There are two hot news items this month: The Summer Upgrade, and PrimeTime developments!

WebTV Networks Summer Upgrade

By the time this issue of Club WebTV is out, most if not all of our customers will have downloaded the Summer Upgrade. The upgrade is offered to each Club WebTV member in turn, so it may be a while before it gets offered to everyone. Who gets the upgrade when is not a lottery system - it depends on when you connect and if there's room on the upgrade server at that time. When the Summer Upgrade is available and you connect to the WebTV Network, you will receive a message describing the new features. You will have the option to download the new version immediately, or at a later time. It will take about 15 minutes to download, and then you're set! You can now enjoy the following:

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)

With the Summer Upgrade in place, WebTV Network users will be able to make transactions over the Internet securely. Club WebTV members can now use their WebTV Internet terminal to open up a whole new world: purchasing airplane tickets, accessing bank accounts, trading stocks, and more! Wells Fargo's site has been enhanced to accept and welcome WebTV Networks' customers. We expect other banks to follow suit.

Favorites

Are 36 favorites not enough? The next upgrade will give you 600! And so you won't have to scroll through several hundred to get to the one you're looking for, you will be able to file your favorites in folders (Try saying that 10 times fast!).

Around Town

Want to know what movies are playing in your old hometown? Even if you don't remember the zip code, you can now check out what's going on Around Town from New York City to Lodi, California. Type in the name of the city and state, and you're there! If you type in the city only, you will recieve a list of all states with those city names to choose from. (Did you know the U.S. has six cities named Mountain View?)

Real Audio 3.0 and Shockwave Audio

For your listening pleasure, we're adding two more audio formats. Be sure to check out this month's The Playground for some hot sites that use these audio features.

JavaScript and Macromedia Flash

JavaScript is a computer language that allows web sites to be designed with animation, as well as many other cool features. Macromedia Flash is also used by web site developers to enhance animation. Check out EpicCenter to see Javascript in action. Macromedia's web site gives a great demo of Macromedia Flash. If you go there and press the info button on your keyboard, you'll see the Macromedia logo, showing that the page uses this technology.

(Note: JavaScript is different than Java. Java support is still under development.)

Printing

By popular demand! After downloading the update, you will have printing software in place. To take advantage of this feature, you'll need to purchase a WebTV printer adapter, a 1284 compliant cable, and a Hewlett-Packard 400 or 600 series printer. Philips WebTV Internet terminal users must purchase a Philips adapter, and Sony users must purchase a Sony adapter. More information on printing will accompany the upgrade. Please call Philips at 1-888-813-7069 or Sony at 1-888-772-7669 for further details about the availability of the printer adapter.

WebTV Networks Launches PrimeTime for Developers

WebTV Networks' Evangelism group announced WebTV PrimeTime for Developers in last month's In The Family, and to the general public on June 4. We are pleased to announce that Colossal Pictures, Silicon Reef, Zentropy Interactive, and 30 other companies are among our initial members.

The WebTV PrimeTime program helps web site developers reach the new audience of Internet participants who view the World Wide Web through their televisions. One way WebTV PrimeTime helps developers is by providing tools such as the WebTV Simulator for desktop computers.

Silicon Reef, Inc. is known as the producer of WebStock'96, The Spot, Grape Jam, the Webby Awards and EON-4. They have headquarters in San Francisco and Sydney, Australia. Silicon Reef was chosen by WebTV Networks to design and implement the interface for the WebTV Simulator.

"WebTV PrimeTime for Developers is a valuable opportunity for any company that believes in strengthening the Internet by attracting the television audience," said John Barnhill, president and CEO of Silicon Reef.

Los Angeles-based Zentropy Interactive is a leader in web design for the entertainment industry. Its client list includes Rysher Entertainment, MGM/UA and Virgin Records. WebTV Networks selected Zentropy to design and implement the WebTV PrimeTime program's web site.

"Ignoring the WebTV Network television audience means missing a great opportunity," said Ryan Magnussen, CEO of Zentropy. "In order to successfully compete in the web-design industry, developers need a resource like PrimeTime to help them strike a balance between the PC and television audiences."

The folk at Colossal Pictures are San Francisco-based video and animation specialists whose clients include Coca-Cola, Disney, Nickelodeon and MTV. Chosen by WebTV Networks to help promote a more polished, television-like appearance for its own content, Colossal looks forward to reaping the benefits of bringing its clients' web content to the WebTV Network mass audience.

Club WebTV members can take pride in the fact that they are among the pioneers in a growing audience of non-computer users exploring the Internet. According to the Find/SVP 1997 American Internet User Survey, 55 million non-Internet users in the U.S. want to learn more about the Internet or will begin using it in the next 12 months. It is believed that a large portion of this emerging audience will connect through television. Now, with the help of WebTV PrimeTime, and you, web site developers are working to bring the World Wide Web to a wider audience.

For more information, see the entire press release on our corporate web site.