Vivid is the world's leading film studio and produces over 60 movies a year, but this particular production has already received widespread press attention because it is the first in the adult film industry to be available in both Blu-ray and HD DVD formats and is also the first high definition feature with multiple camera angle options. The film will be sold in a three-disc set including the original "Debbie Does Dallas.""Debbie Does Dallas...Again" will hit store shelves on April 18th. If you'd like to read more, Vivid's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
Toshiba, mainly through its US$499 HD-E1 HD DVD player, accounted for an 85% market share of next-generation blue-laser optical disc drives/players/recorders sold in Europe in January of this year, according to industry sources in Taiwan.As DigiTimes points out, this is likely to change when the PS3 launches in Europe later this month. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment
Sony and Samsung Electronics, proponents of the competing Blu-ray Disc (BD) format, together accounted for the remaining 15% of the European market, the sources said, citing statistics by GfK Marketing Services. Prior to the launch of the HD-E1, Toshiba's European market share for blue-laser products in 2006 was only 58%, the sources pointed out. Though HD DVD currently has a lead in Europe, the upcoming launch there of Sony's Blu-ray equipped PS3 game console is expected to heat up competition between the two formats.
The BDP-S300 is expected to ship some time this summer. More information is available on Sony's website. Add a comment
The new BDP-S300 model can output 1920 x 1080p (progressive) high-definition video, currently the highest resolution high-definition signal available through an HDMI connection. The player supports various video formats, including MPEG2, MPEG4-AVC and VC1.
For those who own an HDTV set without HDMI, an analog component output for 1080i (interlaced) is available as well.
The new BD player is compatible with most standard DVDs and has the added feature of 1080p upscaling through HDMI to 1080p capable HDTVs, improving the picture performance of existing DVD libraries.
BenQ confirmed it is discontinuing sales of DVD recorders mainly because it had been overly optimistic about the market and was plagued by disappointing sales. Since prices have been dropping, BenQ has decided to drop the segment when adjusting its product structure, the maker said, adding that it will determine whether to enter the Blu-ray or HD DVD recorder markets based on market demand.I can't say that I'm too surprised. With Lite-On pulling out of the DVD recorder market back in October, BenQ was one of the few Taiwanese manufacturers left. If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment
While I don't think Blu-ray or HD DVD have anything to worry about (yet), HD VMD does offer an affordable alternative. Of course, NME will need to get the support of Hollywood for the format to really take off. If you'd like to read more, NME's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
New Medium Enterprises (NME) (OTC BB:NMEN.OB - News) today announced its first U.S.-based distribution deal with PC Rush to bring its HD Versatile Multilayer Disc (VMD) players to the U.S. market for the first time. Through this three-year distribution deal, PC Rush will distribute and market the HD VMD Media Player Duo and HD VMD Media Player Quattro, which will allow consumers to play their existing standard-definition DVD collections up-converted to HD, as well as allow consumers entrance into the HD playback market with the high quality, and high value VMD disc format. The HD VMD Media Player Duo, starting at $199 (MSRP) and the HD VMD Media Player Quattro, starting at just $249 (MSRP), will both be available from PC Rush in Q2 2007.
The HD VMD Media Players Duo and Quattro will fill the market need by delivering high-definition discs and players at an affordable price for a broad consumer base. With HDTV adoption continuing to grow, consumers need a proven technology and affordable solution for content storage and playback. Utilizing red laser technology, the same technology used to produce today's global DVDs, NME is bringing consumers an HD option at a comparable cost to the current consumer DVD market.