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Plans by the entertainment industry to control the distribution of digital programming could have dire consequences for consumers, a <A HREF="http://www.philips.com">Philips Electronics</A> executive told US congressmen in late April.

New Year's Day, 2003 may be a day of special celebration for sports and movie fans. Ten of the nation's biggest cable providers have pledged to begin delivering digital signals by then, according to a May 2 report by Bill McConnell in the trade journal <I>Broadcasting and Cable</I>.

John Lennon's line in "Come Together"&mdash;"Got to be good-looking 'cause he's so hard to see"&mdash;sums up the sleek, shapely appearance of Sonus Faber's new Grand Piano Home L/R speaker. With its warm, leatherette-wrapped front and rear baffles and sculpted black-lacquer-like side cheeks, the gently sloping design exudes European elegance even as it seems to disappear under its own good looks.

Until recently, no self-respecting home theater nut would even consider giving a permanent berth to a videogame console in his main system. But Microsoft's Xbox ($299) is suddenly finding itself cohabiting with A/V gear on component racks across the country.