The format war around next generation DVDs may be over before it has begun, thanks to a breakthrough from a British media technology company.
Britain-based New Medium Enterprises (NME) said on Tuesday it had solved a technical production problem that makes it possible to produce a cheap multiple-layer DVD disk containing one film in different, competing formats.
"Current technologies to create multiple layer disks mostly don't work. We've created a technology for mass production of multiple layers that does not suffer from the well known problem of low yields," said NME Chief Technology Officer Eugene Levich.
A low yield means that many DVDs coming off the manufacturing lines are not working and have to be discarded.
The production costs of a multi-layer DVD using the new NME technology are estimated to be around 9 cents, compared with the 6 cents for a standard single-layer play-back DVD, according to Dutch company ODMS, one of the world's leading makers of production lines for optical disks.
This 50 percent cost increase compares favorably with the current generation of multi-layer recordable DVD disks which cost 3 to 5 times as much to produce than a single layer disk, due to low yields.
The technological breakthrough comes one week after three employees at movie studio Warner Bros. filed a patent for the application of multiple formats on a single DVD disc.
"There's no collision between Warner and us. They patent the application, we are patenting the technology. These are complementary patents. I'm glad it's happened. Warner opened our eyes, because it shows they really want to do this and create multi-format, multi-layer disks," Levich said.
Time Warner is the world's largest media company and owns Warner Bros. Former Warner Home Video President James Cardwell joined NME as a board member last month...
The new rules set by Japanese gaming giant, Nintendo, might threaten future content, directly impacting the profitability of many community-driven events.
"The profit of these tournaments is directly impacted by these new rules, as sponsorships are being forbidden, maximum prize money is limited to $5,000, and food/drinks can’t be sold at the tournaments."
Why even bother.
1 thing I've realized over the years is that Nintendo likes bragging about "fun", but it's "fun" how they see fit, and they often go against their consumers for the dumbest reasons. Just gonna do this stuff underground style, who are Nintendo to stop anyone from organizing community based tournaments anyway? How does this actually hurt em?
They've always wanted smash to be seen as a fun, casual game and nothing remotely competitive, which is in stark contrast with how Sakurai develops smash. He puts in so many little things to master for high level competitors. It's just sad, especially for the melee community. They kept the community going for 2 decades now even while all the time nintendo was trying to sabotage them.
This week on the Game Deflators Podcast John and Ryan discuss the PlayStation Portal, Nintendo’s adults only application in Japan, Starfield player base figures and video game genre fatigue.
TimeSplitters studio Free Radical Design faces closure before Christmas, Embracer CEO Lars Wingefors has privately acknowledged.
What does this even mean lol, this very studio was formed out of a acquisition (purchase of the IP)
How does that in any way serve towards your comment
Not to mention the layoffs from Embracer
"How does that in any way serve towards your comment"
Had Xbox acquired that studio from Embracer before gone, you know N4G would gone riot.
????
So you're making up scenarios for a studio that was created for the sole purpose of this IP, for console warring?? Where has Xbox ever said they were interested in buying them, and vice versa?
Where's this assumption that they would want to even save them? If that was the case, we would never have any studio closure.
@obscure
Wow...cant even begin to imagine the lengths you take to be so inaccurate.
This studio has barely released anything in the last decade. You think people would've rioted? The contrary. It wouldve been an investment into elevating the studio to be able to bring back timesplitters. I wouldve been grateful.
^ Obscure observer is denser than lead.
Obscure’s mouth flaps, and a whole lot of stupid comes out every freak’n time.
@Nitrowolf2
Don't even try, Obscure_Observer has the special power to make every single news into a "XBox good, PS bad" story, powered by infinite amount of delusion, you can't win.
Dude Obscure_Observer is a complete idiot. He always and I mean ALWAYS make comments and responses that make no absolutely NO sense. Trying to get that moron to learn anything is like trying to teach calculus to a drywall.
Jesus
People lose their jobs before Christmas
Obscure_Observer: "BETTER USE THIS TO CALL OUT THOSE PESKY MS HATERS AND BIG MS UP"
I hope those (selectively) who wonder why you get disagreed to oblivion are now satisfied.
Xbox dont want studios they want publishers and all the studios that come with it and this isn't even about them not everything is a Xbox slander piece
I'm pretty sure Obscure_Observer gets a kick after each comment he reads that bashes him (Some people are like that). He would stop eventually if people simply stopped replying to him altogether lol. But then, maybe everyone who fuels his behavior also gets a kick out of it too
So let me see if I'm understanding this correctly, this company basicly has figured out how to produce high yeilds of multi-layer DVD's that can hold HD movie content for only 3 cents more than single-layer DVDs....and production will begin in "early 2007".//// Will they play on current DVD players, BD & HD DVD players? yeah, I'm confused.
Told ya this format war was stupid.
(Toshiba?) is developing a player that can play either disc, and now a disc that can work on either player.
Early adopters be damned!
this mean it can be used for games too like can the discs work with the 360 if thats the case on the real why would anyone pay for a ps3 other than its exclusive games?
Now, aren't you glad that you weren't forced into buying Blu-Ray?
See, now I don't have to buy the HD-DVD player! I'll just wait.