Last week, <A HREF="http://www.faroudja.com">Faroudja</A> announced that it will introduce its new flagship DVP5000 Digital Video Processor/Scaler at the Consumer Electronics Show this week in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company claims that the DVP5000 is the first processor to automatically upconvert 1080i (interlaced) high-definition signals to 1080p (progressive) resolution, "improving on the best that HDTV currently offers by removing the interlace stairstepping and motion artifacts found in the 1080i signal." The company also adds that standard 480i sources can be upconverted to 1080p.

Film fans in Thailand won't get a chance to see <I>Anna and the King</I> in theaters. Censors in that country have banned the Jodie Foster film because of what they call its "disrespect" toward Thai nobility. The film was released worldwide a few weeks ago.

Last week, the <A HREF="http://www.ce.org">Consumer Electronics Association</A> reported that factory-to-dealer sales of digital television (DTV) products posted their fourth consecutive month of growth in November by topping 22,000 units, bringing total year-to-date sales to 97,481. According to these numbers, November's record sales brought total sales since introduction (August 1998) to 110,657.

The most successful consumer-electronics format of all time has hit a new record for software sales. Well over one million of the silver discs were sold in the week ending Sunday, December 19, the <A HREF="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/">Hollywood Reporter</A> noted on December 22.