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DVD ENTERTAINMENT GROUP
ANNOUNCES AGENDA FOR 2003: DVD RECORDING AND MUSIC ON DVD TOP FOCUS
With a variety of DVD recorders being marketed by consumer electronics companies (including models with hard disk drives, solid state media slots and network connectivity), there is an increased retail focus on this category. Consequently, the DEG will design programs that educate consumers about how DVD provides recording applications while protecting pre-recorded content from unauthorized use. In addition to DVD recording's superior picture quality, the group's marketing messages will include multi-program capability, fast access time, reliable storage media, non-linear recording, camcorder friendliness and read/write capability. Joe Stinziano, general manager of home video, Sony Electronics will chair the DVD Recording Committee. Jodi Sally, director of marketing, Toshiba America Consumer Products will serve as co-chair. Another DEG focus for 2003 is music on DVD -- one of the hottest growth areas for DVD hardware and software. DVD concert-length videos, music video singles and DVD-Audio dramatically increased in popularity during 2002 due to the collectability and added features that are an ideal match for music enthusiasts. The DEG Board of Directors announced plans to create and implement trade and consumer outreach programs to communicate the benefits of music on DVD, whether live concert footage on DVD-Video or exciting high resolution, multi-channel surround recordings on DVD-Audio. John Beug, senior vice president, film/video, production & marketing, Warner Strategic Marketing will chair the Music on DVD Committee. There are currently more than 2,000 DVD music video titles available from top artists. There are approximately 300 DVD-Audio titles available in the U.S. and more than 500 worldwide. A steady flow of DVD-Audio titles is anticipated for release in 2003, with an estimated 250 titles coming to retail throughout the year. Most DVD-Audio titles are comparable in price with CD titles. More than 50 DVD-Audio capable hardware models are currently available from 12 leading manufacturers. Products are available from $250 and offer a variety of models from set-top and portable players to car models and Home-Theater-in-a-Box systems. According to figures compiled by the DVD Entertainment Group based on data from the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), retailers and manufacturers, there are more than 40 million DVD households. More than10 million homes have two or more DVD players. And, there are currently more than 95 million DVD playback devices in American homes, including set top players, DVD-ROM drives and DVD-capable video game machines. The DEG estimates that DVD players will be in 55 million -- more than half -- of U.S. homes by the end of 2003. There are nearly 20,000 DVD movies and music video titles currently available. There are now more
than 250 DVD player models marketed under 60 different consumer electronics
brands. DVD players
are available at most consumer electronics retailers and have become
the focal point of the home theater category. There are also an expanding
variety of DVD players available, with Home Theater in a Box systems,
car players, DVD-Video/Audio combination players, portables, recordable
units and TV/DVD combination systems all growing in popularity. |