Phoenix Technologies Unveils cME; Redefines Core System Solutions Built into Current and Next-Generation PCs and Digital Products

Teams with Major Technology Providers to Enable OEMs and System Builders to Enhance User Experience with More Reliability, Security & Simplicity at the Core of Digital Products

London UK, February 19th 2003 – Phoenix Technologies Ltd. (Nasdaq: PTEC), the company driving the global core systems software standard in billions of PC systems and connected digital devices for nearly a quarter-century, has introduced the Phoenix Core Managed Environment?¤, or cME, heralding a new standard for the way essential applications and device-critical services can be built into digital products, making them always protected and always accessible. Phoenix cME dramatically improves OEMs’ and system builders’ opportunity to enhance the user experience with computer systems and other digital products by providing new levels of reliability, security and simplicity, all built in at the core of the device.

“Phoenix cME addresses the needs of increasingly connected and digitally dependent users,” said Albert E. Sisto, Chairman, President and CEO of Phoenix. “Now they can access diagnostics and self-healing capabilities, Internet access, and remote desktop builds, even after a major system malfunction. In conjunction with our industry partners, Phoenix is changing the user experience at its very core while allowing enterprise systems providers to help reduce support costs for their customers and to deliver brand-differentiated products across a wide variety of platforms.”

Phoenix cME is a standards-based set of enabling technologies and applications built into the foundation of PCs and other digital products. Residing both within the system firmware and within a protected area of the hard drive, these technologies and applications are always available and always secure because they do not depend on the operating system or user action.

In the PC and server environments, Phoenix cME enables the creation and management of a secure “host protected area” (HPA) of the hard drive, where Phoenix cME Certified applications reside – the Phoenix FirstWareTM product family. These applications help diagnose and recover PCs if the operating system malfunctions. Phoenix cME provides the most secure HPA on the market, and for the first time, it enables third-party developers to write their own applications for storage in this tamper-proof area.

In information appliances and consumer electronic devices, such as set-top boxes and hand-held devices, Phoenix cME provides the same secure environment – built into the device – for content delivery from the Internet. Similar to the PC model, Phoenix cME allows applications to be integrated into the digital product, providing additional services. Phoenix also provides cME Certified applications through the FirstView ConnectTM product family, which includes an Internet browser and email application.

Phoenix cME addresses requirements of original equipment and design manufacturers (OEMs and ODMs), independent software developers (ISVs), and system builders seeking to reduce IT costs, differentiate products, improve satisfaction, and stimulate demand. A new study of system builders to be released soon by the National Association of System Builders (NASBA) indicates that some of the most important areas of added value to their customers include security, reliability, and service. These are the key issues addressed by Phoenix cME.

Phoenix cME is delivered through four offerings specific for each platform:

” Phoenix cME PC Edition
” Phoenix cME Server Edition
” Phoenix cME Information Appliance Edition
” Phoenix cME Embedded Edition

Each of these Phoenix cME editions includes a platform-specific portfolio of application software, BIOS, tools and APIs. Phoenix customers, including OEMs, ODMs, and system builders, can select those technologies in each platform that best enable them to differentiate their products and provide additional value to their customers.

Industry Support For Phoenix cME
AMD “AMD and Phoenix Technologies have worked together to provide our shared customers innovative core systems software solutions for AMD processors,” said Barry Crume, director, server segment product marketing, Computation Products Group, AMD. “The Phoenix Core Managed Environment will help provide improved customer experiences for a full range of AMD processor-based systems, delivering enhanced reliability and security for servers, PCs and notebooks.”

Founder Technology “This expands the idea of what a BIOS can do,” said Mr.Wu Jingwei , General Manager of Consumer Product Business Group, and Mr.Zhang Wei, General Manager of Commercial Product Business Group of Founder Technology Computer System Co. Ltd. “Now computer makers can create unique products for our customers, so they can meet the specific requirements of their end users. Phoenix has an excellent reputation with BIOS technology, so they are the logical company to lead this innovation.”

Grid Technology Partners “Phoenix cME brings grid computing to virtually every type of digital device – from cell phones, PDAs, set-top boxes, and game consoles to PCs and servers,” said Ahmar Abbas, Managing Director at Grid Technology Partners. “ISVs and OEMs can utilise Phoenix cME’s common, secure and self-healing environment to deploy their grid applications and dramatically expand the pool of grid enabled platforms. We are now one step closer to the true vision of grid computing.”

Legend “Phoenix cME is important for OEMs because it allows us to add more value to the BIOS,” said Mr.Xia Yang, General Manager of Legend Notebook Division. “Using a secure part of the hard drive, we can install copies of the system software and know it will be safe from corruption.”

NASBA “Phoenix Technologies has always been at the centre of the computer business delivering highly reliable products,” said Robert Danese, Executive Director, The Association of System Builders and Integrators (NASBA). “We believe Phoenix cME is a great advancement for our partners as well as end users. Our North American membership of system builders, integrators, solution providers and manufacturers will be able to leverage these new technologies and applications within Phoenix cME providing additional revenue opportunities and additional value to their customers.”

National Semiconductor “The cME software from Phoenix Technologies fits well with National Semiconductor’s roadmap for networking, security and manageability,” said Michael Noonen, Vice President of the Wired Communication Group for National Semiconductor. “This is a perfect synergy in which a semiconductor vendor and a firmware vendor have developed complementary solutions. By joining our technologies, we are creating valuable differentiation for OEMs and more secure products for the user.”

Samsung Electronics “Samsung and Phoenix have maintained a long-term strategic partnership because both companies are developing innovative solutions for today’s computing,” said Mr. Houn Soo Kim, Senior Vice President, Strategic Marketing Team of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Computer System Division. “Phoenix cME is one of those innovations and we want to explore the possibilities for better customer support and product differentiation. Samsung is happy to work together with Phoenix.”

Transmeta Corp. “In this era of increased connectivity, security is a key issue that Phoenix Technologies, Transmeta and much of the technology industry are seriously addressing for both computer makers and end users,” said Dr. Matthew R. Perry, President and CEO for Transmeta Corp. “We believe Phoenix cME is the right strategy for PC and device manufacturers to support. The foundation of security from Transmeta and Phoenix in the hardware and software of connected digital devices is more cost effective, enables greater flexibility and is ultimately more reliable. Building security into the foundation of connected digital devices is more cost effective, enables greater flexibility and is ultimately more reliable.”

About Phoenix Technologies
Founded in 1979, Phoenix Technologies (NASDAQ: PTEC) helped launch the digital revolution when it created the industry’s leading BIOS firmware, which has been built into more than one billion systems. Phoenix continues to leverage that core system software experience to develop many other vital solutions at multiple points in the foundation of PCs and digital devices. Today, Phoenix solutions activate, secure, connect, and recover the world’s best-known systems, operating from a Core Managed Environment (cME), a unique set of enabling technologies and applications that are built into the foundation of PCs and digital products. Phoenix is headquartered in San Jose, Calif. USA (Silicon Valley), with offices in global business and technology centres.

Phoenix, Phoenix cME and Phoenix Technologies are registered trademarks of Phoenix Technologies. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.