Topic: News

Japanese Optware announced that the first generation of its Holographic Versatile Disc (HVD) will be available in the U.S market next summer.

Sony announced the VAIO XL1 Digital Living System, a full Home Theater with the brains of a PC. Two sleek components comprise the Digital Living System: a high-end multimedia PC and a 200-disc media changer/recorder.

The body that represents the film industry is taking legal action against six websites posing as legitimate film and music download services. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) filed the suits in New York state courts.

The UK's Premier League is tracking a number of websites offering illegal streaming of live football, and intends to take legal action against the ISPs hosting the sites.

Plextor have announced their new PX-760 DVD burner, which is capable of recording on DVD±R media at the envelope-pushing 18x. The company also announced a super-multi DVD recorder, codenamed PX-750.

LG Electronics has registered the "Super Multi" name with the DVD Forum. This would require other brands to obtain LG's permission before allowing them to name DVD burners with the "Super Multi" name.

Counterfeit software from Symantec and Adobe Systems has been seized in an operation that netted the largest ever crop of illegal CD manufacturing equipment in the US.

Press Release: Droppix have announced the availability of version 1.6 of its next-generation CD and DVD creation software, Droppix Recorder, which includes an integrated label-making module and support for drives using Hewlett Packard’s LightScribe technology.

Millions of newspaper readers have been bulking out their DVD collections recently with free giveaways from the national press. But how can papers afford to be so generous?

Ritek on October 11 announced it recently obtained Philips certification for its 8x DVD+R DL (single-sided double-layer) discs. In late September of this year, Optodisc Technology secured Philips certification for its 16x DVD+R discs, according to company PR manager Robert Chang.

Japanese electronics giant Toshiba has developed the first laptop computer with a next-generation HD DVD drive, despite a format war with a rival Sony group.

We give up. A story stating that Microsoft had developed a technology which enabled DVDs to be played only once was much vilified on the Net. Some claimed it was a pure hoax. But the story's originator - The Business - has named now named its source.

PSP users are being urged to beware of a Trojan which, once executed, turns their games gizmo into little more than an expensive book weight.

CMC Magnetics will establish the largest DVD disc factory in the world, with a monthly production capacity of 40 million DVD discs, according to company chairman Robert Wong at an institutional investor conference on October 5. The factory, to be located in Thailand, will begin volume production in the first quarter of next year, according to Wong.

At the "DVD Forum Japan Conference 2005" yesterday, industry spokemen presented the HD DVD standardization progress, introduced the updated format roadmap and also unveiled that the upcoming HD DVD Video titles may not be regionally restricted as in the case of DVD Video.

On the Internet, a hoax can spread just as fast as a genuine news story. That’s the lesson from the bogus story we unwittingly published on wednesday that claimed Microsoft is about to unleash a new single-play DVD format.

Resident DVD genius Flash has an on-going campaign to find the best discs in the 16x market. In this review he compares Smiley 16x DVD-R versus the Moviestyle 16x DVD-R. You can find the review here.

Microsoft has developed a cheap, disposable pre-recorded DVD disc that consumers can play only once. The discs would give Hollywood increased control over the release of new films and allow consumers the chance to watch a film at the fraction of the price of an ordinary pre-recorded DVD. More important, the discs would prevent copying and digital piracy.

Recently published patents at the US Patent & Trademark Office could bring some light to the so-called "ROM Mark" protection layer of the Blu-Ray format.

OEM prices for entry-level DVD recorders have precipitously dropped to US$70-80 (£40-£46) due to less than expected global demand, forcing Japanese maker Sanyo Electric to forgo production, according to local industry sources.