Microsoft Releases Expression Media
By
Mike Pasini, The Imaging Resource
(Monday, May 14, 2007 - 16:20 EDT)
A free upgrade is available to iView MediaPro users through Aug. 1 only.
Microsoft has released the first version of Expression Media, its cross-platform replacement for iView MediaPro, the digital asset management tool which is acquired in June of last year, according to the an entry on the Expression Team blog.
"That's right," the entry said, "we're very pleased to announce that version 1 of our team's suite of end-to-end tools for creative designers is done! The process is now underway to manufacture and distribute the product. For more details on the suite and how you will be able to purchase it, see the Expression Web Site.
"The Expression Studio suite consists of four products -- Expression Web, Expression Blend, Expression Design and Expression Media."
Microsoft has promised to maintain Media "as both a Mac and Windows application with great feature parity and occasional differences in UI and features that require platform specific capabilities." The Windows version, for example, includes Expression Media Encoder, a standalone video encoding tool that makes calls to Windows functions and is thus not available in the Mac version.
The 19-MB Windows Vista/XP download requires Apple Quicktime 7.1.5. The Mac OS X download is 12.2-MB. Both downloads offer a 60-day free trial but require signing in to Windows Live ID, whose servers reported, "Windows Live ID is experiencing technical difficulties" throughout the day. Both versions as well as system requirements are available on the Media download page.
iView MediaPro owners do, according to the Media page FAQ, qualify for a free upgrade through Aug. 1, after which a $99 upgrade price applies.
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