Zenith to Introduce First DVD Players With Advanced 'Divx' Rental
Feature
GLENVIEW, Ill., Sept. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Zenith Electronics Corporation
(NYSE: ZE) will be the first consumer electronics firm to introduce a digital
video disc (DVD) player that includes the new "Digital Video Express" (Divx)
feature, developed by a partnership led by Circuit City Stores Inc.
(NYSE: CC), the companies announced today.
Divx enables consumers to "rent" top movie titles on special discs that
can be played only on DVD players with this advanced feature. Consumers will
purchase the disc for a price that includes a two-day viewing period, which
begins when the disc is played for the first time. Additional rental periods
may be purchased through the Divx DVD player, which connects to a standard
telephone jack for authorization (not used during movie play).
"Digital Video Express provides extraordinary consumer convenience and
will help move DVD technology into America's family rooms," said William J.
Sims, president of the Zenith Sales Company. "This innovative system will add
to Zenith's arsenal of digital products, including conventional DVD players,
digital set-top boxes and future digital HDTV sets."
Zenith plans to introduce the first Divx DVD players as part of its high-
end Zenith-Inteq series in the spring of 1998. Available initially in selected
retail outlets, the players will be built to Zenith's specifications by LG
Electronics, Zenith's largest shareholder and technology partner.
Divx was developed by a partnership that includes Circuit City Stores
Inc., the nation's largest brand-name consumer electronics retailer, and
Ziffren, Brittenham, Branca & Fischer, a leading Los Angeles entertainment law
firm. Because it also provides strong copyright protection, the Divx system
has won support from major movie studios, including Disney, Paramount,
Universal and DreamWorks, most of which have not yet made movie titles,
especially new releases, available under the standard DVD format.
Zenith Electronics Corporation, based in Glenview, Ill., is a leading
developer, manufacturer and marketer of electronic entertainment and
information products for consumer and professional markets; display devices
including color television picture tubes, computer display tubes and
components; and network systems products, including digital and analog set-top
boxes and cable modems for the cable TV and telecommunications industries.
Zenith is a pioneer in the development of digital TV technologies, including
high-definition television. (Visit our website at zenith.com.)
Zenith's largest shareholder is LG Electronics Inc. (LGE) which, together
with its affiliate LG Semicon, currently owns 55 percent of the company's
outstanding shares. Options granted as compensation for financing guarantees
and vendor credit lines would, when exercised, increase LGE's interest in
Zenith to 57.5 percent. LGE acquired its majority interest in November 1995 in
a $351 million transaction. Zenith continues to operate as a U.S.-based,
publicly traded company with shares listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
SOURCE Zenith Electronics Corporation
CONTACT: Media, John I. Taylor, 847-391-8181, or Investors, Kevin
Brindley, 847-391-7010, or Mary Lou Hotsko of DIVX, 310-473-4147 |
