For more information, contact:
Be, Inc.
Sylvie Pelaprat sylvie@be.com
+1 (650) 462-4113
CHEN PR
Stacy Breines
+1 (650) 357-8749
In Europe:
Marie-Françoise Lelong-Weinberg
mflelong@beeurope.com
+33-1-55-91-7736
Be Incorporated Announces Distribution Agreement with Ingram Micro for BeOS
BeOS Also Available at Major Retail Outlets
MENLO PARK, Calif. -- Sept. 30, 1999 -- Be Incorporated, (Nasdaq: BEOS),
developer of BeOS®, the operating system designed for digital media
applications and Internet appliances, today announced a distribution
agreement with Ingram Micro, (NYSE:IM), the world's largest wholesale
provider of technology products and services. Ingram Micro began to
distribute BeOS in August throughout North America.
This agreement demonstrates Be's commitment to developing a strong network
of distributors and resellers for BeOS. Be also announced that BeOS is
available at major retail outlets, including Best Buy, Border's, Creative
Computers/PC Mall, Fry's, J&R Music and Micro Center. Customers can now
purchase BeOS directly from these outlets.
"We are committed to offering the most comprehensive software and hardware
solutions to our resellers and reinforcing our presence in the digital
media space," said Al Mann, senior vice president, product management at
Ingram Micro. "The addition of BeOS to our roster of products provides
resellers with an alternative operating system that is ideally suited for
customers seeking next generation solutions best suited for handling
high-bandwidth digital media."
"This partnership with Ingram Micro is another step forward in our 'Be
Everywhere' campaign enabling us to bring BeOS to targeted resellers in
North America," said Bob Smith, vice president of sales for the Americas
and Asia at Be, Inc. "In addition to providing resellers with an
opportunity to increase their profit potential, our objective is to
successfully meet the demands of consumers who want alternative operating
systems that allow them to manipulate graphics, audio and video on-the-fly."
Be, Inc. recently began shipping BeOS Release 4.5 to bring developers and
users new features and improvements that make BeOS ideal for digital media.
Key new features include Media Kit additions that manage and synchronize
multiple streams of audio and video and other real-time data coming from
various hardware inputs and outputs. BeOS Release 4.5 also ships with an
array of services including a Web Browser, an e-mail client, media player,
TV viewer, 3D audio mixer, utilities, translators, and an integrated
development environment. In addition, there are more than 800 applications
currently available for BeOS including audio, video, graphics, office
productivity, Internet and networking, development tools, utilities and
games.
Ingram Micro is the world's largest wholesale provider of technology
products and services, and a leader of assembly and integration services
with sales of $25.5 billion for the past four reported quarters. The
company and its subsidiaries operate in 34 countries and distribute more
than 225,000 products to more than 140,000 resellers in 130 countries.
In related news, Be, Inc. has signed partnerships with major European
distributors and resellers including Dixons of England, FNAC and Surcouf of
France and ProMarkt of Germany.
Be offers free reseller kits to qualified resellers. The kits contain an
evaluation package of BeOS as well as additional informational materials.
Resellers can learn more by visiting Be's Reseller Program web pages at
http://www.be.com/resellers/programintro.html.
BeOS runs on a wide range of devices including Internet appliances, desktop
PCs and high-performance multiprocessor workstations. BeOS is promoted
through relationships with OEMs, retailers, applications developers,
consumer electronic manufacturers and Internet service and content
providers. Be, Inc. was founded in 1990, is headquartered in Menlo Park,
California and has offices in Asia and in Europe. Be, Inc. is publicly
traded on Nasdaq under the symbol BEOS and can be reached at (650) 462-4100
or http://www.be.com.