Impress Launches the Digital-Camera Information Site "Digital Camera Watch"

TOKYO, Japan -- Sep. 30, 2004 -- Impress Corporation (TSE: 9479) announced the launch today of the news site "Digital Camera Watch" (http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/), specializing in digital cameras.

Since their introduction in 1995, digital cameras for the consumer market have come to be increasingly used in the home. Their shipping quantity in 2003 is more than two times that of silver-salt cameras. According to Cabinet Office statistics, 51.8% of households now have digital cameras, so consumer requirements are changing from new purchase to upgrade. While it is said that the digital-camera market has matured, many problems remain to be resolved. The release of new products featuring more innovative digital technologies is anticipated, and the market is expected to change drastically.

Impress has been providing information on digital cameras through "PC Watch" (http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/), a website dedicated to PCs and peripherals, at "impress Watch" (*1), an IT and consumer-electronics news site group. However, as articles on digital cameras have become increasingly technical, the contents of some articles are no longer suitable for PC-related sites. Therefore, Impress launched an independent site for digital cameras, "Digital Camera Watch," Japan's first news site focusing on and specializing in digital cameras, to provide information not only on digital cameras themselves but also on its peripherals, related services, color imaging, and accessories.

- Outline of "Digital Camera Watch" -

- URL: http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/ (updated Monday through Friday)

- Mailing service: "Digital Camera Watch Flash"
News headlines on the website and the URLs linked to the articles are mailed almost every day (distributed from Tuesday to Saturday).

- Subscription charge: Free for both the website and the mailing service

[References]
(*1) impress Watch (http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/)
Integrated digital news service provided by Impress via the Internet. Its number of hits is the highest among IT electronics news sites in Japan. The service comprises various sites, such as "INTERNET Watch," a site specializing consumer PCs, "PC Watch," a site highlighting trends in Akihabara, "AKIBA PC Hotline!," the popular online software introduction site "Windows Forest," the mobile-phone-related information site "k-tai Watch," a site specializing in games, "GAME Watch," a site specializing AV, "AV Watch," and the broadband-related news site "Broadband Watch." The monthly total PV is 158,427,618 (as of June 2004).