SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT ELEVATES ITS ROLE IN THE DIGITAL ERA WITH PLAYSTATION(r)2 NEW COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM TO DEBUT ON MARCH 4, 2000 IN JAPAN, FALL 2000 IN EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA TOKYO, September 13 1999 - Heralding in a new age of digital entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. today announced the launch details of its revolutionary computer entertainment system, PlayStation2. Building on the success of the worldwide best-selling PlayStation game console with hardware shipments exceeding 60 million units, PlayStation2 is designed to bring together movies, music and games to form a new world of computer entertainment. PlayStation2 will launch in Japan on March 4th, 2000 with an unprecedented initial week's shipment of one million units. Supporting both the audio CD and DVD-Video formats, PlayStation2 offers consumers a wide range of music and video entertainment options. The new system is backwards compatible with the original PlayStation, bridging the gap between the two systems while legitimizing consumers' investment in their existing PlayStation software libraries. Sony Computer Entertainment announced the following details of the new system:- Product Name: PlayStation2 Suggested Retail Price (Japan): 39,800 Yen Available: March 4th, 2000 Accessories included: "Dual Shock"2 analog controller High capacity 8MB Memory Card PlayStation2 Demo Disc AV Multi cable AC power cord Dimensions: 301mm (W) X 178mm (D) X 78mm (D) 12" x 7" x 3" Weight: 2.1Kg (4lbs 10oz) Media: PlayStation2 CD-ROM, DVD-ROM PlayStation CD-ROM Formats supported: Audio CD, DVD-Video Interfaces: Controller port (2) Memory Card slot (2) AV Multicable output (1) Optical digital output (1) USB port (2) i.Link (IEEE1394) (1) Type III PCMCIA card slot (1) "PlayStation2 is charting a path toward the future of networked digital entertainment", said Ken Kutaragi, President and CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. "Just as the PlayStation brought interactive gaming to an unprecedented mass market, PlayStation2's combination of breathtaking digital graphics, superb sound and DVD video will open the doors to a new computer entertainment experience in the home". The PlayStation2 computer entertainment system will be available in Asian markets in the Summer, 2000 and in Fall, 2000 in Europe and North America. PlayStation(r)2 Basic Specifications and Features:- CPU 28 Bit "Emotion Engine(" System Clock Frequency 294.912 MHz Main Memory Direct RDRAM Memory Size 32MB Graphics "Graphics Synthesizer" Clock Frequency 147.456MHz Embedded Cache VRAM 4MB Sound SPU2 Number of Voices 48ch plus software Sound Memory 2MB IOP I/O Processor CPU Core PlayStation CPU+ Clock Frequency 33.8688MHz or 36.864MHz (Selectable) IOP Memory 2MB Disc Device CD-ROM and DVD-ROM Device Speed CD-ROM 24 times speed DVD-ROM 4 times speed Visit our website: www.playstation-europe.com/pr For further information, please do not hesitate to contact: Liz Ashford Head of European (PAL) Public Relations Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Contact details in Tokyo from 13th-22nd September 1999:- Mobile: 00 81 90 4759 1030 Hotel: 00 81 3 3265 1111 Email: liz_ashford@scee.net Contact details in London from 23rd September 1999:- +44 (0) 171 533 1349 Alternatively, please contact SCEE Central PR on any of the following numbers:- +44 (0) 171 533 1299 +44 (0) 171 533 1345 +44 (0) 171 533 1545