Exhibit 10.26

                        DIGITAL DESCRIPTOR SYSTEMS, INC.
                          EMPLOYEE STOCK PURCHASE PLAN

                                     ARTICLE
                                     PURPOSE

     1. Purpose.  The purpose of the Digital Descriptor  Systems,  Inc. Employee
Stock  Purchase  Plan (the "Plan") is to provide  eligible  employees of Digital
Descriptor Systems,  Inc. (the "Company") who wish to become shareholders of the
Company an opportunity to purchase common stock ($.001 par value) of the Company
("Stock").  The  Board  of  Directors  of the  Company  believes  that  employee
participation  in the ownership of the Company will be to the mutual  benefit of
both the  employees  and the  Company.  The Plan is  intended  to  qualify as an
"employee stock purchase plan" under Section 423 of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986, as amended (the "Code").  The provisions of the Plan shall be construed so
as  to  extend  and  limit   participation  in  a  manner  consistent  with  the
requirements of that section of the Code.

                                     ARTICLE
                                   DEFINITIONS

     1.  Board.  Board  shall mean the Board of  Directors  of the  Company or a
committee  appointed by the Board of Directors of the Company to administer  the
Plan. The Board shall have complete discretion to interpret and construe any and
all provisions of the Plan, to adopt rules and regulations for administering the
Plan and to make all other determinations  deemed necessary or advisable for the
administering of the Plan. The Board's  determination  of the foregoing  matters
shall be conclusive.




<PAGE>

     2. Compensation.  Compensation shall mean regular straight-time earnings or
salary,  excluding  payments  for  overtime,  shift  premium,  bonuses and other
special payments, commissions or incentive payments.

     3. Employee.  Employee shall mean any person who is customarily employed on
a full-time or part-time basis by the Company and is regularly scheduled to work
more than 20 hours per week.

     4. Plan Administrator.  Plan Administrator shall mean the person designated
by the Board to receive  notices and supervise the operation of the Plan. In the
absence of a designation of a Plan  Administrator by the Board, the Treasurer of
the Company shall be the Plan Administrator.

                                     ARTICLE
                          ELIGIBILITY AND PARTICIPATION

     1.  Initial  Eligibility.   Any  employee  who  shall  have  completed  six
consecutive  months of  employment  and shall be  employed by the Company on the
date his  participation  in the Plan is to become effective shall be eligible to
participate  in  Offerings  under the Plan which  commence  on or after such six
month period has concluded.

     2. Leave of Absence. For purposes of participation in the Plan, a person on
leave of absence shall be deemed to be an employee for the first 90 days of such
leave of  absence  and  such  employee's  employment  shall  be  deemed  to have
terminated  at the close of  business  on the 90th day of such  leave of absence
unless such  employee  shall have  returned to regular  full-time  or  part-time
employment  (as  applicable)  prior to the close of  business  on such 90th day.
Termination  by the  Company  of any  employee's  leave of  absence,  other than
termination of such leave of absence


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<PAGE>

by return to full-time or part-time  employment (as applicable)  shall terminate
an employee's  employment for all purposes of the Plan and shall  terminate such
employee's participation in the Plan and right to exercise any option.

     3.  Restrictions on  Participation.  Notwithstanding  any provisions of the
Plan to the contrary, no employee shall be granted any rights to purchase shares
under the Plan:

          a. If,  immediately  after such grant,  such employee would own Stock,
     and/or hold outstanding  options to acquire Stock,  possessing 5 percent or
     more of the total combined voting power or value of all classes of stock of
     the  Company  (for the  purposes  of this  paragraph,  the rules of Section
     424(d) of the Code shall apply in determining Stock ownership); or

          b. Which would permit such  employee's  rights to purchase Stock under
     all employee  stock purchase plans of the Company to accrue at a rate which
     exceeds  $25,000 in fair market value of the Stock  (determined at the time
     such rights are  granted) for each  calendar  year in which such rights are
     outstanding.

     4. Restrictions on Grants. No more than 100,000 shares of Stock may be sold
pursuant to options  granted  under the Plan. If for any reason any option under
the  Plan  terminates  in  whole or in part,  shares  of Stock  subject  to such
terminated options may be again subject to an option under the Plan.

     5.  Commencement  of  Participation.  An  eligible  employee  may  become a
participant with respect to a particular  Offering (defined below) by completing
an authorization for a payroll deduction on the form provided by the Company and
filing it with the personnel office on or before the Offering  Commencement Date
(defined below). Payroll deductions for a participant


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<PAGE>

shall  commence  on  the  applicable   Offering   Commencement   Date  when  his
authorization  for a payroll  deduction  becomes  effective and shall end on the
Offering  Termination  Date,  unless  sooner  terminated by the  participant  as
provided in Article 7.

                                     ARTICLE
                                    OFFERINGS

     1.  Offerings.  From time to time, but not more frequently than once during
any six month period, the Board may fix a date ("Offering  Commencement  Date"),
on which the Company  will make an offer  ("Offering"),  to all  employees  then
eligible  to  participate,   of  options  to  purchase   Stock.   Each  Offering
Commencement  Date  shall be at least 60 days  after the date on which the Board
makes the employees aware of the Offering.  The Offering  Termination Date shall
be the date which is six months after the Offering Commencement Date.

                                     ARTICLE
                               GRANTING OF OPTIONS

     1. Number of Shares of Option Stock.  On each Offering  Commencement  Date,
each  participating  employee  shall be deemed to have been granted an option to
purchase a maximum number of shares of Stock determined as follows:

          a. The percentage of the employee's  Compensation which he has elected
     to have withheld,  but in no event exceeding five percent of  Compensation;
     multiplied by

          b. The  employee's  Compensation  during the  period of the  Offering;
     divided by


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<PAGE>

          c. 85  percent  of the  market  value of the  Stock on the  applicable
     Offering Commencement Date, determined as provided in Section 5.2 below.

     2.  Option  Price.  The option  price of Stock under this Plan shall be the
lower of:

          a. 85  percent  of the  market  value  of the  Stock  on the  Offering
     Commencement Date; or

          b. 85  percent  of the  market  value  of the  Stock  on the  Offering
     Termination Date.

The market value of the Stock shall be its closing price on the applicable date,
or the nearest prior business day on which trading  occurred,  on NASDAQ. If the
Stock is not  admitted  to  trading  on the  Offering  Commencement  Date or the
Offering  Termination  Date,  then the market  value on such  dates  shall be 85
percent of the fair market value of the Stock as determined by the Board.

                                     ARTICLE
                               EXERCISE OF OPTIONS

     1.  Automatic  Exercise.  Unless a participant  gives written notice to the
Company as provided  herein,  his option for the  purchase of Stock with payroll
deductions  made  during  any  Offering  will be deemed  to have been  exercised
automatically on the Offering Termination Date applicable to such Offering,  for
the purchase of the number of full shares of Stock which the accumulated payroll
deductions  in his account at that time will purchase at the  applicable  option
price (but not in excess of the number of shares of Stock for which options have
been  granted to the  employee  pursuant  to Section  5.1) and any excess in his
account at that time will be returned to him.


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<PAGE>

     2. Withdrawal of Account. By written notice to the Plan  Administrator,  at
any time prior to the Offering  Termination  Date applicable to any Offering,  a
participant  may elect to withdraw all  accumulated  payroll  deductions  in his
account at such time.

     3. Fractional  Shares.  Fractional shares of Stock will not be issued under
the Plan and any accumulated  payroll  deductions  which would have been used to
purchase  fractional shares will be returned to any employee promptly  following
the termination of an Offering, without interest.

     4.  Transferability of Options.  During a participant's  lifetime,  options
held by such participant shall be exercisable only by that participant.

     5.  Delivery  of Stock.  As  promptly  as  practicable  after the  Offering
Termination Date of each Offering, the Company will deliver to each participant,
as appropriate, the stock purchased upon exercise of his option.

                                     ARTICLE
                                   WITHDRAWAL

     1. In General.  A participant may withdraw payroll  deductions  credited to
his  account  under  the Plan at any time by giving  written  notice to the Plan
Administrator.  All of the employee's payroll deductions credited to his account
will be paid to him promptly after receipt of his notice of  withdrawal,  and no
further payroll deductions will be made from his pay during such Offering.

     2. Effect on Subsequent  Participant.  A participant's  withdrawal from any
Offering will not have any effect upon his  eligibility  to  participate  in any
succeeding Offering or in any similar plan which may hereafter be adopted by the
Company.


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<PAGE>

     3.  Termination  of  Employment.  Upon  termination  of  the  participant's
employment for any reason, including retirement but excluding death while in the
employ of the Company,  the payroll  deductions  credited to his account will be
returned to him.

     4. Death. Upon termination of the participant's  employment  because of his
death,  his  beneficiary  (as  defined in Section  10.1) shall have the right to
elect by written notice given to the Plan Administrator  prior to the earlier of
the  Offering  Termination  Date  or  the  expiration  of a  period  of 60  days
commencing with the date of the death of the participant, either:

          a.  To  withdraw  all  of  the  payroll  deductions  credited  to  the
     participant's account under the Plan; or

          b. To exercise the  participant's  option for the purchase of Stock on
     the Offering  Termination Date next following the date of the participant's
     death for the  purchase  of the  number of full  shares of Stock  which the
     accumulated payroll deductions in the participant's  account at the date of
     the  participant's  death will purchase at the applicable option price, and
     any excess in such account will be returned to the beneficiary.

In the event that no such written  notice of election  shall be duly received by
the Plan  Administrator,  the beneficiary shall  automatically be deemed to have
elected, pursuant to subsection 7.4(b), to exercise the participant's option.

     5. Leave of Absence.  A participant on leave of absence  shall,  subject to
the election made by such participant  pursuant to Section 3.2, continue to be a
participant in the Plan so long as such  participant  is on continuous  leave of
absence.  A  participant  who has been on leave of absence for more than 90 days
and who  therefore  is not an employee  for the purpose of the Plan shall not be
entitled to  participate in any Offering  commencing  after the 90th day of such
leave


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<PAGE>

of  absence.  Notwithstanding  any  other  provisions  of  the  Plan,  unless  a
participant  on leave of  absence  returns  to  regular  full  time or part time
employment  with the Company at the earlier of: a. the termination of such leave
of absence; or b. three months from the 90th day of such leave of absence,  such
participant's  participation  in the Plan shall  terminate  on whichever of such
dates occurs first.

                                     ARTICLE
                                    INTEREST

     1.  Payment of Interest.  No interest  will be paid or allowed on any money
paid into the Plan or  credited  to the  account  of any  participant  employee;
except that interest  shall be paid on any and all money which is distributed to
an employee or his beneficiary  pursuant to Sections 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 7.3, 7.4 and
9.1. Such  distributions  shall bear simple  interest during the period from the
date of  withholding  to the date of  return  at the  regular  passbook  savings
account rates per annum in effect at Summit Bank during the applicable  offering
period or, if such  rates are not  published  or  otherwise  available  for such
purpose,  at the  regular  passbook  savings  account  rates per annum in effect
during  such  period  at  another  major   commercial   bank  in   Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania  selected by the Board.  Where the amount  returned  represents  an
excess  amount in an  employee's  account after such account has been applied to
the purchase of stock,  the  employee's  withholding  account shall be deemed to
have been  applied  first  toward  purchase  of stock  under  the Plan,  so that
interest  shall be paid only on the last  withholdings  during the period  which
result in the excess amount.

                                     ARTICLE
                                      STOCK


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<PAGE>

     1. Maximum Shares. The maximum number of shares which shall be issued under
the Plan, subject to adjustment upon changes in capitalization of the Company as
provided in Section 10.4, shall be 100,000 shares for all Offerings. The maximum
number of  shares of Stock  which  shall be  issued  in each  Offering  shall be
determined by the Board at the time the Offering is made. If the total number of
shares for which  options are  exercised  on any  Offering  Termination  Date in
accordance  with  Section  6.1  exceeds  the  maximum  number of shares  for the
applicable offering,  the Company shall make a pro rata allocation of the shares
available for delivery and  distribution  in as nearly a uniform manner as shall
be  practicable  and as it shall  determine to be equitable,  and the balance of
payroll  deductions  credited to the account of each participant  under the Plan
shall be returned to him as promptly as possible.

     2.  Participant's  Interest in Option Stock.  The participant  will have no
interest in Stock covered by his option until such option has been  exercised on
the Offering Termination Date.

     3. Registration of Stock.  Stock to be delivered to a participant under the
Plan will be registered in the name of the  participant,  or, if the participant
so directs by written  notice to the Plan  Administrator  prior to the  Offering
Termination  Date  applicable  thereto,  in the names of the participant and one
such other person as may be designated by the participant, as joint tenants with
rights of survivorship or as tenants by the entireties,  to the extent permitted
by applicable law.

                                     ARTICLE
                                  MISCELLANEOUS

     1. Designation of Beneficiary. A participant may file a written designation
of a  beneficiary  who is to receive any Stock and/or cash under the Plan.  Such
designation  of  beneficiary  may be changed by the  participant  at any time by
written notice to the Plan


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<PAGE>

Administrator.  Upon the death of a participant  and upon receipt by the Company
of proof of identity and existence at the  participant's  death of a beneficiary
validly  designated by him under the Plan,  the Company shall deliver such Stock
and/or cash to such beneficiary.  In the event of the death of a participant and
in the absence of a beneficiary  validly designated under the Plan who is living
at the time of such  participant's  death,  the Company shall deliver such Stock
and/or cash to the personal representative of the estate of the participant,  or
if no such personal  representative  has been appointed (to the knowledge of the
Company), the Company, in its discretion,  may deliver such Stock and/or cash to
the spouse or, if none, per stirpes to the  descendants of the  participant.  No
beneficiary  shall,  prior to the death of the  participant  by whom he has been
designated,  acquire  any  interest  in  the  Stock  or  cash  credited  to  the
participant under the Plan.

     2. Transferability.  Neither payroll deductions credited to a participant's
account nor any rights  with  regard to the  exercise of an option or to receive
Stock  under  the Plan  may be  assigned,  transferred,  pledged,  or  otherwise
disposed  of in any way by the  participant  other  than by will or the  laws of
descent and distribution.  Any such attempted  assignment,  transfer,  pledge or
other  disposition  shall be without  effect,  except that the Company may treat
such act as an election to withdraw funds in accordance with Section 6.2.

     3. Use of Funds.  All  payroll  deductions  received or held by the Company
under this Plan may be used by the  Company  for any  corporate  purpose and the
Company shall not be obligated to segregate such payroll deductions.

     4. Adjustment Upon Changes in Capitalization.

          a. If, while any options are  outstanding,  the outstanding  shares of
     Common Stock of the Company have  increased,  decreased,  changed  into, or
     been exchanged for a


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<PAGE>

     different  number or kind of shares or  securities  of the Company  through
     reorganization,  merger, recapitalization,  reclassification,  stock split,
     reverse stock split or similar  transaction,  appropriate and proportionate
     adjustments  may be made by the Board in the number  and/or  kind of shares
     which are subject to purchase under  outstanding  options and on the option
     exercise  price  or  prices  applicable  to such  outstanding  options.  In
     addition,  in any such event, the number and/or kind of shares which may be
     offered  in the  Offerings  described  in  Article 4 hereof  shall  also be
     proportionately adjusted. No adjustments shall be made for stock dividends.

          b. Upon the  dissolution  or  liquidation  of the  Company,  or upon a
     reorganization,  merger or  consolidation  of the Company  with one or more
     corporations  as a  result  of  which  the  Company  is not  the  surviving
     corporation,  or upon a sale of substantially  all of the property or stock
     of the  Company to another  corporation,  the  holder of each  option  then
     outstanding  under the Plan will  thereafter  be entitled to receive at the
     next  Offering  Termination  Date upon the exercise of such option for each
     share as to which such option shall be  exercised,  as nearly as reasonably
     may be determined,  the cash,  securities and/or property which a holder of
     one share of the Stock was entitled to receive upon and at the time of such
     transaction.  The  Board  shall  take  such  steps in  connection  with the
     transactions  as  the  Board  shall  deem  necessary  to  assure  that  the
     provisions of this Section 10.4 shall  thereafter be applicable,  as nearly
     as reasonably may be determined, in relation to the cash, securities and/or
     property as to which the holder of such option might thereafter be entitled
     to receive.


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<PAGE>

     5.  Amendment  and  Termination.  The Board shall have  complete  power and
authority  to  terminate or amend the Plan;  provided,  however,  that the Board
shall not,  without the approval of the stockholders of the Company (i) increase
the maximum  number of shares  which may be issued  under any  Offering  (except
pursuant  to  Section  10.4);  (ii)  amend the  requirements  as to the class of
employees   eligible  to  purchase   stock  under  the  Plan.  No   termination,
modification,  or amendment of the Plan may,  without the consent of an employee
then having an option  under the Plan to purchase  stock,  adversely  affect the
rights of such employee under such option.

     6. Effective Date. The Plan shall become  effective as of February 1, 1997,
subject to approval by the holders of the majority of the Stock.

     7. No Employment Rights. The Plan does not, directly or indirectly,  create
any right for the benefit of any  employee or class of employees to purchase any
shares under the Plan, or create in any employee or class of employees any right
with respect to continuation  of employment by the Company,  and it shall not be
deemed  to  interfere  in any way with the  Company's  right  to  terminate,  or
otherwise modify, an employee's employment at any time.

     8. Effect of Plan. The provisions of the Plan shall, in accordance with its
terms,  be binding  upon,  and inure to the benefit of, all  successors  of each
employee  participating  in  the  Plan,  including,   without  limitation,  such
employee's estate and the personal  representatives thereof, heirs and legatees,
and any receiver,  trustee in bankruptcy or  representative of creditors of such
employee.


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