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To: Maya who wrote (26638)	12/14/1997 6:14:00 PM
From: John Rieman	Respond to of 50808

DVD in Europe, on track............................................. asiansources.com DVD players <Picture> Europe's DVD industry launch back on track, banking on US success IN EUROPE, quarrels over standards are being blamed for the delayed roll-out of DVD in the region. But having missed the opportunity to push DVD to Europe in time for Christmas, the industry has finally gotten its act together and put the bandwagon back on track. In late August, the leading DVD companies got together and announced their individual first-quarter 1998 European launch plans at the International Funkausstellung (IFA) exhibition in Berlin. The five software entertainment and the seven hardware companies held two press conferences, chaired by Jan Oosterveld, senior director for corporate strategy of Philips Electronics. Catching the US fever The initiative, led by Warner Home Video (WHV) president Warren Lieberfarb, presented a concerted European introduction plan. Announcing that WHV plans to release 25 movies in the major European territories in the first quarter of 1998, Lieberfarb said that the success of DVD in the United States left him in no doubt that DVD will become a successful product worldwide. "Sales in the United States have been above expectations [sic] and it is time to aggressively move ahead now with the release of major titles for the European market," he said. WHV will release an additional 10 to 15 titles per month after the launch, and expects to have more than 100 titles available in Europe by the end of 1998. WHV's titles will carry a suggested retail price equivalent to $25 in local currencies. New DVD titles will be introduced simultaneously with their VHS counterparts. All WHV titles released in Europe will include both the local language and the language from the original theater release. Following WHV, Columbia TriStar Home Video announced it would begin with 10 DVD titles. More than 30 titles are scheduled for release by the end of 1998. PolyGram Filmed Entertainment said it would launch between 15 and 20 DVD titles in Europe by the end of 1998. MGM Home Entertainment and Universal also announced plans for movie releases in the first quarter of 1998. The industry expects to have about 100 titles available at launch time. By the end of 1998, the total number of titles is expected to exceed 250. A boost for home cinema DVD, when combined with other new products like widescreen TV and multichannel surround sound receivers, is expected to fuel the growth of the home cinema market. The market is already growing at 20 percent by value worldwide. On the hardware front, Philips Electronics, the leading European company in the development of DVD, announced that it will introduce two players and a multichannel receiver that offers consumers a home cinema experience. Sony has also announced the launch of its two quality-oriented DVD players and its digital multichannel surround processor for spring 1998. "Toshiba has played a leading role in the development of DVD technology from the beginning and we have always recognized that DVD will essentially be software-driven," said Mike Brown, UK marketing director for Toshiba. "We see DVD as the logical next step for home cinema." Pioneer Electronics is another company which plans to introduce DVD players to Europe in the spring, when the greater number of DVD software titles are expected to become available. "We will introduce two models, a laser disc-compatible model and a DVD-only model," said Masaii Okubo, executive board member, Pioneer Electronics Europe. "Our initial marketing plan is to expand the DVD market by emphasizing the laser disc-compatible DVD player."