NCI, a wholly owned subsidiary of Oracle Corp. (Nasdaq: ORCL) today announced that it has received "Technology of the Year" awards from NewMedia and IndustryWeek magazines, and a "Best of What's New" award from Popular Science magazine for implementing the network computer vision. NCI provides a complete family of network computer software and technology products for the corporate, consumer and educational marketplaces -- all based on open Internet standards. NCI's corporate software products will be publicly demonstrated for the first time today on an Intel-based NC in a sneak preview given by Oracle Chairman and CEO Lawrence J. Ellison at the Millennium Conference in San Francisco.

The "sneak peek" will include NCI's corporate software and technology products running on an Intel-based NC including Java applications such as "Hat Trick", Oracle's personal productivity applications. NCI's corporate software products include NC System Software, NC Card and NC Server and will be formally launched this April in the US, Europe and Japan.

"Today's demonstration of our software on an Intel-based NC illustrates our commitment to provide the enabling software technology to empower everyone, everywhere with a network computer," said Bonnie Crater, vice president of strategic marketing at NCI. "We are also extremely honored to receive these awards only a year and a half after Larry Ellison first described the NC concept."

New Media magazine honored NCI with its "1997 Hyper Award for Technology of the Year." Selected annually by NewMedia's editorial staff, contributing editors and other experts, the New Media Hyper Awards are the highest accolade the publication gives to hardware and software products. "The award winners are those products that represent the highest achievements in innovation and technical excellence," says New Media editor-in-chief Phil Hood. "They are the products we would choose for our own studios and the products we recommend to all professionals."

IndustryWeek recognized NCI's vision for bringing low-cost network computers to corporations, consumers and schools when it named network computing one of its top 25 technologies of 1996. IndustryWeek editor-in- chief John R. Brandt said this prestigious award is "in recognition of [NCI's] leadership in the field of network computing technology. We are pleased to highlight [NCI's] accomplishments in this very important sector of technology."

The network computer's ability to provide a "simpler, less costly alternative to complicated PCs" prompted Popular Science magazine to present NCI with its 1996 "Best of What's New" award. Popular Science, the nation's largest science and technology publication, reviewed thousands of products and achievements before honoring NCI's network computing strategy because of its "synergy with the Internet, as well as its ability to run programs from and store data files on an outside network."

NCI, a wholly owned subsidiary of Oracle Corp., develops, licenses and markets all software, technology and support services for the NC including NC System Software, NC Server and NC Card. With strategic partners worldwide, NCI's mission is to bring network computing to the corporate, consumer and educational marketplaces.

Oracle Corp. is the world's leading supplier of software for information management and the world's second largest software company. With annual revenues exceeding $4.8 billion, the company offers its database, tools and applications products along with related consulting, education and support services in more than 90 countries around the world. For more information about Oracle call 415/506-7000.