Regensdorf, Switzerland and Foster City, Calif., January 23, 2006 – EFI, the world leader in digital controllers, superwide format printers and inks and print management solutions for commercial and enterprise printing, and GretagMacbeth today announce a significant breakthrough in the proofing and production of complex, multi-channel color files used in the packaging industry. EFI Colorproof™ XF directly handles N-color ICC profiles (containing up to six channels) generated by GretagMacbeth’s Multicolor and Generic Output Profiler (GOP) technology from the recently released ProfileMaker 5 Packaging. GOP-generated profiles allow the printer to replace spot colors in an existing profile without generating new test charts to reprofile the press. These new multicolor profiles can now be used with EFI technology to consistently optimize all aspects of packaging production, including display-based soft proofing, contract-quality inkjet proofing and high-resolution output. “EFI Colorproof XF, our leading proofing software, has supported N-color ICC profiles ever since its launch in 2004, thus providing an impressive solution for the packaging industry,” said Stefan Spiegel, senior product marketing manager at EFI. “We are now all the more pleased to offer our customers, in cooperation with one of the leading color management solution providers, further important benefits to reduce production times and costs.” The result of EFI's development knowledge and resources, combined with the proofing expertise behind Best™ technology, Colorproof XF is the highly scalable and versatile client/server-based proofing solution that turns inkjet and laser printers into powerful proofing devices. Colorproof is ideal for virtually anyone needing absolute control over digital color. The market for this innovative solution encompasses digital, commercial and hybrid printers, pre-press service providers, newspaper and packaging printers, publishers, creative agencies and photographers. “EFI Colorproof XF working directly with our multicolor profiles is an enormous benefit for customers using this powerful workflow. ProfileMaker 5 Packaging will revolutionize digital production for the packaging industry,” said Jean-Yves Billon, vice president of OEM at GretagMacbeth. “By applying the open ICC standard to the challenges of multi-channel files, we provide packaging designers and printers with the color management tools they need to accelerate time-to-market schedules and greatly reduce production costs.” GretagMacbeth announced ProfileMaker 5 Packaging in August 2005 to meet the color management needs of imaging workflow in the packaging market for flexographic, gravure, offset and inkjet printing environments. Version 2.6 of EFI Colorproof XF was launched in September 2005 and has shown its strength in direct comparison with competitors at the industry’s leading events like the German Digitalproof-Forum and the IPA Proofing Round-Up.