Canon U.S.A. Unveils PosterArtist 2009 for Its imagePROGRAF Large Format Printer Line

New Software Makes Poster Production Easier Than Ever With Improved Design
Features
PITTSBURGH--(Business Wire)--
Canon U.S.A. Inc., a leader in digital imaging and office technologies, today
introduced PosterArtist 2009*, an easy-to-use poster-creation application for
the Canon imagePROGRAF series of large format printers. With the use of large
format inkjet printers continuing to expand in a variety of different vertical
markets, there has been an increasing demand for a simplified poster creation
workflow targeted for the novice user. With PosterArtist 2009, Canon`s fourth
generation of PosterArtist software, the latest additions and improvements
ensure users the ability to produce professional, high-quality posters with
ease.

"Since its inception, the PosterArtist software platform has been a highly
successful design tool which provides advanced design capabilities that many
printing environments and end-users previously lacked," said Jim Rosetta, vice
president and general manager, Imaging Systems Group, Canon U.S.A. "By offering
these advanced design features with a user-friendly interface, we hope to help
printing environments reduce their overall graphic costs without having to
sacrifice quality or innovative designs."

The new PosterArtist 2009 provides the tools necessary to create design-savvy
posters without the need for a graphic design specialist, resulting in time and
cost savings for large format print jobs that may have been previously
outsourced. The bundled software package includes everything needed to create
professional posters, signs and banners right out of the box, as well as more
than 200 pre-designed templates, more than 1,500 royalty free images, clipart,
backgrounds and much more. In addition, several new and improved features of
PosterArtist 2009 include:

* Improved Auto Design Feature: To assist the end user in creating personalized
posters, Auto Design creates numerous template design options based on user
inputs including image selection, color themes, text and more.
* Design Assistant: Developed to support more efficient design-editing, Design
Assistant enables users to specify any area of the poster being edited and apply
the "Auto Design" feature to that area providing new design ideas for the end
user.
* Quick Exchange: Allows users to easily interchange design elements in a poster
by simply dragging one of the elements to the location of the other, and the
Quick Exchange will automatically swap their positions.
* WYSIWYG Text Editing: Eliminates the need for constant text altering by
letting users see text at the correct size and font as they type.

Canon also provides dedicated Web support for PosterArtist 2009 to improve and
ease the end-user`s experience. Users can download new templates, learn about
features in greater detail, and participate in software tutorials on topics such
as creating a poster, Auto Design, variable printing and many more at
www.usa.canon.com/posterartist. For users of PosterArtist 2007/2008 software who
wish to upgrade to PosterArtist 2009, a free download will be available at
www.usa.canon.com/imageprograf or www.usa.canon.com/posterartist.

Canon will bundle PosterArtist Lite 2009 with the Company`s new imagePROGRAF
iPF755/750 and iPF655/650 models. The full version of PosterArtist 2009 will be
available immediately through Authorized Canon dealers for a manufacturer's
suggested retail price (MSRP) of $799.

About Canon U.S.A., Inc.

Canon U.S.A., Inc., is a leading provider of consumer, business-to-business, and
industrial digital imaging solutions. Its parent company, Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ),
a top patent holder of technology, ranked third overall in the U.S. in 2008†,
with global revenues of US $45 billion, is listed as number seven in the
computer industry on Fortune Magazine's World's Most Admired Companies 2008
list, and is on the 2008 BusinessWeek list of "Top 100 Brands." At Canon, we
care because caring is essential to living together in harmony. Founded upon a
corporate philosophy of Kyosei - "all people, regardless of race, religion or
culture, harmoniously living and working together into the future" - Canon
U.S.A. supports a number of social, youth, educational and other programs,
including environmental and recycling initiatives. Additional information about
these programs can be found at www.usa.canon.com/kyosei. To keep apprised of the
latest news from Canon U.S.A., sign up for the Company's RSS news feed by
visiting www.usa.canon.com/rss.

* PosterArtist 2009 is only supported by Microsoft Windows Vista (32bit),
Microsoft Windows XP Professional/Home Edition (32bit) and Microsoft Windows
2000 (Service Pack 4 recommended)

† Based on weekly patent counts issued by the United States Patent and Trademark
Office

Prices, specifications and availability subject to change without notice. Actual
prices set by individual dealers and may vary.

All referenced product names, and other marks, are trademarks of their
respective owners.

Canon U.S.A., Inc.
Mike DeMeo, 516-328-4928
mdemeo@cusa.canon.com
or
Christopher Smith, 516-328-5184
chsmith@cusa.canon.com
or
Canon U.S.A. Web Site:
http://www.usa.canon.com
or
For sales info./customer support:
1-800-OK-CANON

Copyright Business Wire 2009