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Media
Information > Media DVD Coverage 
Archive
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| Updated November 26, 2006 DVD
NEWS DIGEST 1 -
The Little Mermaid Walt Disney Home Entertainment
DVD versions of childrens' books are popular in Japan. A typical DVD has three stories, each about seven minutes long. Narrations are added to the original pictures in the children's book, and the screen changes as if the audience is turning pages of a book. Some of the human and animal characters in the DVD move their eyes, arms and other body parts, and sometimes seem to be coming toward the audience. A mother with three children says: "I would like to read a lot of books to my children, but my time is limited. I would feel guilty leaving them in front of a TV with the DVD running, so this [DVD children's book] is perfect." She says the DVD comes in handy when she needs to look over her sons' homework and other times when she can't concentrate on her daughter. "TriKid's"--a DVD children's book produced in Tokyo--comes with special features that enable users to switch from Japanese to English or turn off the sound to just music and subtitles so adults can read out loud as children watch the screen.
The average British household boasts a 76-strong DVD collection worth £547, according to a new survey. The poll also found Britons have spent £13.4 billion building their collections since the launch of DVDs in the late 1990s. The research found that people watch an average of four films a week on DVD. Each person also has, on average, eight films which they watch repeatedly. The survey estimated that most people have watched their favourite DVDs at least three times in the past year, and about 22 times in total. Such viewing is the equivalent of spending around 12 days of your life watching favourite films back to back. One in five people surveyed say their DVD collection was more important to them than their music collection, their shoes and even their clothing.
Over eight million DVD players or recorders were sold in Australia in the first half of 2006, which easily makes it the biggest selling category in consumer electronics, reports research organisation GfK. GfK said consumer research via its consumer scope service, "clearly shows that the sales of DVD Recorders have been in part attributed to the sales of Plasma and LCD screens. DVD Recorders with a hard disk drive now account for 44 percent of sales and this segment of the market is continuing to show growth." According to GfK research, comparing January to July 05 versus the same period this year, the growth is 280 percent (based on units) with the total value of the market being $400m.
Counterfeit DVDs, CDs and computer games with a market value of £600,000 have been seized in a raid. Police said they arrested 10 people on suspicion of being involved in the production of and sale of counterfeit optical discs.
The movie industry continues to vigorously combat both DVD and Internet piracy of its films domestically and overseas, urging foreign governments to crack down on illegal DVD factories and toughen laws on Internet file-sharing. Hollywood moviemakers, armed with the new study pointing to piracy as having ripple effects on the U.S. economy, want Washington to recognize the larger problem and address it. The Institute for Policy Innovation, founded by former Republican congressman Richard K. Armey, presented a study that says movie piracy causes a total lost output for U.S. industries of $20.5 billion per year, thwarts the creation of about 140,000 jobs and accounts for more than $800 million in lost tax revenue. According to the study, 38 percent of all movie piracy occurs on the Internet, with counterfeit DVDs accounting for the rest. EDP4 [UK]: DVD Could Help Save Babies' Lives A new DVD gives mums and dads a crucial insight into how to revive a child that may have stopped breathing or be choking. The new film demonstrates up-to-date techniques on child resuscitation and how to deal with an infant who is choking. A co-producer of the DVD said: “It will give parents the knowledge and skills whereby they can do something immediate which can save a life. By the time the emergency services get there, it may be too late, so this is something parents can do not just for their own child that has stopped breathing but any child." end
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