NEW BUSINESS BORN WITH INTRO OF KODAK PICTURE EXCHANGE Find Perfect Picture Easily with Kodak's New On-Line Image Service NEW YORK, Aug. 25_Access to a vast array of images will be as available as the public telephone network when the Kodak Picture Exchange goes on-line next year. Kodak Picture Exchange represents the company's vision for a global imaging services network, similar to text and data networks_for example, Dialog and CompuServe. Kodak Picture Exchange will link distributors of images, such as stock photo houses, with customers they serve, including graphic designers and publishers. The service will be available in the United States mid-1993. As with a conventional dial-up service, Kodak Picture Exchange will allow people to use a phone line for access from their desktop computers. Image users will conduct fast on-line searches using key words and will review low-resolution thumbnail images. Once they've selected the images they want to see in hard copy, Kodak Picture Exchange will alert the image suppliers, providing them with the information they need to fulfill the request. In most cases, it is expected that prints, negatives, or transparencies will be sent out within minutes by a local delivery service or air express. "Kodak Picture Exchange is designed as the ultimate search and retrieval tool for images," said Stephen S. Stepnes, general manager and vice president of CD Imaging at Kodak. "The system gives people the capability to search among enormous numbers of images to find just the ones they're looking for." Kodak's customer research reveals that prospective Kodak Picture Exchange clients trust Kodak as the provider of this exchange service, recognizing that Kodak understands their need for quality and their concerns for copyright protection. "It's important to note that the negotiations regarding the use of a particular image will continue to be between the image provider and the customer," Stepnes continued. "The only difference will be that Kodak Picture Exchange will help bring the parties together. "The system will make it easier for image agents to distribute photographers' images more widely and will make it simpler for those looking for images to find what they need." Images Go On-line Qualified image providers will be able to post on Kodak Picture Exchange any image that has been converted to a standard Photo CD digital format. Each image will be stored on the network in a low-resolution "thumbnail" form and will be linked to index information to aid in its retrieval. This information could include the photographer's name, ownership information, and key words that describe the subject and attributes of the picture. People will obtain basic access to Kodak Picture Exchange by joining the network and "dialing in" with a communications-equipped desktop computer and Kodak software. Once they have signed onto the network, users will be able to browse through preestablished categories, such as "Hawaiian beaches," simply by choosing them from a menu. They will also be able to perform key word searches tailored to their specific needs, the same way they now search a conventional text database. Software used to search Kodak Picture Exchange mirrors the look and feel of newly announced Kodak Shoebox image search and retrieval software. In other words, Kodak Picture Exchange will share a common interface with other Photo CD image databases that run Shoebox software and with the Kodak Professional Photo CD Image Library, an automated disc "jukebox" system that can store thousands of Photo CD images. This furthers the company's goal of providing a consistent look and feel and common user interface in its various image management applications. Future versions of Kodak Shoebox software will allow users the option of linking directly to Kodak Picture Exchange to perform image searches. (See the related news release on Kodak software in this press kit.) "Once users locate thumbnails of the images that appear to meet their needs, we expect they'll select several to view in hard copy, either as chromes or prints," Stepnes explained. "All they'll have to do is choose what they want to see and sign off. Kodak Picture Exchange will automatically supply contact information on the potential customer directly to the agent of each image, either by computer or fax." The image agent will send, by courier or air expres, hard copies of each requested image directly to the customer for reviews, the same way most stock photography houses do today. Any subsequent negotiations on use charges or other fees will be strictly between the image agent and the customer. "Kodak Picture Exchange benefits both the image provider and the image user," Stepnes noted. "Image providers won't have to take the time to search through vast numbers of images, trying to find the ones they think the customer wants. And they won't have to risk damage to valuable image originals by sending out large numbers of chromes or prints on speculation, since the customer will have already prescreened the thumbnails using Kodak Picture Exchange." Finally, Stepnes noted, Kodak Picture Exchange benefits customers by allowing them to choose from a larger pool of images and to narrow their searches quickly and with reduced image handling liability. "In the future, as the data-carrying capacity of telephone lines expands, it will become possible to provide high-resolution images directly over the network," Stepnes said, which will make Kodak Picture Exchange even more convenient. Charges and Fees Both image providers and users will be asked to pay nominal annual membership fees to join Kodak Picture Exchange. In addition, image providers will be charged an annual per-image storage fee and a referral fee for each hard copy image request fulfilled for a customer. Users will also be charged access fees amounting to only pennies per image. Those interested in more information about Kodak Picture Exchange may call the Kodak Information Center at 1-800-242-2424, ext. 55. ### [Kodak and Shoebox are trademarks.]