1995 Codies Merchandising Program

Software Publishers Association Announces 1995 Nationwide Codie Award
Retail Campaign

Product-savvy software sales force, and educating the consumer highlight
this year's program

July 26, 1995 (Washington, DC) - The Software Publishers Association (SPA),
the principal trade association of the PC software industry, announced its
second in-store merchandising campaign built around the SPA's prestigious
annual Excellence in Software Awards. The SPA Codie Award National Retail
Campaign will be launched on August 1, 1995 in major retail outlets
throughout the country. The merchandising program has been expanded to
over 2100 participating retail outlets, with customized programs for each
participating company.

Participants in this year's campaign are all winners of a 1995 Codie Award.
This year's winners include prominent software publishers ranging from
large established companies to smaller burgeoning companies. The Codie
Awards are the only peer recognition awards for outstanding software
products and their creators. The SPA announced this year's Codie winners
at its annual Spring Symposium in San Diego.

As the Codie Retail Campaign enters its second year, the SPA has created a
consumer-oriented program at participating retail outlets. A well-informed
software sales force is key to educating the consumer about quality
software product purchases and, ultimately, a satisfied customer.

The 1995 Codie Campaign includes new point-of-sale information that will
provide assistance to consumers as they purchase software for their
family. The program will include an employee education and incentive
program to help floor sales representatives learn about the products they
are selling. Sales representatives will be provided training brochures and
become eligible for contest prizes and incentive-priced Codie-winning
products. The contest will be funded by participating companies. Prizes
include a computer, sunglasses, T-Shirts, mouse pads, and free prizes to
sales representatives that correctly respond to the questionnaire about
the products.

In a recently released survey commissioned by the SPA, 88% of all first
time computer buyers expect to buy CD-ROM entertainment and education
software programs in the next six months. SPA's survey found that 48% of
all software purchase decisions take place at the point of sale. The goal
of this year's retail campaign is to assist software consumers in making
informed purchasing decisions.

Beginning August 1st, "Take One" awards brochures, counter cards describing
the winning products in each category, and end cap signs featuring the
award winning merchandise will be on display at over 2100 retail outlets
across the U.S.

"Consumers now purchase software at a variety of market outlets, no longer
just the corner software store. The 1995 Retail Campaign recognizes this
shift in consumer patterns by including regional superstores, national
electronic chains, and a major department store conglomerate in the mix of
retail participants," said Mandy Braun Strum, Manager of the Software
Publishers Association's Consumer Section. "This program reflects the
evolution of the Codie Awards beyond just an industry recognition award to
a complete mass-market merchandising and educational campaign."

The SPA developed this highly successful promotional campaign in
association with Levy &amp; Wurz Channel Marketing in Seattle, the
industry's recognized leader in channel promotions and merchandising.

Max Wurz, a partner with Levy & Wurz Channel Marketing commented, "This
year's campaign found new participation from major national retailers. In
addition, we have created a more comprehensive, customized retail plan,
which includes national consumer advertising and store level training
programs."

The Software Publishers Association is the principal trade association of
the personal computer software industry. Its more than 1,100 members
represent the leading publishers in the business, consumer and education
markets. The SPA has offices in Washington, DC and Paris, France. SPA
press releases are available on-line on SPA's World Wide Web Site
(http://www.spa.org)
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Retail Partners:

Warehouse Club              Sam's Club
Destination Software Store  Egghead Software
Mall Software Store         Electronics Boutique
Computer Superstore         Computer City
Regional Superstores        Micro Center
                            ELEK-TEK
                            Ballard Computer
Mass Market Superstore      Best Buy
Mass Merchandiser           Sears
National Electronics Store  Incredible Universe
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Codie-winning Products and Publishers:

Microsoft Encarta                         Microsoft Corporation
Magic School Bus:                         Microsoft Corporation
Solar System &amp; Human Body
Under a Killing Moon                      Access Inc.
OS/2 Warp                                 IBM
The Norton Utilities 8.0                  Symantec Corporation
The Print Shop Deluxe CD Ensemble         BrOderbund Software, Inc.
Map'n'Go                                  DeLorme Mapping
Monty Python's Complete Waste of Time     7th Level, Inc.
The Way Things Work                       Dorling Kindersley Multimedia
Kid Pix Studio                            BrOderbund Software, Inc.
The American Sign Language on CD-R0M      Harper-Collins Interactive
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?    BrOderbund Software, Inc.
Jr. Detective Edition
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?    BrOderbund Software, Inc.
CD-ROM
 
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