Yahoo! Music Licenses Sonic AuthorScript CD/DVD Burning Technology; So

    Multimedia Writers/Business Editors/Technology Writers

    NOVATO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 2005--Sonic Solutions(R) (NASDAQ:SNIC), the leader in digital media software, announced today that it has entered into a multi-year license agreement with Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO), a leader in personalized software and services, in which Yahoo! will embed AuthorScript Music, Sonic's digital music CD/DVD burning and ripping engine for music in both its current music applications, Yahoo! Music Engine and Musicmatch Jukebox 10. With AuthorScript, Yahoo! Music users will now have access to the most reliable and efficient solution for burning custom music CDs and DVDs.
    "Because Yahoo! Music services are so widely used, Yahoo! required a burning engine that was fully featured, easy to integrate, and that allowed them to release new versions quickly," said Jim Taylor, senior vice president and general manager of Sonic's Advanced Technology Group. "With its support of all major audio formats, built-in support for new models of CD and DVD drives, and a small footprint for fast downloading, Sonic AuthorScript is an ideal solution for Yahoo!."
    AuthorScript Music is based on Sonic's AuthorScript CD/DVD formatting and burning engine and provides Yahoo! Music with over forty music-centric features that have been built for online music service providers and audio application developers. Highlights include a small 1MB footprint for significantly faster downloading than competing solutions, MP3 CD support that allows Yahoo! Music users to create CDs that can be played in MP3 CD players, and SilentSelect(TM) technology that automatically supports CD/DVD burning and playback in new drives as they become available.
    As the product life cycles for CD and DVD recorders continue to speed up, new drives are arriving on the market faster than ever. As a result, CD and DVD recorder support and burn engine qualification are among the most costly ongoing maintenance issues for software application developers. In addition, the explosive growth of numerous low-cost CD and DVD recorders from an abundance of manufacturers has prompted a huge demand for a consistent music burning application that will support them all. Since it is engineered to automatically enable new drive support with its SilentSelect technology, Sonic AuthorScript Music provides online music distributors and application developers with the confidence that their PC applications will work with virtually any burner ever shipped, resulting in the best possible end-user experience and minimizing costly technical support calls and software updates.
    "We are delighted that Yahoo! has chosen AuthorScript Music," said Mark Ely, senior vice-president of strategy at Sonic Solutions. "Today's online music consumers require fast, error-free burning of the music they purchase. Sonic's disc creation technologies give Yahoo! Music the assurance that their customers will experience reliable CD burning every time, enhancing the already great experience they have of buying, organizing, and enjoying their music with Yahoo! Music."

    About Sonic AuthorScript

    Sonic AuthorScript is the world's leading engine for the creation and burning of DVDs and CDs on PCs and CE devices. Available as a software development kit (SDK) with extensive APIs, AuthorScript makes it easy for application developers to add a broad range of CD and DVD technologies into their applications and to support the widest array of CD and DVD burners. A flexible solution, AuthorScript contains modules for converting video and audio data into DVD- and VCD-compliant streams, formatting and burning DVD-Video and VCD projects, data mastering on recordable CDs and DVDs, music CD ripping and burning, DVR recording and timeshifting, and DVD-Video and VCD playback. AuthorScript also includes comprehensive support for recording and editing in the DVD-VR and DVD+RW (+VR) formats.
    AuthorScript has been licensed by industry-leading companies including Adobe, Avid, Broadcom, IBM, Microsoft, Scientific-Atlanta, Sony, and Time Warner. It is the underlying engine in Sonic's DVD applications including MyDVD(R), DVDit(R), and RecordNow(TM), which are bundled by major OEMs such as Adaptec, Compaq, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, Hitachi, IBM, Iomega, Lite-On, NEC, Panasonic, Pioneer, Sony, Toshiba, ViewSonic, and others.
    AuthorScript Music allows online music services and audio application developers to quickly add CD and DVD burning capabilities and other advanced audio-centric features to their programs.

    About Yahoo! Music

    Yahoo! Music (http://music.yahoo.com) offers user the most comprehensive music-related content, features and information available online. Yahoo! Music provides a wide selection of streaming audio, the Web's largest collection of music videos, Internet radio, exclusive artist features and music news covering all genres of music to Yahoo! visitors. Yahoo! is also home to Musicmatch, which offers music software and services to help users, manage, enjoy and buy music that best matches their unique tastes.

    About Sonic Solutions

    Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ:SNIC; http://www.sonic.com) is the leader in digital media software, providing a broad range of interoperable, platform independent software tools and applications for creative professionals, business and home users, and technology partners. Sonic's products range from advanced DVD authoring systems and interactive content delivery technologies used to produce the majority of Hollywood DVD film releases, to the award-winning Roxio- and Sonic-branded CD and DVD creation, playback and backup solutions that have become the premiere choice for consumers, prosumers and business users worldwide.
    Sonic products are globally available from major retailers, online at Sonic.com and Roxio.com, and are bundled with PCs, after-market drives and consumer electronic devices. Sonic's digital media creation engine is the de facto standard and has been licensed by major software and hardware manufacturers, including Adobe, Microsoft, Scientific-Atlanta, Sony, and many others. Sonic Solutions is headquartered in Marin County, California.

    Sonic, the Sonic logo, Sonic Solutions, Roxio, AuthorScript, DVDit, MyDVD, RecordNow and SilentSelect are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sonic Solutions or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries. All other company or product names are trademarks of their respective owners and, in some cases, are used by Sonic Solutions under license.

    Forward Looking Statements

    The above paragraphs of this press release may contain forward looking statements that are based upon current expectations. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward looking statements as a result of various risks and uncertainties including, among others, the timely introduction and acceptance of new products, costs associated with new product introductions, the transition of products to new hardware configurations and platforms and other factors, including those discussed in the Company's annual and quarterly reports on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This press release should be read in conjunction with the Company's most recent annual report on Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Registration Statement on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which contain a more detailed discussion of the Company's business including risks and uncertainties that may affect future results. The Company does not undertake to update any forward looking statements.

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CONTACT: Sonic Solutions Paul Lefebvre, 415-893-8000 paul_lefebvre@sonic.com

KEYWORD: CALIFORNIA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: COMPUTERS/ELECTRONICS MUSIC SOFTWARE INTERNET E-COMMERCE PRODUCT MARKETING AGREEMENTS SOURCE: Sonic Solutions

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