Topic: News

After Asustek's contract for OEM production of optical disc drives (ODDs) for Pioneer expires in July, it seems likely they will either close or sell the business unit.

Sony says it will start a movie download service for its PlayStation 3 home console this summer in the U.S.

TMPG is introducing an updated version of its popular video encoding software TMPGEnc 4.0 XPress which offers increased support for AVCHD, AAC, MPEG-4 and Blu-ray.

The traditionally quiet 3rd quarter will be made worse for disc makers by polycarbonate suppliers plans to raise prices by 5-7% due to large hikes in oil pricing.

Kaleidescape have started shipping their 1080p Player and 1080p Mini Player - two Movie Players that produce video quality from ordinary DVDs, potentialy challenging Blu-ray.

In an announcement that will hardly raise eyebrows, the Toshiba Europe CEO said that the company isn't looking to add Blu-ray capabilities to its laptops.

Young iPod owners are walking around with an average of 842 illegally copied songs, according to research by the University of Hertfordshire.

Sony has released a new flat-panel TV which it says uses less energy than normal sets without compromising image quality.

Online recordable disc and PC consumables retailer SVP Communications has been sold recently to an investor, according to industry sources.

This summer all retail and online purchases of Nero 8 will come with free data protection suite.

A new radio application from AOL will connect an iPhone to AOL’s servers. The phone’s GPS system will monitor signals in order to determine your location and tune to the digital stream from the nearest CBS station.

Not happy with the size of your 32in LCD TV? If money's no object, get on phone to Sharp, which is now taking orders for a monster 108in screen ready for connection to your HD kit.

An online retailer who imported mod chips from Hong Kong to allow overseas and copied games to be played on consoles walked free from court yesterday, opening up the possibility that modding may now be legal in the UK.

Sonic Solutions has been cooperating with optical disc drive maker Lite-On IT, blank disc maker Ritek and IC design house MediaTek, to promote Qflix, a technology which uses CSS (Content Scramble System) to encrypt movies and video content for sale over the Internet.

Hitachi Home Electronics (America), today announced its new line of 2008 Plasma HDTVs, which showcase elegant new designs, advanced technologies and industry-leading features.

The publicly supported, not-for-profit television network PBS has announced a deal for several programs to be streamed on the Hulu Web site. These include “Nova,” “Wired Science,” “Carrier” and “Scientific American Frontiers.”

Merlin, a new trade body founded a year ago with the aim of representing the rights of independent labels worldwide, announced on Wednesday that its membership has grown to over 12,000 labels, representing over 8% of the U.S. market -- equal to that of major label EMI Music.

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment is launching Web-connected BD Live on all of its upcoming Disney-branded Blu-ray Disc releases beginning in the fourth quarter.

Virgin Media will launch a campaign against illegal downloading next week, when it'll begin firing off warning letters to to subscribers that the BPI believes are sharing copyright music files.

Second-tier Taiwan-based CD-R and DVD+R/-R discs producers are facing short supplies of TFP (tetrafluoro-propanol), a dye solvent used in the manufacture of optical discs, and consequently some have reduced production while others have even stopped production temporarily, according to industry sources.