LOS GATOS, CA, July 31, 2000 - ScanSoft®, Inc. (NASDAQ: SSFT), the leading provider of digital imaging software, today announced eOmniForm.com™, its first Internet forms hosting service. eOmniForm.com features leading-edge technology that publishes forms on the web with a click of a button without any HTML, DHTML or CGI programming required. The simple eOmniForm.com forms hosting solution completely eliminates the expensive, time-consuming work necessary to develop and maintain a data collection web site. Once a form is posted on eOmniForm.com, anyone with a web browser can access and fill out the form online, cutting the costs to print, distribute and manage paper forms. eOmniForm.com also collects completed forms on the ScanSoft-hosted web site, which allows the forms publisher to easily download the data into a local database. eOmniForm.com saves time and money for anyone who manages forms from a human resources director, marketing analyst or accountant to a hospital administrator, paralegal or social worker.

eOmniForm.com is designed to seamlessly integrate with OmniForm® 4.01, a new version of ScanSoft's award-winning electronic forms software. Together, eOmniForm.com and OmniForm 4.01 provide the industry's only paper-to-web forms hosting service, enabling users to convert paper forms into web forms with the look and feel of the original. Converting forms from paper to web reduces the need to print and distribute paper forms. In addition, eOmniForm.com automatically saves completed forms in its database, eliminating the need for data entry and file cabinet storage. OmniForm 4.01 also features the most extensive set of design tools of any forms hosting service, offering the best solution for both converting paper to web and designing forms from scratch. These design features also allow users to easily update or edit forms, and since it's published on the web, the changes are made without wasting obsolete paper forms.

"eOmniForm.com gives anyone the power to collect form data from the millions of Internet users whether they're down the hall or around the world," said Michael Tivnan, ScanSoft's chief executive officer. "eOmniForm.com is a cost-effective, simple solution for any form whether it's a registration form, expense report, order form, project request or insurance form."

The new eOmniForm.com Internet forms host offers one year of Basic Service at no charge for anyone who purchases OmniForm 4.01. The Basic Service allows OmniForm customers to post up to five forms and collect 10,000 form entries. After the first year, the same basic service is available for $49.95 per year. In addition, eOmniForm.com is expected to provide two expanded levels of service to host a greater number of forms. The SOHO Service enables users to publish up to 20 forms for $89.95 per year, and the Enterprise Service allows users to post up to 50 forms for $174.95 per year.

Easy to Publish, Fill Forms and Retrieve Data

OmniForm 4.01 features a new button that provides one-click access to eOmniForm.com. After creating an electronic form using OmniForm 4.01, a user can click the eOmniForm.com button to instantly publish a form to the web. Each form posted on eOmniForm.com is given its own, unique web address, allowing anyone to fill out the form online. In addition, the forms publisher can click the same eOmniForm.com button to easily retrieve data.

eOmniForm.com

Publish - eOmniForm.com seamlessly integrates with OmniForm 4.01 to instantly publish Internet forms with the click of a single button. The forms are posted on a ScanSoft-hosted web site, each with its own unique web address. The forms publisher can then give the URL or web link to anyone, without printing or distributing a single paper form. eOmniForm.com users can also elect to publish HTML or DHTML forms.
Fill Forms - Anyone with a web browser can access a form using the form's unique web address. In order to fill out the form, users simply tab and type to move from field to field. OmniForm's intelligent form features such as automatic calculations, drop down lists, error checking, and field validations help the user fill out the form correctly. After completing the form, the user clicks Submit and receives confirmation the form was received.
Retrieve Data - The forms publisher can set preferences to receive e-mail notification when new forms are submitted or receive periodic reminders to retrieve data. To collect data, the forms publisher opens the form in OmniForm 4.01, clicks eOmniForm.com, and then enters a user name and password. eOminForm.com will then download all the new records directly into the OmniForm 4.01 database on a local computer. After downloading the data, the user can print, search, sort or export data to any ODBC database.

OmniForm 4.01

OmniForm 4.01 is a new version of ScanSoft's award-winning forms application. Version 4.01 includes a direct link to eOmniForm.com, enabling OmniForm customers to post forms and collect data on a ScanSoft-hosted web site. OmniForm 4.01 includes all of the award-winning design features in the previous 4.0 version. OmniForm is a full-featured forms solution that provides powerful tools for paper-to-web conversion, editing, designing, defining fillable fields, saving in a variety of formats and other important features:

Paper Form Conversion - OmniForm 4.01 includes ScanSoft's Logical Forms Recognition™ (LFR) technology, which offers the unique ability to create electronic forms that maintain the same look and content of paper forms. LFR recognizes all form elements including fill fields, tables, graphics and color. In addition, LFR employs the award-winning OmniPage Pro® OCR technology to accurately convert printed words into electronic text and recognize hyperlinks to URLs and e-mail addresses. As a result, OmniForm is able to create an editable, electronic form that maintains the integrity, or look and feel, of the original paper form.
Forms Design and Editing Tools - OmniForm enables users to design forms from scratch or edit existing forms by providing powerful design tools including a proofing wizard, drawing tools, field creation tools, a scrapbook, alignment tools, and more.
Forms Intelligence - OmniForm allows users to build intelligence into electronic forms including automatic calculations and drop down boxes. The forms designer can even define validation parameters so the form is filled out properly and completely. OmniForm also allows the designer to define the field type such as currency, date, time, serial number or phone number.
A Variety of File Formats- An OmniForm form can be saved in a variety of formats, depending on how it is to be used. Any form created in OmniForm can be saved as .OFM (OmniForm format) and filled out using OmniForm Filler 4.0, a companion product, which enables users to fill out forms. A copy of OmniForm Filler is integrated into OmniForm, and additional copies are available as a stand-alone product. Other formats include RTF (Microsoft Word), EXE (OmniForm mailable filler), PDF, DHTML, HTML 3.2, and OFML (OmniForm Internet Publisher Web format).

Pricing and Availability

eOmniForm.com is now available as a direct launch through OmniForm 4.01. Customers can choose between three levels of service:

Basic Service - Hosts up to 5 forms - No charge for the first year; $49.95 per year thereafter
SOHO Service - Hosts up to 20 forms - $89.95 per year
Enterprise Service - Hosts up to 50 forms - $174.95 per year

There is no charge for the first year of Basic Service for anyone who purchases OmniForm 4.01. In all three services, each form can collect up to 10,000 entries.

OmniForm 4.01 is priced at $149. Anyone who purchased OmniForm 4.0 on or after May 1, 2000 is eligible (with proof of purchase) for a free upgrade to OmniForm 4.01 for just the cost of Shipping and Handling. Owners of OmniForm 4.0 (purchased prior to May 1, 2000) can upgrade to 4.01 for $29.95. Anyone who owns OmniForm 2.0 or 3.0 can upgrade to 4.01 for $79.95.

OmniForm 4.01 is now available directly from ScanSoft by visiting www.scansoft.com or by calling 888-345-6203. Later in August, OmniForm 4.01 can also be purchased through the following electronic resellers: www.buy.com, www.beyond.com, www.computers4sure.com and www.outpost.com and can also be purchased from ScanSoft's retail partners, including CompUSA, Office Depot and Staples, as well as major software catalog vendors and corporate resellers, including CDW, Insight, MicroWarehouse, PC Connection, Softmart, Software Spectrum, and Software House International. For the name and location of the retailer nearest you, visit ScanSoft on the Web at www.scansoft.com.

OmniForm Filler is priced at $49 from the same resellers. Site licenses for OmniForm Filler are available directly from ScanSoft, and volume pricing is also available by calling 1-800-654-1187.

System Requirements

eOmniForm.com requires the use of OmniForm 4.01 and Internet Explorer 5.0 (included on the OmniForm 4.01 CD). OmniForm 4.01 requires a 80486 or higher processor running Microsoft Windows 95, 98 or Windows NT 4.0, a minimum of 25 MB free hard disk space (OmniForm Filler requires a minimum of 10 MB hard disk space), a SVGA or VGA monitor, a Windows-compatible pointing device, a CD-ROM drive, 16 MB RAM (32 MB RAM recommended), and a compatible scanner if form scanning is planned. OmniForm 4.01 includes support for more than 100 flatbed and edge-fed, black and white and color scanners, including models from UMAX, Hewlett-Packard and Microtek, as well as TWAIN-compliant devices.

About ScanSoft, Inc.

Headquartered in Peabody, MA, ScanSoft, Inc. (NASDAQ: SSFT) is the leading developer of digital imaging software that enables users to leverage the power of their scanners, digital cameras and other electronic devices. ScanSoft's award-winning product line - Pagis ®Pro, TextBridge® Pro, PaperPort® Deluxe™, OmniPage Pro®, OmniForm®, OmniPage Pro Scan Suite Plus™, ImageAXS™, PageKeeper®, Paper Converter™, Kai's PhotoSoap2™, Kai's SuperGoo™, Kai's PowerShow™, and PhotoFactory™ - enables users to capture, recognize, edit, manage and share documents and photos electronically by taking advantage of ScanSoft's cutting-edge technology.

ScanSoft has established numerous strategic partnerships with the industry's leading scanner and multifunction vendors to deliver the most comprehensive and cost-effective solutions to its customers. Vendors who have chosen ScanSoft's cutting-edge OCR technologies to incorporate into their own product offerings include Brother, Canon, Epson, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, Lotus, Microtek, Mustek, Primax, Sharp, Symantec, Visioneer, Xerox and others. ScanSoft's leading OCR technology was recently licensed by Microsoft for use in future products. ScanSoft continues to cultivate and develop strategic partnerships to deliver the most comprehensive and cost-effective solutions for its customers.

ScanSoft software is sold and marketed worldwide through retail, dealer and OEM channels and the Internet, capturing the consumer, small office/home office (SOHO) and corporate markets. There are more than 6 million registered users of ScanSoft products. ScanSoft can be found on the Web at www.scansoft.com.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including, but not limited to, statements as to the features, perceived benefits, availability and shipment date of eOmniFrom.com and OmniForm 4.01, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including engineering delays, quality assurance testing delays, the market acceptance of OmniForm 4.01 and eOmniForm.com, the impact of competitive products, and other risks detailed from time to time in ScanSoft's SEC reports. ScanSoft disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

TextBridge, Pagis, PaperPort, PaperPort Deluxe, OmniPage, OmniForm, PageKeeper, Paper Converter, Kai's PhotoSoap2, Kai's SuperGoo, Kai's PowerShow, PhotoFactory, and Logical Forms Recognition are registered trademarks or trademarks of ScanSoft, Inc. ImageAXS is a trademark of Digital Arts & Sciences Corporation. All other trademarks and trade names are hereby recognized and may be registered to their respective holders.

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