LAKE SUCCESS, NY, May 15, 2001 - Canon U.S.A., Inc., a subsidiary of Canon Inc. (NYSE: CAJ), announced today the launch of a new Web site for third party development and solutions support: developersupport.canon.com. The member site allows developers to register their organization online with Canon U.S.A., and provides the essential information and integration tools necessary in the development of custom solutions for Canon hardware. Initial product support at the time of launch will be for Canon imageRUNNER Series and iR3250 devices. "The launch of developersupport.canon.com will foster the development of custom solutions that extract the highest level of capabilities from Canon hardware," said Keith Taylor, director of Canon U.S.A. Solutions Development. "By centralizing information, tools, and access to Canon U.S.A. Solutions Development online, we can streamline our support to developers, and provide customers with the solutions they need as quickly as possible." The developersupport.canon.com site will contain registration links for two levels of membership: Essential Developer and Premium Developer. The Essential Developer registration provides basic documentation and tools such as Canon device escape codes and drivers. At the Premium Developer level, third parties can register for a nominal fee and receive software developer kits (SDKs) that include sample programs, documentation, and direct software engineering support from Canon U.S.A. Solutions Development. Premium Developers also will be offered low cost lease/rental of Canon equipment for testing and integration purposes. A Canon U.S.A. Developer Support Lab facility, located in Atlanta, Georgia, will also be available at the Premium Developer level for on-site testing of supported products within a wide range of operating systems and environments. Solutions that have successfully been completed, and third party software and hardware applications that have been certified as compatible with certain Canon products, are eligible to be listed on the main Canon U.S.A. web site. "Canon's new developer site, and the developer tools that will be made available through it, will play a significant role in extending our product line into more integrated and customized application environments," said Dennis Amorosano, director of Canon U.S.A. Copier and Networked Office Systems Division. "Creating links to Canon technology expands our market reach and our ability to address a diverse set of customer needs."