Universal, Microsoft Team Up to Offer Feature-Rich HD DVDs

At the National Association of Broadcasters 2006 convention in Las Vegas on Monday, Microsoft and Universal Pictures announced a collaboration on the release of next-generation HD DVD discs.

The discs use VC-1, the video compression standard recently approved by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers and one of the mandatory codecs in the HD DVD specification. Universal will also use iHD for the interactive features of the new titles. The launch of HD DVD players and titles last week in the U.S. represents the first broad market availability of high-definition optical media for consumers.

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Add comment April 25th, 2006

Changing of the Guard for Sun as McNealy Steps Down

In the wake of yet another poor earnings report, Sun Microsystems on Monday announced that Scott McNealy is stepping down as the company’s CEO.

Effective immediately, Sun President Jonathan Schwartz will succeed him as CEO and will also retain the title of president. McNealy will continue serving as chairman of the board.

The company said the appointment is the result of Sun’s ongoing succession planning process, but analysts said that the investment community has been calling for McNealy to step down for some time.

Click here to read the rest of this story in TechNewsWorld.

Add comment April 25th, 2006