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Pioneer Backing Out of Plasma?
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 04, 2008  | 

I wasn't going to post a story about this until we know more about it, but it's too important to wait. According to several news sources, Pioneer is finalizing plans to stop manufacturing plasma panels and concentrate on assembling plasma TVs. The company is negotiating to acquire panels from Matsushita, Panasonic's parent company. A Pioneer spokesperson said an official statement would be forthcoming this Friday.

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Audio Video News
Older TV Brands Trump New Guys
Mark Fleischmann  |  Mar 03, 2008  | 
At times over the last few years, the flat-panel revolution has appeared to erode the prestige--or at least the market share--of the best-known brands in television. However, last year saw a reversal of the trend, with the traditional brands back on top.
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Audio Video News
Secret Shoppers Find DTV Confusion
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 29, 2008  | 
Retailers are not giving consumers accurate information about the transition to digital television, according to a report issued by U.S. PIRG, the federation of state-based Public Interest Research Groups.
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Audio Video News
HD DVD Throws Spanner in DreamWorks
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 28, 2008  | 
Don't look for Jerry Seinfeld's forthcoming Bee Movie on Blu-ray--at least, not for awhile. DreamWorks Animation can't release anything on Blu-ray yet, having been, ah, stung by an agreement signed with Toshiba. The 18-month exclusivity pact, which began last summer, obligates the studio to release on HD DVD in exchange for millions of promotional dollars.
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Audio Video News
Sony 2008 Line Show
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 28, 2008  | 

A few months after CES each year, many manufacturers hold individual line shows to give their dealers and the press a closer look at their new products. Sony is usually the first one out of the gate, and this year was no different. About 600 dealer representatives and 50 members of the press converged on the Paris hotel in Las Vegas this week (weren't we just there?) to see the latest from Sony.

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Audio Video News
Sony Bows New Blus
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 27, 2008  | 
Two new Blu-ray players were among the highlights of a major Sony product introduction yesterday in Las Vegas.
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Audio Video News
Sony's 2008 Line Show
Thomas J. Norton  |  Feb 27, 2008  | 
This year, as last, Sony held its annual line show at the Paris hotel in Las Vegas. While it is intended primarily for dealers—which explains the introduction of everything from televisions to digital voice recorders, computers, cameras, cell phones, and alarm clocks (in short, everything you'll see featured in Sony movies later this year)—the press was brought in to have the first look.
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Audio Video News
TiVo's Lawyers Trash EchoStar's Lawyers
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 26, 2008  | 
It's not nice to steal intellectual property. That's what the U.S. District Court of Appeals said last month, ending a legal fistfight between TiVo and EchoStar. The court upheld a lower court ruling that the owner of the Dish Network infringed patents for a "multimedia time warping system."
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Audio Video News
Feds Mail Analog-TV Adapter Coupons
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 25, 2008  | 
Owners of obsolete analog television sets, rejoice. The $40 federal subsidy designed to keep your old TV going is in the mail--if you've requested it.
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Audio Video News
U.K. Broadcasters Kill P2P Network DVR
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 22, 2008  | 
What if your DVR could record from other DVRs over the web? That was the provocative premise of TVCatchup, a U.K. startup. It sounded good to be true. And it was.
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Audio Video News
Paramount Returns to Blu-ray
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 21, 2008  | 
This week's long round of goodbyes continues with Paramount's announcement that it will resume releasing in Blu-ray after a brief hiatus of HD DVD exclusivity.
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Audio Video News
Universal Holds Breath, Turns Blu
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 20, 2008  | 
Buried in yesterday's avalanche of HD DVD coverage was this nugget: Universal, until now an HD DVD stalwart, will waste no time in switching to Blu-ray.
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Audio Video News
HD DVD Officially Passes Away
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 19, 2008  | 
The format war between Blu-ray and HD DVD has ended with an official statement admitting HD DVD's defeat.
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Audio Video News
HD DVD is Dead
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 19, 2008  | 

In a widely anticipated press conference today at Toshiba's corporate offices in Tokyo, Japan, the company finally announced its decision to pull the plug on HD DVD. According to a Reuters report, it will begin reducing shipments of players and recorders immediately, with the goal of shutting down the business by the end of next month.

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Audio Video News
The End is Near
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 16, 2008  | 

According to a report today from NHK, Japan's public broadcaster, Toshiba has decided to stop production of HD DVD players. The company said it would continue to sell its current products, but there will be no further development, and its related factories in Aomori Prefecture in northern Japan will be closed. Market analysts expect the company to lose hundreds of millions of dollars.

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