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New Audio Manager 3.0 Lets Consumers Instantly Play Streamed or Downloaded Tracks in Multiple Formats, Burn CDs, Watch Desktop Videos and Connect to Portables, All From One Easy-to-Use Application

RioPort's Audio Manager 3.0's industry-leading feature set includes new audio and video streaming capabilities, the ability to burn custom CDs for playback of music on home and car stereos, and downloading of tracks in multiple formats to the desktop or portable playback devices.

The beta version of Audio Manager 3.0 is available for free beginning today at www.rioport.com. The final software is expected to become available through RioPort's growing network of distribution partners in the next several weeks.

RioPort's new Audio Manager 3.0 is MetaTrust Certified(TM) by InterTrust Technologies Corp., and also supports Microsoft's Windows Media Format, addressing the desires of major content owners by providing a solid, secure commerce infrastructure, which will drive the delivery of popular digital music and spoken audio content via the Internet.

For RioPort's platform partners and OEMs, key benefits include support for multiple file formats with built-in digital rights management functionality and the ability to customize the application's look and features for their own audiences.

``RioPort's new Audio Manager is a significant leap forward in helping to drive mass market acceptance of digital audio,'' said Todd Moore, director of product management for platform systems at RioPort, Inc.

``Audio Manager 3.0 provides all the features consumers want in an easy-to-use application, while addressing the concerns of copyright holders who want assurance that their content will be protected from piracy. By addressing these concerns through our software, we are helping the industry come one step closer to making digital audio a truly viable consumer market.''

Multi-Format Support for Playback on PCs, Portables or Home/Car Stereos

The Audio Manager 3.0 provides users with flexibility to enjoy new music and spoken word content. For instance, using Audio Manager 3.0, people can:

--   Play CD music in addition to downloaded digital audio or video
     files;

--   Easily encode music from their own CD collection to create a
     personal database of MP3 or Windows Media Format audio files for
     playback on their PC or compatible portable device;

--   Download new music tracks from the Internet or use their existing
     database of MP3 or WMA files, then make their own CD using a CD-R
     drive for playback on their home/car stereo;

--   Simply download tracks in MP3, WMA, formats for playback on the
     PC or compatible portable player;

--   Stream leading audio formats, such as MP3, WMA or G2, on their
     desktop for listening to audio or viewing video files on the Web
     without storing files on their hard drive;

--   Or connect to portable devices using the industry standard Media
     Device Manager (MDM) API from RioPort, which is interoperable
     with Microsoft's Windows Media Device Manager (WMDM), adopted by
     a growing number of portable device manufacturers.

     Other Key Advantages of the New Audio Manager 3.0 Include:

--   Support for multiple video streaming formats. With Audio Manager
     3.0, music fans can enjoy a full multimedia music experience by
     viewing AVI and QuickTime videos of their favorite artists while
     listening to their music.

--   Support for a variety of portable audio playback devices. Audio
     Manager 3.0 allows for "one-click" downloading of tracks from the
     Internet to any portable appliance supporting RioPort's industry
     standard MDM API. People simply choose the track, playlist or
     album that they want to transfer and press "download." The
     software will keep track of the content and available memory of
     their portable device.

--   Simple and intuitive categorization, searching, sorting and
     creation of playlists. Audio Manager 3.0 uses a simple database
     architecture for easy organization of all digital audio content.
     One of the software's key strengths is a powerful searchable
     database or "jukebox" where users store and organize all of their
     digital audio and video tracks by artist, title, genre or other
     categories. The database supports digital tracks embedded with
     information such as song titles, lyrics and CD art. An intuitive
     playlist editor lets users search their entire digital audio
     collection and easily create and save playlists that can be
     played from either their desktop or portable playback device.

--   Built-in Web browser for quickly and easily downloading content
     from the Net. Audio Manager 3.0 features a built-in Web browser
     that is custom configured for searching and downloading content
     from the Internet. RioPort's Audio Manager 3.0 connects users
     directly to its vast network of content providers, where they
     will find the Internet's best selection of downloadable music and
     spoken audio programming.

--   Higher fidelity encoding. Audio Manager 3.0 allows consumers to
     encode tracks from their own CD collection into the MP3 or WMA
     formats at up to 256 Kbps (versus the lower quality of 96 Kbps
     with the free versions of competitive applications), providing
     for extreme fidelity in the quality of recorded music. Encoding
     of CD tracks couldn't be easier -- users simply insert the CD
     into their CD-ROM drive and click on "copy."

--   Customizable interface and effects. The Audio Manager 3.0
     supports an unlimited number of skins along with visual and DSP
     plug-ins, allowing users and RioPort's platform partners to
     create a customized interface and add features that work best for
     them.

Free Beta Version of Audio Manager 3.0 is Available Now

RioPort is making both the beta and final versions of the Audio Manager 3.0 software available for free. The free version includes an unlimited number of WMA encodes and up to 50 MP3 encodes, as well as 25 CD burns, in addition to all the other features listed above.

To enable unlimited encoding and burning, consumers can unlock the software for $18.95 or $9.95 for each unlimited encoding or CD burning. The Audio Manager will respect all ``No Copy'' flags that are associated with secure or SDMI-compliant content, including content packaged in an InterTrust or Microsoft DRM container.

When final, people will be able to download Audio Manager 3.0 from the following RioPort network sites: www.mtv.com, www.vh1.com, www.sonicnet.com, www.ministryofsound.com or www.rioport.com. RioPort's Audio Manager 3.0 is compatible with Windows 95/98, Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000.

RioPort, Inc.

RioPort, Inc. is redefining digital audio by delivering an integrated, secure platform for acquiring, managing and experiencing digital media programming from the Internet.

A pioneer in the digital audio market, RioPort partners with companies to provide them with an easy-to-use platform that includes access to a wide range of digital audio content, customizable software solutions and device design services.

The Audio Manager is an easy-to-use software application for the acquisition, management and playback of digital audio content from desktop PCs or RioPort compatible portable appliances.

The company licenses its Audio Manager to third-parties and also provides content companies with production services, including encoding and secure packaging, allowing them to easily get their content into the hands of digital media enthusiasts.

RioPort's investment partners include Vulcan Ventures, Oak Investment Partners, MTVi Group and S3, Inc. RioPort is based in San Jose, CA with offices in Los Angeles, CA and Loveland, CO and located online at www.rioport.com.

Contact:

     Faiola Davis Public Relations
     Sung Choi, 323/933-4959
     sung@fdpr.com
     John Rafacz, 323/933-4959
     john@fdpr.com
     or
     RioPort, Inc.
     Lorraine Comstock, 408/325-7346
     lorrainec@rioport.com