MEDIA-TECH Conference & EMX in review The MEDIA-TECH Conference 2004 in Los Angeles, August 31 - September 1, once again proved to offer a unique opportunity both to network with key people in the media manufacturing industry, and to see the latest in state-of-the-art technological developments. Over 2,000 attendees were full of praise for the topics and presentations by high-level, international speakers from the industry's influentials. This year's conference focused on the emerging third generation of optical discs, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray Disc. While keynote speeches focused on background information and the question which of the two formats will prevail, the training sessions addressed individual technical aspects of the subsequent production steps of the new formats facing the replication industry.
Exhibits at the Showcase focused on the first and second generation of optical disc (CD and DVD) manufacturing and processes. Special interest were the production lines for the fast growing recordable DVD R and the rewritable DVD RW / DVD RAM.
At the SINGULUS booth at the MEDIA-TECH Showcase which was a part of the Entertainment Media Expo (EMX), industry attendees were introduced to the new SPACELINE II prerecorded DVD replication line. While the cycle time for the DVD system has been reduced from 3 seconds to 2.5 seconds, it incorporates the potential for additional improvements. The new machine provide an average daily production rate of about 30,000 Discs.
The STREAMLINE II for once-recordable DVD-R was also once again promoted. The new line is designed for the economic mass production of the very popular formats DVD+R and DVD-R, with a fast downstream dry cycle time of less than 3.5 seconds. The integration of additional process steps for future products like DVD+R DL is prepared as well.
This newly-developed product has enabled SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES to re-position itself in the recordable DVD growth market where the company will strive to achieve a position of leadership. The technical excellence and high customer utility of this enhanced equipment has already been corroborated by the orders awarded to date. As a result, the expectations associated with the future success of this business are justifiably high.
Future formats and trends While the newest DVD recorders are capable of recording with different DVD-formats such as +R, -R or +RW, even offering the consumer the flexibility of choosing between the different standards, the next generation of formats is already on the horizon: Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD (High Density DVD). In contrast to the red laser used for DVD, both next generation formats use a blue laser. The blue laser has a shorter wavelength that allows it to make finer signal markings on the optical media.
The presentations at the MEDIA-TECH Conference, especially the two keynotes on HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc underscored the commonly held opinion that ultimately the market, not the replicators, will decide about the winner of this battle of formats. High quality and disc capacity as well as superior copy protection will be the key to success – something both sides claim to guarantee.
There is one other development that is decisive for the introduction of these two disc formats: the introduction of Digital High Definition Television with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels producing convincingly sharp images. The new HDTV, already far advanced in Japan, Korea and the USA, lags behind somewhat in Europe. Analog TV signals in Europe are not scheduled to be turned off in favor of all digital broadcasts until 2010. As an example of what HDTV technology can do, all games at the Soccer World Cup in 2006 will be produced and broadcast in HDTV format.
SINGULUS is well prepared for those emerging new formats. The acquisition of the ODME B.V., Eindhoven/NL mastering business along with the acquisition from the Dutch OTB Group B.V. of patents and other rights to MoldPro injection molding technology which took effect January 1, 2004 to form the new company SINGULUS MASTERING B.V. were among the measures taken to bolster our technological lead. These strategic acquisitions have secured our exclusive access to components needed for the third generation of optical data storage known and enabled us to cut our own research efforts in this area by 1-1/2 to 2 years. Dedicated to being an innovative front-runner for the emerging third-generation of optical disc formats, Blu-ray and HD-DVD, SINGULUS MASTERING BV., based in the Netherlands, has already developed a forward-looking Deep UV Recorder to meet the demands of producers of the future formats. This acquired technology will become the base technology for video recording in the era of high definition television (HDTV). The newly gained technological leadership in this area gives SINGULUS an opportunity vis-à-vis its competitors to sell its systems and processes based primarily on innovation, technical performance, and quality instead of price.
F&E efforts and investments in the new HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats were intensified in the first six months of 2004. Efforts will be concentrated on the development of new in-line replication systems in the months ahead. Discussions with potential development and cooperation partners as well as pilot customers have already been initiated.