March was a month of shifting positions at several high-end consumer electronics companies.

Last week, <A HREF="http://www.cirrus.com">Cirrus Logic</A> announced an agreement that will make possible broad deployment of THX-grade home-theater systems. In a press release, the company says it has licensed THX home-theater DSP (digital signal processing) algorithms from Lucasfilm for upcoming audio products. "Cirrus Logic thus becomes the first semiconductor manufacturer to combine THX post-processing capabilities with economical, embedded certified software for all popular audio DVD decoding standards. For leading-brand mass-market suppliers, this solution will simplify designs, reduce costs, and lower the price point for implementing THX audio technology into A/V hi-fi receiver amplifiers that support playback of DVD movies."

Major sports events and digital television are made for each other. This year's annual <A HREF="http://www.ncaa.org/">National Collegiate Athletic Association</A> men's college basketball tournament will present broadcasters and electronics dealers an unprecedented opportunity to show the public what DTV is all about.

Eventually, a few multinational conglomerates will own 90% of the world's businesses. Case in point: Cable companies <A HREF="http://www.comcast.com/">Comcast</A> and <A HREF="http://www.mediaone.com/">MediaOne</A>, already among the largest in their field, made a move in that direction last week when they announced a merger valued at between $53 and $60 billion. Comcast will acquire MediaOne, described by the <A HREF="http://www.nytimes.com/"><I>New York Times</I></A> as "the sole surviving independent cable company." The resulting company will be the nation's third largest.