DigiTimes has reported that some of Taiwan's leading manufacturers are developing PC-use FVD burners and FVD-R media. According to the article, volume production could begin as early as next quarter.
Leading manufacturers of optical discs and optical disc drives in Taiwan, in an attempt to promote the Taiwan-developed DVD format FVD (forward versatile disc), are developing PC-use FVD burners and FVD-R (write once) discs through cooperation with fellow makers in China, with volume production to begin next quarter at the earliest, according to Taiwan industry sources.

Taiwan makers have offered FVD players and recorders (for movies mainly), and the next step to boost FVD is to offer PC-use burners and corresponding recordable discs, said chairman Der-ray Huang for the Taiwan Information Storage Association.
If you'd like to read more, head on over to DigiTimes. Add a comment
Sony sent out a press release this morning, announcing that they've started shipping 50GB dual layer Blu-ray Disc media in the U.S.

Sony Electronics has begun U.S. shipments of 50GB dual layer Blu-ray Disc recordable (write-once) media with AccuCORE technology.

The company also confirmed that it plans to start shipping 50GB dual layer rewritable BD media later this year.

"The arrival of 50GB Blu-ray Disc media is an important milestone in the evolution of this new format," said Mike Lucas, director of marketing for Sony Electronics' Media and Application Solutions Division. "The capacity represents more than four hours of HD quality video, at a 24 Mbps transfer rate, allowing users to take full advantage of Sony's Blu-ray Disc burners and VAIO desktop and notebook computers."
Expect to pay a premium for Sony's dual layer BD-R media. With a suggested retail price of $48, they're more twice the price of single layer BD-R discs ($20). If you'd like to read more, Sony's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
Ciba Specialty Chemicals sent out a press release this morning, announcing that they've decided to settle the patent infringment lawsuit they had filed against RiTEK and its European subsidiaries.
The patent infringement law suits, Ciba Specialty Chemicals (CIBA) had filed against RiTEK Corporation and its European subsidiaries Conrexx Technology B.V. (also known as Traxdata), RME Manufacturing GmbH, and PrimeDisc Technologies GmbH has been settled, RiTEK Corporation and Ciba Specialty Chemicals Inc., have announced today. Ciba had sued RiTEK because it had found the dye supplied by some of RiTEK's suppliers, infringed Ciba's phthalocyanine and related CD-R media patents. Ciba holds worldwide patents for its advanced phthalocyanine dyes and disks, which include China and Taiwan, where RiTEK had produced the media. A RiTEK spokesperson commented: "We do not have plentiful knowledge about the dye technology. After a clarification from Ciba, we realize the importance of the technology within the Ciba dye in the dye industry. We regret that we had used for part of our CD-R production a dye from a local supplier that turned out to infringe CIBA's dye and media patents. After this incident we had instantly improved our internal processes to make sure that intellectual property rights are respected and switched back to Ciba's product."
If you'd like to read more, Ciba's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment
Memorex has announced that they've started shipping their HD DVD-R media. With a capacity of 15 GB, these write once discs can store up to 75 minutes of HD-quality video or about 7 hours of standard DVD-quality video. Here's part of their press release:

Memorex, the leading brand of optical media at U.S. retail and a portfolio brand of Imation Corp. (NYSE: IMN - News), today announced it is shipping its highly anticipated HD DVD recordable media. Memorex HD DVD-R write-once discs support high-definition (HD) television and video recording with crystal-clear broadcast quality. Also ideal for consumers seeking to capture, save and share photos, music and data, the recordable Memorex HD DVD discs deliver up to three times the capacity of standard recordable DVD media and faster digital transfer speeds.
While Memorex's HD DVD-RW media won't ship until the fourth quarter of 2006, their HD DVD-R discs are available now for a suggested retail price of $19.99. More information can be found here. Add a comment
Advanced Media has announced the launch of their RIDATA 6x DVD-RW and 8x DVD+RW media. Here's part of their press release:
Advanced Media, Inc., manufacturer and marketer of the popular RIDATA brand of recordable CD and DVD media, flash memory cards and USB flash drives, has introduced its latest addition to its' rapidly growing RIDATA brand DVD media lineup. The new RIDATA DVD-RW 6X and DVD+RW 8X media features exceptionally fast write speeds for re-writeable media.

"We are pleased to be able to provide the highest speed rewriteable DVD discs available on the market today. Our rewriteable DVD's have seven times the storage capacity of a CD-R for larger digital storage needs. RIDATA DVD+RW ensures high durability and reliability for a variety of recording situations, making it a versatile storage solution. These discs are ideal for data-intensive, high-performance data storage," remarked Harvey Liu, Advanced Media president. "Rewriteable discs can be used for recording and re-recording TV shows, movies, sporting events, digital photos, up to two hours of video, MP3 files and data."

The RIDATA rewriteable media will rewrite up to 1,000 times and are tested to keep data safe for more than 30 years for durable long lasting archives. RIDATA DVD's have become the optimal solution for copying high quality video, sound, and large capacity for both audio/video and PC systems. Rewriteable media from RIDATA is compatible with popular DVD readers and writers.
Advanced Media's 8x DVD+RW and 6x DVD-RW discs are available now in packs of 25, 50 and 100. More information can be found here. Add a comment