Physical Formats

Any format you can hold

AJAX Alert: Opera Browser With AJAX To Sigma CE Chip Range
Web browser company Opera today announce they’re bring their Web browser with AJAX support to chips for use in Consumer Electronics (CE) applications.
It’s not long back that Opera made the decision to give their Web browser away after a long period of charging for it. A very brave and noble act many though – not a bad way to raise your profile we thought.
They’ve been putting their browsers on different platforms for a while, like the mini-browser for mobile phones they brought out back in August 05.
The reasoning behind the give-away move becomes clearer today as they announce that they’ve been working with US chip company Sigma Designs to bring their browser software to embedded hardware via Sigma’s SMP8630 family of chipsets.
Clearly looking to tread on Intel’s toes, Sigma say the SMP8630 family of chipsets can be used in digital media adapters, IPTV set-top boxes and networked DVD players that OEM’s may want to build.
To get to use the browser and the oh-so-desirable AJAX, OEM’s will need to get in touch with Opera to license their Software Development Kit (SDK). Once familiar with it they should be able to create some snazzy application.
So what’s so exciting about embedded Web browsing software? Their supports the darling of the hour buzzword – AJAX.
We’re sure you, dear reader, know what AJAX is, but just incase – it stands for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML. This translates to being able to use a Web browser more like a computer-based application.
The most notable difference from a ‘normal’ Web app is information and updates can be carried out without needing reload the Web page each time. It’s an intergral part of the Web 2.0 landscape.
The most often cited example is Google’s Gmail.
We at Digital-Lifestyles see the rise of AJAX as the event that broke Microsoft’s domination of computers. So pretty significant really.
Expect this news to generate great excitement in the Blog-world.
Opera
Sigma
Opera-related stories on Digital-Lifestyles
5 January, 2006
Unified DVD Format On Rocks
Sony and Toshiba have failed to agree on a unified format for next-generation DVDs, according to a Japanese newspaper report today.
For three years, pressure groups led by Sony and Toshiba have jostled to have their respective technologies adopted as standard for next-gen DVD players, PC drives and optical discs.
Both formats are based around blue lasers, which have a shorter wavelength than red lasers used in current DVD equipment.
This allows discs to store data at higher densities, providing enough storage capacity for high-definition movies and television.
Toshiba teamed up with NEC and Sanyo to promote the HD DVD standard, while Sony and Matsushita (makers of Panasonic products) have been pushing a rival Blu-ray technology.
Japan’s Yomiuri newspaper has reported that the two companies have now abandoned their efforts to develop a unified format, with negotiations falling through after both sides refused to budge.
It was hoped that the Japanese technology giants may have worked together to develop a new format before the launch of new products, but time appears to have run out.
The newspaper report hasn’t been verified by either firm, although both have said that they have not ruled out the possibility of further talks at some point.
In the meantime, both companies will continue the development of products utilising the rival DVD formats.
Sony has announced that it intends to put a Blu-ray disc drive in its new PlayStation game console next year. Their Blu-ray technology is also backed by industry big boys Dell and Samsung.
Although pundits are predicting that producers of next-generation optical discs would eventually use one format, it looks like products based on the two competing standards will be around for a short while, potentially punishing earlier adopters and holding back consumer growth.
Blu-raydisc.info
HD DVD
Sony, Toshiba May Create Universal Blu-Ray/HD DVD Standard (April 2005)
23 August, 2005
Sony, Toshiba May Create Universal Blu-Ray/HD DVD Standard
After years of throwing pans at each other, Sony and Toshiba are set to kiss and make up and develop a universal standard for next-generation DVDs, according to a report in the Nihon Keizai Shimbun business daily.
The twin titans of technology have been busily promoting their own DVD formats, which are billed as offering “cinematic quality” images with the facility to include interactive entertainment.
The bad news is that the two systems are incompatible, so that a movie released on Toshiba’s format would not run on a Sony player and vice versa.
Mindful of the Betamax disaster of the 70s, the two companies have cuddled up in bed together and – after sharing a cigarette – are expected to shortly announce an accord on the joint development of a next-generation DVD.
When asked about the intimate details of the deal, a Sony Corp spokesman played coy, commenting, “as we have said before, we have been considering holding discussions with others over the next-generation DVD format.”
Toshiba were also in the mood to be all moody and mysterious, mumbling on about how “a single format would benefit consumers and we will continue to work toward that goal. We will continue necessary talks to achieve it.”
Next-generation DVD players use funky blue lasers to give a shorter wavelength than the red lasers currently used DVDs and CDs. The higher storage capacity lets the discs hold enough data to provide high-definition quality television pictures.
Two competing formats developed out of this technology, with Sony and Matsushita (Panasonic), introducing the Blu-ray standard in February 2002, with Toshiba and NEC Corp. following with the HD DVD standard.
The format war has already started causing divisions within home appliance makers and movie companies, with companies like Apple, Dell, Samsung, Walt Disney, Sony Pictures and Samsung supporting Blu-ray with Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures and Warner Brothers Studios coming out in support of HD DVD
The Nihon Keizai reported that Sony and Toshiba had stepped up closed-door negotiations around February to find a resolution to the problem.
After reaching a basic agreement that a unified standard would be desirable, they are now looking to develop a hybrid that takes advantage of each standard’s strengths, the newspaper added.
Sony and Toshiba have already started bending the ears of Walt Disney, AOL Time Warner and other Hollywood movie studios in a bid to win approval for a unified standard and pave the way for the signing of an agreement, the Nihon Keizai said.
And that’s good news for anyone with a large Betamax box in the attic.
Hddvd.org
Blu-ray.com
Toshiba
Sony
21 April, 2005
Men Spend More Money on Video Games Than Music: Nielsen Report
A study by Nielsen Entertainment has revealed that men spend more money on video games than they do on music, adding weight to a growing belief that video games are displacing other forms of media for the notoriously fickle attentions of young men.
And it’s not just the kids fragging and gibbing away – the study also reveals that old ‘uns are getting down with da yoot on the consoles, with nearly a quarter of all gamers being over 40.
The random survey of 1,500 people was conducted by the interactive unit of Nielsen Entertainment earlier this year and revealed that games now rank only behind DVDs as a purchase category, ahead of CDs, digital MP3 files and other ways of buying music.
We’ve no idea why this is relevant, but Nielsen also wanted to know how gaming split along lines of race, discovering that African-Americans and Hispanics spend more money on games each month than Caucasians. So now we know.
Naturally, advertisers are keen to cash in on the rising popularity of games, and are looking at ever more persuasive ways to bombard bedroom-bound, bunglesome boys with beguiling adverts (branded billboards in race games are already commonplace, as we’ve reported previously).
Never one to miss an opportunity, Nielsen has announced that they are working on a method to measure audience response to the in-game ads.
The study also discovered that 40% of US households have some kind of system dedicated to game play – whether a gaming PC, a console or a handheld device – with 23% mad-for-it gamers owning all three types of systems.
Like masturbation, older gamers prefer to do it alone, with 79% of men and 79% of women over the age of 45 spending most of their time playing alone.
Teenage girls tended to play more socially, while women aged 25-54 spent equal time playing alone and with others.
Overall, Nielsen reported that active gamers tend to spend just over 5 hours a week playing alone and 3 hours a week playing with people or online.
The US video game industry now rakes in US$10 billion (€7.7b/£5.3b) in annual revenue, roughly as much as US box office sales.
Nielsen Entertainment
11 April, 2005
Diffusion Group Report: Media Servers, Digital Media Adapters Reborn In Converged Platforms
Evidence is beginning to amass that two of the most hyped products in the early digital home market will be lucky if they manage to reach niche market status in the next few years.
Not so long ago, people were getting very excited by media servers and digital media adapters. They were the future. And then, err, people kinda forgot about them.
So what happened?
According to new research from The Diffusion Group, it seems that despite the products being well-hyped, widely discussed and blessed with encouraging early forecasts from a number of research firms, the devices have suffered from extremely limited demand.
Moreover, the report concludes that demand for both these technologies will remain limited and that what unique functionality these solutions do offer will be quickly integrated into other platforms.
“It is not that this type of functionality is undesirable,” said Michael Greeson, President of The Diffusion Group. “The premise of networking stored digital media content to multiple devices in the home is valid, but consumers aren’t looking for separate devices to enable this experience.
Instead, the applications and benefits enabled by these two platforms will be increasingly integrated into devices with which consumers are more familiar – such as DVD players that are now evolving into DVD-recorders or set-top boxes with built-in hard-drives and integrated networking.”
“While media servers were originally positioned to be the hub of the digital home, demand for these solutions has never gotten off the ground.”
Although Windows Media Center PCs have proved more popular, Greeson asserts that this is simply down to normal PC replacement cycles rather than consumers finding anything particularly compelling about the concept.
Other media server platforms have been much less successful, although the push of high-end digital set-top boxes by cable and satellite video service providers offers a case for optimism.
“However,” says Greeson, “this is a push model, where the equipment is subsidised by the service provider in order to generate digital media service revenue, as opposed to a ‘pull’ model where consumers are so enamoured with the device that they run to the retail store to purchase one.”
When it comes to digital media adapters or DMAs, the Diffusion Group paints a gloomy picture.
Introduced a couple of years ago, the idea was to make it easy to share content from the PC to other media devices in the home, such as a TV or stereo using a DMA. But their techie-tastic appeal failed to win over punters.
“Not long ago, there were ten to fifteen companies offering DMAs,” said Gary Sasaki, a contributing analyst with The Diffusion Group and President of DIGDIA, a media consultancy.
“At this year’s CES, DMAs were hard to find. Part of the reason for the premature demise of DMAs is that their functionality appeals mostly to early-adopter or technology-savvy buyers. Additionally, and somewhat similar to media servers, the functionality of DMAs is slowly getting integrated into other more familiar product categories.”
The report suggests that we’ve got an industry in fast transition, with early, stand-alone technologies being picked clean for their useful ideas and then incorporated into more consumer-friendly converged products.
Diffusion Group
3 March, 2005
DR-DX7S Leads JVC DVD/HDD Recorder Line Up
JVC have wheeled out a veritable cavalcade of new, full-featured multi-format DVD recorders, including a series of combination units that combine DVD recording with hard disk drive (HDD), VHS and Mini DV recording.
Stuffed full of technical innovations and user-friendly features, JVC hopes that their range will delight DVD dubbers and enrapture home recorders.
At the heart of the new JVC DVD recorder line is the DR-M100S, which records in the DVD-RAM and DVD-RW/-R formats. Also in the 2005 line up is the DR-MH300S DVD/HDD unit with 160GB hard disk drive, as well as the DR-MV5S DVD/VHS recorder, which features JVC’s exclusive VHS Progressive Scan for superior VHS mode playback.
Interestingly, JVC is also offering a new three-way combination unit – the DR-DX7S -combining a Mini DV deck with DVD and hard disk drive recording.
“The growth of the DVD recorder market over the last year shows that consumers are looking for more versatility in how they watch television and movies,” said Dave Owen, General Manager, Consumer Video, JVC Company of America. “Our new DVD recorder line is designed to meet the needs of virtually every customer. We’re providing advanced recorders that offer an unprecedented merger of innovation and utility.”Let’s take a closer look at some of the new models offered in JVCs line up.
Available in March 2005 for around $349.95 (€268, £185) the DR-M100S DVD recorder allows up to 16 hours of recording time (when using a dual sided disc) and shares all of its features with the line’s combo models. It can record in DVD-RAM and DVD-RW/-R formats and play back DVD-RAM, DVD-RW/-R formats, as well as CD, CD-R/RW, VCD, SVCD, JPEG and MP3 files.
The DR-MV5S makes it easy for consumers wishing to archive their collection of VHS recordings onto DVD. Combining a DVD recorder with a VHS VCR the one-touch intelligent dubbing system offers auto record speed optimiser which calculates total recording time on VHS tape then automatically selects the most suitable recording speed for dubbing to DVD.
Those with VHS collections chaotically labelled with a load of indecipherable scrawling, may enjoy the auto thumbnail creation feature, which automatically creates video thumbnail chapter references when dubbing to DVD.
The DR-MV5S will be available in April for around $449.95 (€345, £237).
We find the DR-DX7S the most interesting of them all (launching in July for $1,799.95, (€1,378, £958) although it’s not cheap.
By combining a 250GB hard disk drive, a DVD recorder and a Mini DV deck this looks to be a perfect solution for camcorder users who don’t fancy fannying about with a computer.
Users can simply load a Mini DV cassette into the deck to easily edit home videos on the hard disk drive and then dub onto DVD.
Mini DV is recorded onto the hard disk drive in the original Mini DV format, so footage can be dubbed, edited on the hard disk drive and then transferred back to Mini DV without a loss in quality. Nice.
JVC
22 February, 2005
EU Software Patent Causes Controversy
Plans to introduce European-wide laws on computer software patents have caused controversy because of the impact they could have on the cost and availability of commercial and open-source software. Microsoft chairman Bill Gates put the case rather more strongly, describing opponents of the legislation as ‘modern-day sort of communists’ who want to damage industrial innovation.
The software Patentability of Computer-Implemented Inventions aims to clarify existing European laws on patenting software, but could create legal hurdles for IT departments wanting to develop their own software. In the worst-case scenario, the patents could force smaller suppliers and open-source specialists out of business, restricting competition and the choice of software available to users.
To be patented, software has to have a ‘technical application’. This basically means that a company that develops software to control a DVD recorder can patent it, as controlling a DVD recorder is a technical application. However, a company that develops software to automate an accounting system would not be granted a patent. This is because accounting systems are regarded as a business process rather than a technical application. The whole process is governed by European Patent Convention, an international treaty which has so far been implemented in slightly different ways in each country.
The bill has sparked a debate on whether the EU should follow the US model of granting patents to Internet business methods, such as online bookseller Amazon’s ‘one-click shopping,’ or instead restrict patents for computer software. Poland, a large EU member whose backing is crucial for the adoption of the proposed rules, told Reuters last week that it was not ready to back the legislation amid fears it could open the door to the patenting of pure computer software.
The major benefits of the bill is that it would provide European companies with protection for their ideas and encourage innovation, create a level playing-field for patents across all European countries, and clarify existing patent laws, rather than introducing major changes. However, small suppliers will not have enough financial muscle to obtain and enforce patents, thereby reducing choice for IT departments. It could also restrict the availability and functions of open source software, and IT departments may have to conduct patent searches to make sure they are not infringing rights. The saga continues, with adoption of the bill now scheduled for next week.
25 January, 2005
Amazon UK Launches DVD Rental Service
Amazon has launched its anticipated DVD rental service in the UK.
Other similar services have been available for a considerable period of time, with Netflix being the most popular example in the US. Customers pay a fixed monthly fee and can have DVD films for as long as they like. When they’ve finished viewing it, they simply return it in the post and receive their next DVD by return.
Amazon.co.uk is the first country to launch for Amazon. It is offering two services, £7.95 giving two disks at home and a £9.95 for four. Its offering differs slightly in that there’s a limit to the number of disks that can be viewed in each month, 4 for the cheaper price and 6 for the other. They say this is based on industry data that shows that people generally rent five or fewer films per month. Competitive services don’t impose this limit.
They’ve made no bones about their desire to dominate the area, “Amazon is determined to be the best place to rent DVDs.” Amazon Chief Executive Jeff Bezos said in a statement.
The market in the UK is pretty busy with long established companies like Movietrak and more recent entrants like retailing giants Tesco, among the many. Back in July in what was generally seen as a defensive move against the plans of Netflix to open in the UK, Movietrak and Qflicks merged. They were not immediately available for comment when we tried to contact them.
The Amazon offering is a powerful play. The new rental service is fully integrated into Amazon.co.uk’s existing DVD store, allowing DVD shoppers to rent or buy in the same area of the site and receive recommendations. They also have the advantages for current Amazon users not needing to sign up new accounts and enter credit card details as Robin Terrell, Amazon.co.uk’s Country Manager, pointed out, “Since we already have their payment and billing information, the millions of existing Amazon.co.uk customers can sign up for the programme with just one click.”
The larger companies can offer additional incentives; Tesco offers clubcard points and Amazon will be offering a 10% discount on the purchase of DVD’s.
When Amazon opens a service in the country you operate, you are bound to be worried. Expect further consolidation within the market or special offers. We understand that Netflix have delayed their plans to launch in the UK to assess the impact of Amazon’s launch.
The cost of delivering films over an Internet connection has been one of the things that has held back online film rental. DVD’s in the post are just about the most bandwidth efficient way to distribute information. 28 pence to deliver 4.7GB – you don’t get much cheaper than that … until the release of the next gen DVD formats.
Amazon DVD rental
10 December, 2004
MPAA Judge Finds ‘bulldozer’ approach ‘improper’
Last week, members of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) filed 11 lawsuits against hundreds of people they accused of using file-sharing networks to share infringing copies of movies. However, the Federal Judge ruled the ‘bulldozer’ approach improper, ordering that the case should be put on hold for all but one of the defendants.
The move by the MPAA to group defendants into arbitrarily-joined actions was probably thought of as a ‘neat’ and easy way to get the message across to other US citizens participating in file sharing. ‘Bulk’ suing could also save a heck of a lot of paper shuffling and administration work.
The MPAA sued groups of “Does” (John Doe) identified by numerical IP address and requested the discovery of names from the users’ Internet Service Providers (ISPs). However, Judge William Alsup ruled that because claims against the 12 defendants were unrelated, suing them together into one big case was improper. “Such joinder may be an attempt to circumvent the filing fees by grouping defendants into arbitrarily-joined actions but it could nonetheless appear improper under Rule 20,” the order states.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has filed friend-of-the-court briefs, objecting to similar misjoinder in many of the cases filed by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) against alleged infringers.
“This decision helps to give due process rights to the Internet users accused of infringement,” said EFF Staff Attorney Wendy Seltzer. “Lumping them together makes it more difficult for everyone to defend against these claims.” EFF is also concerned about the movie studios’ failure to produce evidence of infringement against even Doe #1 in this case.
In a separate case, Warner Brothers Entertainment has secured a $309,600 judgement against an actor for allegedly making promotional ‘screener’ copies of ‘The Last Samurai’ and ‘Mystic River’ available for bootleg DVD copying and unauthorised Internet trading.
Carmine Caridi, a former recurring actor on ‘NYPD Blue,’ is accused of copyright infringement and is facing a default judgement of $150,000 per film and $9,600 in attorney fees. Caridi and co-defendant Russell Sprague were caught because the screeners were individually watermarked for each recipient.
According to Warner Brothers, Carmine Caridi, as a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, signed an agreement before he received the 2003 awards season screeners promising not to circulate them. It is believed that he immediately sent the VHS screeners to another address where they were copied onto DVD and converted to digital files that were posted on the Internet.
24 November, 2004
VCR Sales in UK Halted by Dixons
The largest electronics retailer in the UK, Dixons, has announced that it’s to stop selling Video cassette recorders. They say as sales of DVD Players are so strong, they outsell VCR’s 40:1, that there is no demand for VCR’s anymore. Dixons sales peak for VHS (Video Home System) was in 1993.
All of this is, of course, great for Dixons in the build up to xmas – they’re splashed across all of the papers and other media today, supplementing their already considerable media advertising spend.
You would probably have thought that we’d be jumping with joy at this knockout move for an old, and let’s face it, pretty unwieldy format. Well quite a lot of time has passed since we at the Digital Lifestyles offices originally discarded our own VHS machines, and that gives us a chance to reflect on this news, rather than react.
In that 18-24 months the entertainment industry (read TV and film in this case) has had time to plan it’s future and their approach to visual media in the digital future has become firmer.
Today’s news must make those media companies very pleased. It effectively starts the countdown to the end of access to the large collections of video content people have built up over the last 26 years on VHS, both self-recorded TV programming and pre-recorded.
It also closes one of those pesky ‘analog holes’ that often get mentioned by the media companies, in debates over the future of digitisation of media.
Dixons? They’ll also have the opportunity to sell all of their punters a whole range of new equipment when high-density disc formats (blu-ray, etc) arrive. Of course there’s a bigger profit margin in a £150 DVD recorder that a £40 VCR.
We also assume this will start to open the market for high-end VHS players as people come to realise some of their old content isn’t yet available on new formats. Will there be VHS buffs, like there are analogue HiFi buffs?
22 November, 2004