PHILIPS AND HELIUS TEAM UP FOR INDUSTRY'S FIRST FULLY INTEGRATED SATELLITE DVB ROUTER

Washington – Satellite 2000 - Feb. 2, 2000 – Philips and Helius have signed an agreement to cooperate on satellite router technology, incorporating Helius' advanced software technology into Philips' new CleverCast Router. The agreement is good news for content providers, broadcasters, service providers and other organizations targeting high-speed delivery of IP-based content.

Philips is a world-leading manufacturer of advanced digital system solutions and established as a leading force within the broadcasting and video industry. Helius is a relatively young company that is admired within the satellite and Internet industries for its innovative skills and leadership in paving the way for large-scale deployment of satellite-based broadband services. Working together with Helius, Philips plans to offer cutting-edge products that will bridge the gap between the broadcast industry and the rapidly growing demand for Internet services such as IP multicasting.

Philips and Helius agreed on an exclusive partnership whereby Philips products will be enhanced with Helius technology and Philips will do the marketing and supply chain management of the products. The CleverCast Router is the first of a complete product range of IP-routing solutions that Philips and Helius will co-develop.

One such product is the new Philips CleverCast Router - an advanced open standards-based routing device that integrates satellite RF and traditional land-line Internet services into a single unit, allowing organizations to get the best of both data access worlds. It offers flexible routing capabilities that meet a wide range of application needs, for instance, allowing video streaming over a broadband IP network. It also incorporates features such as automatic line failure re-routing and built-in remote management. Moreover, it uses Caldera’s Linux OS kernel and is compatible with all Linux-based Internet applications and services.

The Philips CleverCast Router is the first fully integrated satellite digital video broadcast (DVB) multicast and unicast router to be launched on the market and the subject of a recent major order placed by the American Multiplexer Corporation.

The perfect solution for multiple satellite service and Internet providers, corporations requiring distributed multicast services, businesses with multiple branch offices, and schools in remote areas, Philips' CleverCast Router will support an unlimited number of multicast clients and provides hundreds of concurrent users with high-speed Internet access. By using Helius Optimized™ technology, throughput to users is increased 200 to 400 percent over standard delivery systems.

Helius' genius for innovation has led to the recent release of the unique 'Virtual Technician (SM) service, a new tool for the area of remote management and support of large-scale Customer Premise Satellite Interface (CPSI) installations. The Virtual Technician service uses simple network management protocol (SNMP) for system performance monitoring, while its architecture supports the development of customer-specific applications.

Rob van Oostenbrugge, President and CEO of Philips Digital Networks, said, "Helius’ expertise in this specific area is second to none. We are also impressed by their innovative prowess and also by their fast innovation rate. Working together with Helius, we are confident that Philips products will remain market leading and continue to set new standards into the future."

Helius President and CEO, Myron Mosbarger, said "Helius is shifting data-via-satellite out of the technology sector and into the service industry. Recent activities with Philips and others confirm the viability of this strategy. We are very pleased to be cooperating with such a capable and respected partner as Philips and look forward to working with them to facilitate widespread adoption of satellite broadcasting."

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About Philips

Philips Digital Networks - a business group of the Philips Consumer Electronics division - is a world-leading provider of advanced digital system solutions for Service and Network providers in broadcasting and video distribution. Philips Digital Networks offers product and service solutions for customers in both the professional side of the distribution chain, as well as for consumers to use in the home. In the consumer domain, Philips Digital Networks is a leading provider of set-top boxes for digital television and internet delivery, as well as personal video recording. The broad professional product portfolio includes a comprehensive range of television cameras, studio and compression equipment, conditional access systems and transmission systems for broadband cable networks to deliver a full array of interactive services. A flexible customer support program and active involvement in the bodies setting tomorrow’s entertainment and information delivery standards makes Philips a natural partner for the digital broadcast era.

Editorial note: Product and company names used herein are trademarks or registered trademarks and are owned by the companies mentioned.

Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands is one of the world’s biggest electronics companies and Europe’s largest, with sales of US$ 33.9 billion in 1998. It is a global leader in color television sets, lighting, electric shavers, color picture tubes for televisions and monitors, and one-chip TV products. Its 230,700 employees in more than 60 countries are active in the areas of lighting, consumer electronics, household appliances, components, semiconductors, medical systems, communication, office equipment, personal care and health, as well as IT services (Origin). Philips is quoted on the NYSE (NYSE:PHG), London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and other stock exchanges. News from Philips is located at www.news.philips.com

About Helius

Helius Inc. is the premier developer of data-via-satellite solutions and provides high-speed affordable Internet access to tens of thousands of users worldwide. Helius is pioneering the customer premise satellite interface concept to improve the usability and management of satellite for large-scale OEM deployment across enterprise organizations and to consumer groups. A privately owned, Orem, Utah-based company founded in 1995, Helius is a holding under the Ray Noorda/Canopy Group Investment Company. Ray Noorda is the former chief executive of Novell (NASDAQ:NOVL). For more information visit http://www.helius.com or call +1 801-764-9020.

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