SYBASE AND ICTV PARTNER TO DELIVER INTERACTIVE TECHNOLOGY

ICTV Will Use SYBASE in Cox Cable's Omaha ITV Trial

EMERYVILLE, CA, October 11th, 1994 -- Sybase, Inc., The Enterprise
Client/Server Company, today announced that ICTV, Inc., a leading provider
of digital technology for interactive entertainment and information
systems, has entered into an agreement in principal with Sybase to
integrate the SYBASE SQL Server database and the SYBASE Intermedia
products with ICTV's interactive television system. The strategic
relationship between Sybase and ICTV will allow Cox Cable-funded ICTV to
complement its Smart Network system, a hardware and software architecture
for delivering interactive applications over existing networks using only
very inexpensive set-top boxes. In addition, ICTV will use the Gain
Momentum and Gain Interplay products to develop interactive entertainment
and information applications for its customers.

"We have found that Sybase is the only software vendor that has taken a
truly open and scalable approach to the emerging interactive market," said
William F. X. Grubb, chief executive officer of ICTV. "SYBASE Intermedia
has the flexibility that allows ICTV to provide its customers with a
complete solution for delivering interactive services while offering the
price benefits of our Smart Network systems."

ICTV is a five year-old, privately-held company which is partly funded by
Cox Cable Communications, one of the largest cable and media companies
worldwide. ICTV's patented Smart Network system allows customers to
deliver interactive services without investing in expensive "smart set-top
boxes". ICTV markets its products and services to cable operators, telcos,
and other service providers, who benefit from the ICTV approach by being
able to enter this new market at a low cost, and increasing their
investment as consumer demand increases.

In addition, ICTV's Smart Network system can be deployed in a flexible,
scalable manner to respond to the changing demand in services, because the
intelligence is located at the head end and not in the set-top box in the
consumer's home, where it is likely idle most of the time.

ICTV/Sybase Relationship

In co-operation with Sybase, ICTV will integrate Sybase's SQL Server 10,
Gain Momentum, and Gain Interplay with its own Smart Network System into
one comprehensive architecture for developing and deploying interactive
multimedia applications to the mass market. Depending on the individual
requirements of ICTV's customers, the company will market its Smart
Network System integrating all or some of the SYBASE products in the total
solution. ICTV's first customer is Cox Cable Communications Inc., which
has chosen the solution for its interactive television testbed in Omaha,
Nebraska. Customers will begin using the interactive services in 1995.

Noel Leca, vice president of multimedia products at Sybase, commented, "One
of the challenges in the interactive marketplace is the cost of delivering
services into the home. We have responded to this challenge by providing
our partners and customers with an open, scalable technology architecture
that allows our customers to enter this marketplace at a competitive entry
cost and to scale up as the market expands. The ICTV approach closely
matches our strategy, and we are excited about expanding our partnership
with ICTV."

The partnership covers four areas:

Integration with SYBASE SOL Server 10

The SYBASE SQL Server 10 will serve as the software engine for message
routing, control, and delivery of real-time data from video and multimedia
servers, and integration with business systems for functions such as
billing and customer service. Using the Open Server interface, ICTV will
build its own custom implementation of the software engine and tightly
integrate it with its Smart Network, which will manage all video and
interactive assets of the application.

Gain Momentum as Authoring Standard

Gain Momentum is a powerful multimedia authoring environment for building
highly visual, intuitive, and entertaining applications. ICTV has chosen
the Gain Momentum environment as an authoring standard and will work with
Sybase to build extensions to the Gain Momentum environment for the rapid
development of video-centric applications.

Gain Interplay on ICTV Multimedia Cards

Sybase's Gain Interplay will be used by ICTV as an execution engine on
ICTV's multimedia cards, (MMCIM). Gain Interplay is a small footprint
run-time environment for displaying interactive multimedia applications.

Consulting and Development from Sybase Professional Services

ICTV will leverage expertise from Sybase's Worldwide Professional Services
(WWPS) organization to build extensions to and tightly integrate its
products with SYBASE Intermedia. WWPS, one of Sybase's fastest growing
business units, will assist ICTV in building back-office support for
interactive services.

ICTV Smart Network Architecture

By providing intelligence at the head end rather than the set-top box, ICTV
has taken a unique approach that allows its customers to enter the
interactive consumer market at a low entry price and to flexibly deploy
resources as consumer demand expands. With the ICTV Smart Network System,
consumers can purchase interactive services using set-top boxes that are
only slightly modified, eliminating the cost of so-called "smart" set-top
boxes entirely. The architecture is modeled after a telephone switching
system and consists of multimedia cards that are installed at the head end
as well as software for the head end and the set-top boxes.

ICTV also develops and distributes interactive multimedia applications for
service providers, and will use the Gain Momentum environment as a tool to
author these applications. Initially, ICTV will develop a suite of
interactive applications for the Cox Cable Communications trial in Omaha,
Nebraska.

SYBASE Intermedia Architecture

Sybase unveiled its new architecture in May, 1994. SYBASE Intermedia, an
open, scalable, and modular software architecture, consists of: Gain
Momentum for authoring sophisticated, interactive multimedia applications;
Gain Interplay for delivering applications on cost-effective user systems
such as personal computers and television set-top boxes; and the
Intermedia Server for message routing, control, delivery of real-time data
from video and multimedia servers, and integration with business systems
for functions such as billing and customer service. Intermedia Server is
based on Sybase's proven SQL Server database technology.

"In addition to the advantages of the Sybase architecture, the company has
demonstrated that it understands the interactive marketplace, both with
respect to the technology and with respect to the business models that are
evolving," said Bill Grubb. "We look forward to working with Sybase
engineering and professional services groups and to building a competitive
architecture based on our combined expertise."

Availability

The SQL Server 10 database is available on a wide variety of UNIX and
desktop platforms. Gain Momentum has been shipping since 1992. Its newest
3.0 version is available on a wide variety of UNIX platforms and on
Microsoft Windows NT. Gain Interplay and the Intermedia Server are
currently available to partners such as VARs, OEMs, and ISVs, and are
scheduled for general availability in the first half of 1995. Both
products will be ported to several set-top operating systems and video
servers, respectively.

ICTV, Inc.

ICTV is a privately held, five year-old company based in Santa Clara,
California. The company has developed and is now marketing to cable system
operators and telephone companies a comprehensive, patented technology and
architecture which enables true interactive television on existing cable
television systems. ICTV also has designed a suite of compelling
interactive applications and programming to help develop the interactive
market.

Sybase, Inc.

Sybase, Inc. (NASDAQ: SYBS) is one of the fastest growing suppliers of
client/server-based software products and services for on-line
enterprise-wide applications. Sybase's integrated family of software
includes database servers, tools, connectivity and systems management
products, providing complete desktop-to-mainframe solutions. Headquartered
in Emeryville, CA, Sybase reported 1993 sales of $427 million, an increase
of 61% over 1992. For the first half of 1994, Sybase's revenues grew 68%
to $296 million. Sybase markets its products worldwide through its direct
sales force, telesales, distributors, OEMs, VARs and Systems Integrators.

Sybase Inc
6475 Christie Ave
Emeryville, CA 04608
510-596-3500;  Fax: 510-658-9441

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