3-D Interface Lets Multiple Users "Walk" Through and Interact in Virtual Environments
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Worlds Inc. and PSINet Inc. (Nasdaq: PSIX) today announced an agreement to more widely distribute Internet-based virtual reality environments, pushing forward the future of online social interaction.
The agreement involves two of Worlds Inc.'s revolutionary Internet applications: Worlds Chat, a graphically oriented, 3-D chat and entertainment environment, and AlphaWorld, an Internet experience unlike any other in which users help create a 3-D virtual society. PSINet will bundle the two applications with its award-winning Pipeline individual Internet service.
Both Worlds Inc. services boast a highly intuitive first person 3-D interface along with multi-user capabilities, to give a user the ability to enter a shared virtual reality environment using standard computers and modems over regular telephone lines. Users will enjoy more robust interactivity with other users because their exchanges resemble real time, thanks to the low latency distribution over the PSINet network.
"This agreement offers Worlds Inc. a terrific method of increased distribution over PSINet's highly efficient network," says Dave Gobel, President and CEO of Worlds Inc. "PSINet users will now be able to more easily access our social computing applications and start interacting through their computers rather than simply with their computers."
"The multi-user nature of Worlds Inc.'s environments points the way to the future of the Internet," said Kurt Baumann, vice president of marketing, consumer services for PSINet. "Together, we're bringing human interaction online that was previously limited to the physical world."
The concept behind the Worlds Chat environment is to provide Internet users a more intense and enjoyable experience than what's currently available in online services' chat rooms or through Internet Relay Chat (IRC). The application goes far beyond them thanks to two critical sets of functionality.
One is its first person 3-D interface, which replicates the way people navigate the physical world -- actually letting them "walk" through the environment. Users can select a character and assume an identity as they explore Worlds Chat and interact with other people.
Additionally, AlphaWorld lets users build their own areas in the environment. Citizens of AlphaWorld have the right to own land and build on it, explore their surroundings, and experience its content -- all in the presence of other users. A constantly evolving space, AlphaWorld boasts its own imbedded tool kit and attractions as well as the most interesting and unique content around: the real people who comprise its citizenry.
"We believe this is the next generation of Internet application for everyone, including the newer Internet user," said Baumann. "Worlds Chat and AlphaWorld are user-valued extensions to the services we provide. We'll continue to explore opportunities with companies like Worlds Inc. to bring the full-spectrum of this exciting technology to our customers."
PSINet is an Internet-optimized network which currently has more than 200 points-of-presence (POPS) worldwide including three recently opened in Canada. Internet access options range from modem dial-up and ISDN for telecommuters and small office LANs to dedicated high-speed circuits for corporate connectivity. Pipeline, a PSINet individual service, received PC Magazine's "Editor's Choice" award as the best nationwide Internet Service Provider.
PSINet has defined industry standards and is a leader in technological innovation and new service development. The company has its headquarters in Herndon, Va., with sales and field service offices across the U.S., Cambridge, England, and Tokyo. PSINet is a publicly held company trading under the PSIX symbol on the Nasdaq exchange. Further product, availability and pricing information can be obtained by calling 703-904-4100 through PSINet's Web site at http://www.psi.net/; or by sending an e-mail request to info@psi.com.
Worlds Inc. is the worldwide leader in Internet virtual reality. Continuing to push the cutting edge of social computing, Worlds Inc. has been applying its expertise to a variety of applications, from working with Visa International to enable online banking, to developing a multi-player VR role playing game on the Internet with MGM, to creating a virtual play space for children in pediatric hospitals in conjunction with the Starbright Foundation.
With the convergence of the computer, the telephone, and the television, Worlds Inc. technology represents a whole new metaphor for interaction and connectivity. Using the company's applications, people can interact through their computers rather than simply with them. Worlds Inc. helps people from around the world communicate through seamless communications links tied to an interface they can readily understand because it mimics the physical world. This ability to create shared 3-D virtual worlds that run on today's technology has been described as "astonishingly cool" by the New York Times, "the hottest innovation the Internet will see this year" by the Dallas Morning News, and "the next step in the evolution of online communication" by the Wall Street Journal.
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/CONTACT: Rob Schmults of Worlds Inc., 415-281-1300 robs@worlds.net; Aggie Nteta of Pipeline USA, 703-904-4100 xl356, ntetaa@psi.com; aggie@usa.pipeline.com/
(PSIX)
CO: Worlds Inc.; PSINet Inc. ST: California IN: CPR SU: PDT
RM-LG -- NYTU041 -- 9937 01/02/96 12:25 EST
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