Sonic announced today that their Professional Products Group will be
focusing its research and development resources on the authoring of Blu-ray Disc titles and the production of DVD-on-demand content. As a
result, the group will stop selling its Scenarist HD DVD authoring product line.
Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ: SNIC), the
leader in digital media software, today announced that its Professional Products Group will focus its research and development resources
on the creation of new applications for cutting-edge authoring of Blu-ray Disc titles that encompass the interactive and
connected-content capabilities of BD-Live. The group will also increase resource allocation on developing its encoding and title creation
applications that streamline the process of preparing video entertainment for digital distribution. In order to address these emerging
market opportunities and optimize investment return, the Professional Products Group will conclude sales of its Scenarist HD DVD
authoring product line.
"Extending Sonic's long history of commitment and support for the professional sector, we are aligning
our professional product portfolio to address the evolving needs of our high-end customers," said Dave Habiger, president and CEO, Sonic
Solutions. "Our Professional Products Group plays a significant role in supporting the development of high-definition formats, including
the contribution of core IP to HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc joint portfolio licenses. Going forward, the group will direct its considerable
format expertise on helping our professional customers fulfill the richly interactive promise of Blu-ray Disc including BD-Live, and
aligning with a broader company strategy to enable the secure and efficient digital-distribution of video
entertainment."
Things aren't looking good for HD DVD. Without products like Scenarist, its going to be much harder for
studios to get their titles ready for release. If you'd like to read more, Sonic's entire press release can be found here.
