Audio Video News
MGM Promises James Bond Special Editions on DVD
 |  Jul 25, 1999

Last week, <A HREF="http://www.variety.com/"><I>Variety</I></A> reported that, in celebration of its 75th anniversary, MGM intends to re-release several James Bond classics spanning the last 37 years. The company says it will release 19 of its Bond films as special editions on DVD and VHS in three installments beginning on October 19 of this year, culminating with the DVD release of the newest Bond film, <I>The World is Not Enough</I>, by the end of 2000. The new film, staring Pierce Brosnan as Bond once again, is slated to hit theaters November 19, 1999, in time for the holiday season.

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Audio Video News
No Austin Powers for Malaysians, Censors Declare
 |  Jul 18, 1999

Austin Powers, the swinging secret agent, is too risqu&eacute; for Malaysians, censors in that country have decided. The International Man of Mystery's latest comic misadventure, <I>The Spy Who Shagged Me</I>, is too full of sexual innuendoes for the conservative Muslim nation. The ban applies not only to the theatrical release, but to videotapes, discs, and TV broadcasts as well.

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Audio Video News
SBC and DirecTV Sign Marketing Agreement
 |  Jul 18, 1999

Last week, telecommunications provider <A HREF="http://www.sbc.com">SBC Communications</A> and <A HREF="http://www.directv.com">DirecTV</A> announced a marketing and distribution agreement that will allow SBC to make digital satellite television service available to its 18 million Southwestern Bell, Nevada Bell, and Pacific Bell residential customers. Specific details of the SBC/DirecTV service will be announced later.

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Audio Video News
Dolby Digital Accepted by DVB Project as Audio Standard
 |  Jul 18, 1999

The <A HREF="http://www.dvb.org/">Digital Video Broadcasting Project</A> has adopted Dolby Digital as its multichannel audio standard. The DVB Project is a consortium of more than 240 organizations in over 30 countries devoted to establishing worldwide standards for digital broadcasting. Members include broadcasters, manufacturers, network operators, and regulatory committees. The announcement was made July 6, 1999, by San Francisco-based <A HREF="http://www.dolby.com/">Dolby Labs</A>.

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Audio Video News
DVD Disc Sales Top 25 Million for 1999
 |  Jul 11, 1999

As <A HREF="http://www.guidetohometheater.com/shownews.cgi?465">reported last week</A>, more than 1.1 million DVD-Video players were shipped through the first half of 1999. Additional information released by the <A HREF="http://www.dvdvideogroup.com">DVD Video Group</A> puts these numbers in perspective: DVD-Video experienced 300% growth in the second quarter of 1999, when more than 730,000 hardware units were shipped (compared to 170,000 in the second quarter of 1998). Further, the Group says that shipments for the first six months of 1999 constitute an increase of 881,000 units over the same period in 1998, also representing more than 300% growth. (Over 1 million units shipped in the first half of 1999; in the first six months of 1998, slightly more than 260,000 units shipped.)

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Audio Video News
Pioneer Drops Laserdiscs
 |  Jul 11, 1999

For 20 years, Pioneer has been laserdisc's biggest booster. But that era of home entertainment ended July 6, when <A HREF="http://pioneer-ent.com/">Pioneer Entertainment</A> announced that it would no longer produce or supply laserdiscs. The software division of Pioneer Electronics made the decision in view of the growing popularity of DVD, which, along with VHS tape, accounts for more than 90% of their business. The announcement is most certainly the kiss of death for the beleaguered format.

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Audio Video News
DVD in 1999: One Million and Counting
 |  Jul 04, 1999

Last week, the <A HREF="http://www.cemacity.org">Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association</A> (CEMA) reported that sales of DVD players have reached 1 million units so far this year. CEMA also announced its revised projections for total DVD-player unit sales in 1999, raising the previous prediction of 1.8 million to 3 million.

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Audio Video News
Movie Violence No Problem, Say Poll Respondents
 |  Jul 04, 1999

Twenty years ago, 60% of Americans said they would hesitate to see a movie if it were excessively violent. But according to an Associated Press poll released last week, a steady diet of action films over the last two decades have had a marked effect: Now, only 40% say that too much violence would keep them out of the theater.

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Audio Video News
Recordable DVD News This Week
 |  Jun 27, 1999

Last week, the DVD Forum announced that its Steering Committee has formally approved the physical format of the DVD-RAM discs for 4.7 gigabytes (GB) as version 2.0. The Format Book for version 2.0 (Physical Specifications) will be published in the third quarter of this year. The DVD Froum says that the 4.7GB DVD-RAM format will be compatible with the existing 2.6GB (v.1.0) DVD-RAM format, as well as with other DVD formats established by the DVD Forum. The new 4.7GB format is expected to impact both PC and audio/video applications.

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Audio Video News
Showtime to Offer HDTV Programming
 |  Jun 20, 1999

According to a June 14 report on the <A HREF="mailto:owner-opendtv@pcube.com">OpenDTV news list</A>, <A HREF="http://sho.com/">Showtime Networks</A> will begin delivering original HDTV programming early next year. Concerts, movies, and sports will all be produced in either 1080i or 720p. Showtime has not yet decided which format will get the ultimate nod, but Mark Greenberg, executive vice president for corporate strategy and communications, says his company is leaning toward 1080i as offering the biggest bang for the buck. Also undecided is whether HDTV signals will be delivered over dedicated channels or will share bandwidth with existing services.

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