also prepared to revolutionize the way people access, share and distribute information from the home."

The PerfectHome product line provides applications for nearly every age group and room in the home with applications for personal productivity, family entertainment and home education.

"People are finding more and more reasons to use a PC in the home--for cruising the internet for information as well as for homework, taxes, personal finances, and exciting 3-D multimedia gaming and educational activities," said Jeff Mallett, vice president and general manager, Novell Consumer Division. "With PerfectHome software, Novell is creating a bridge between its popular business applications and personal productivity applications for the home. In coming years, Novell will be providing technology and applications that allow the home to become a stop on the larger network."

One of the personal productivity applications to begin shipping in June is PerfectWorks, a fully integrated software package that includes a powerful, yet easy to use word processor, spreadsheet, database, paint, draw and communications module. Novell has added technologies to PerfectWorks such as the Grammatik grammar and style checker, QuickCorrect for spelling corrections on the fly, the Quicken Special Edition for personal finance and Caller Identification (ID) for integration with user's modems and phone systems.

The entertainment product line will showcase its newest title in June with Hard Evidence: The Marilyn Monroe Files. This super sleuthing multimedia title will let users investigate the death of the superstar legend and uncover police records and evidence never previously seen by the public. Users uncover facts about the case by taking on the role of a district attorney, reporter, coroner or cop. An additional entertainment title will be announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo.

Novell will bolster its complete line of home education products in June with two new pre-reading titles from its world-class education partner, the Waterford Institute, with Make A Story and Read-A-Rama. These titles help kids as young as three years old get an early start to letter and word recognition with activities for sounding out letters, constructing words and rhyming. Other home education titles that have recently received high ratings and industry awards include the Read with Me series, Write with Me and Memphis Math: Treasure of the Tombs. Three additional multimedia education titles will debut in the fall.

Several computer hardware vendors have already begun bundling many of Novell's consumer software titles including Hewlett-Packard, EPSON, Acer, Quantex and Pionex. Numerous other name brand computer hardware manufacturers will also begin bundling PerfectHome titles beginning this summer and fall. Novell expects to gain more than 3.5 million new users during the next 18 months with the delivery of software through OEM channels.

Novell's consumer division was formerly associated with WordPerfect Main Street and was part of Novell's acquisition of WordPerfect Corporation in 1994. The consumer division was successful in opening up several new retail channels throughout the year including Sears, Kmart and Media Play, as well as many of the traditional software retailers including Babbages, Software Etc, Egghead, CompUSA and Computer City.

PerfectHome software will continue to make computers more practical and computing more pervasive with a wide range of titles for the home. For more information on PerfectHome products, users may call (800) 451-5151.