Katz Media today announced that the Pippin KMP 2000 had been chosen as the delivery platform by the Netface Consortium in Holland for providing access from standard televisions to the world's first Internet shopping mall. Netface, a leading cable, internet and interactive television research & development and distribution company in the Benelux regions, has set up a consortium of companies to provide Internet access, interactive television and on-line services including the first virtual shopping mall in the CAI-Westland two-way cable environment with 55,000 homes connected. The Netface Consortium is composed of 23 companies who will market and sell their Internet solution via the extensive cable network in Holland, Belgium and Germany.

According to Evert Jan Beverwijk, Managing Director of Netface, "The Pippin KMP 2000 is ideal for our needs of providing CD-ROM capability and Internet aceess via a TV. With the Pippin KMP 2000 every Dutch household with a telephone and/or two-way cable connection will be able to surf the Internet, shop and play a game without having to buy an expensive and complicated multimedia PC. Companies will be able to distribute their products and services through the KMP 2000 by means of their own virtual on-line store on a CD-ROM."

"The KMP 2000 is ideal for delivering on-line content to the television. By providing much of the shopping content actually on a CD-ROM, users only need to go on-line when they want to place orders or surf the Internet," stated Kevin Moir, International Business Development Manager at Katz Media. "And as the KMP 2000 is optimized for the television, users receive high quality images on their standard televisions."

In addition, the Netface Consortium will use the TV optimised browser from Katz Media for navigating through their virtual shopping mall. The browser's intuitive, user-friendly interface provides World Wide Web access and email capability. Its flexible architecture allows developers and customers to easily adapt the interface for their specific needs.

About the Pippin KMP 2000

Based on Apple Computer's easy-to-use technology, the Pippin is a CD-ROM based multimedia and Internet appliance. Technically, the Pippin is a full fledged RISC-based Macintosh computer, redesigned to lower cost and simplify the user interface. The Pippin connects to standard televisions and works off of inexpensive CD-ROMs, thus reducing the cost of expensive peripherals, like monitors or hard drives. It provides a full multimedia experience, as well as on- line capability.

About Katz Media

Headquartered in Paris, France, Katz Media manufactures, distributes and sells multimedia and information appliances and services. Katz Media currently ships the KMP 2000, an Internet and multimedia appliance based on Apple's Pippin technology that delivers a robust multimedia experience via the television. Katz Media is a wholly owned subsidiary of Katz Media Holding Ltd, a company based in Ireland.

About Netface

Headquartered in Amsterdam, Netface is a consortium of 23 companies dedicated to providing service in second and third generation PC and TV Internet, interactive television "total solutions", including electonic payment security, combi-box for tv-internet, pay-tv, interactive television and internet telephony, electronic direct marketing, 2D- and 3D-TV navigation systems and electronic marketplaces including an electronic shopping mall.