CITY OF INDUSTRY, Calif., Oct. 22, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Global ePoint, Inc. (Global) (NASDAQ:GEPT) today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Media Excel, Inc. ("Media Excel"), providing Global with exclusive manufacturing rights and nonexclusive sales and marketing rights of Media Excel. Global has also made a strategic investment that provides Global with a $300 thousand convertible note as well as certain option rights for additional investments.
Media Excel is a software solutions provider focused on developing real-time encoding, streaming and transcoding for standard-based audio-visual communication. The software solutions are designed for digital video applications, such as streaming, surveillance, conferencing, broadcasting and content authoring. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Media Excel is a privately held company founded in 2000. More information is available about Media Excel on its website: www.mediaexcel.com.
The agreement provides Global a six-month period, in addition to continuing periods under certain conditions, to exclusively provide all computer and server hardware for Media Excel sales, and the right to nonexclusively sell and market Media Excel products. In addition, the agreement provides Global the right to convert its investment into equity and the right to acquire additional equity in Media Excel at similar prices as provided with Global's current investment.
Jongil Kim, Chief Executive Officer of Media Excel, commented, "We are extremely pleased to enter into this strategic arrangement with Global ePoint. Media Excel's strength has been in developing software solutions based on our patent-pending video compression algorithms melded with advanced computer and software engineering technologies. We believe our solutions are now ready to be more fully exploited for our target markets that use streaming, surveillance, conferencing, broadcasting and content authoring. The manufacturing and marketing relationship between Global ePoint and Media Excel will provide us with an important element in launching our technologies. Our goal over the next six months is to move aggressively forward with penetrating our market opportunities and thereafter to fully exploit our technologies."
Toresa Lou, Chief Executive Officer of Global ePoint, commented, "The agreement with Media Excel marks Global's continuing efforts in creating a complete technology offering for real-time video compression and streaming to a number of diverse markets. Global's Sequent division has been developing video, audio and data transmission systems for use in Law Enforcement, Homeland Security and other commercial and military applications. We believe Media Excel's video compression, real-time streaming and high-quality video transmission and retrieval technologies may not only benefit Global's current vertical market development, but also expand its vertical markets for this technology. Media Excel has a number of expanded market opportunities that could lead to significant future sales. We have also established certain additional investment options in Media Excel so that not only will we benefit from Media Excel's technology in our target vertical markets, but also capitalize on the potential value growth of Media Excel in the future."
About Global ePoint
The Company has two main operating divisions. One operating division, McDigit, manufactures customized computers and provides comprehensive solutions for industrial personal computer, commercial personal computer and contract manufacturing markets. This division currently provides approximately 80% of the industrial computers to companies that supply x-ray security equipment for the airline industry. McDigit has recently begun expanding its manufacturing into other markets, such as consumer retail sales, medical applications and PC gaming applications. The Company's other operating division, Sequent Technologies, is in the process of establishing initial market acceptance of its long-range video, audio and data transmission system, called the "RAIDIUS System," including the "Ranger" and "Paladin" products. Sequent's systems are designed to transmit video, audio and data streams from anywhere using virtually any data transmission system and the Internet. Sequent's ability to network video surveillance systems and provide secure access via existing Internet, cellular and computer interfaces is designed to enhance the potential use of video in Law Enforcement, Public Safety, Commercial Security, Homeland Defense, Airport/Airline, and Military applications. For more information on Global ePoint, visit its website at www.globalepoint.com.
Any forward-looking statements in this release are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that actual results may differ substantially from such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the successful completion of equity raises, which may be necessary for Global to implement its plans to develop new market opportunities, continued acceptance of Global's products and services in the marketplace, competitive factors, new products and technological changes, Global's successful entry into new markets, Global's ability to increase its customer base, as well as general, political and other uncertainties related to customer purchases and agreements and other risks detailed in Global's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release.