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***Sony to
License Aperios OS
(December 18)
Kyodo News reports that Sony Corp. plans to license to other firms its "Aperios" computer operating system for digital home electronics appliances to promote its adoption as a global standard for such devices, a Sony official said Friday.
Teruaki Aoki, president of Sony Electronics Inc., a U.S. unit of the Japanese electronics giant, said that Sony will license Aperios to other companies for what he called "a small licensing fee." He did not specify the actual amount to be charged.
Sony says Aperios is a real-time operating system developed by Sony to support the requirements of digital audiovisual equipment, such as the advanced digital set-top devices for accessing cable television and the Internet. According to Sony, Aperios is especially well-suited for real-time applications because it can process continuous streams of audio and video content efficiently and without interruption.
Sony has developed a pet robot based on Aperios, and has also taken a minority stake in General Instrument Corp. (GI) of the United States to integrate its home entertainment network technology into GI's digital set-top terminals and systems.
Sony is striking at the heart of the potential Windows CE market. Yet, Windows CE has failed to deliver outside of a narrow segment of the embedded market which increasingly looks like it provides only limited functionality Windows clones solutions. Sony is launching into market model which provides a parallel to Microsoft's past success but in this case by setting a standard for the information appliance infrastructure. Again Microsoft is weak in that it has not delivered its media API, DirectX, to Windows CE other than to Sega. Another major advantage for Sony is its enormous power in the consumer electronics market, both in products and technology. This was quite evident at COMDEX. A weakness for Sony, however, is that it remains to be seen what development tools it will provide. This is increasingly an essential part of the market of OS adoption in the embedded microprocessor market.
The emergence of the information appliance market, with its use of "free MIPS," will change the rules of the market and those that were strong in the PC era will find a significant set of new challenges and challengers. Sony is showing how a player in the non-PC market will shape the information appliance market.
***STB Gets
Dell Win for NVIDIA TNT
(December 21)
STB Systems announced a customized version of the Velocity 4400 2D/3D multimedia accelerator, the STB NVIDIA TNT, will be available as an option in the OptiPlex GX1 and OptiPlex GX1p corporate desktops from Dell Computer Corp. These cards use the RIVA TNT chipset from NVIDIA.
We wonder how many more of these we will be seeing when 3Dfx gains control of STB and seeks to choke off NVIDIA in the market?
***Number Nine begins shipping Digital Flat Panel (December 21)
Number Nine announced that it has begun filling backlog orders and begun volume shipments of its Digital Flat Panel Solution Pack. This product is based on the Silicon Graphics 1600SW Digital Flat Panel Monitor and the digitally-equipped Number Nine Revolution IV-FP with 32MB of high speed graphics memory.
Number Nine is currently certifying its dual-display Windows NT 4.0 driver.
The Digital Flat Panel Solution Pack, comprised of the Silicon Graphics 1600SW digital flat panel monitor and a digitally-equipped 32MB Number Nine Revolution IV-FP graphics accelerator, is shipping and available immediately. The Digital Flat Panel Solution Pack is offered by Number Nine to select OEM computer manufacturers and to users through the company's traditional distribution channels. The manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) for the Digital Flat Panel Solution Pack is $2,795.
***High
Expectations Reported for LMDS
(December 21)
Wireless Today reports that the expectations for Local multipoint distribution services (LMDS) as a means for delivering high-speed broadband telecommunications services without wires has the interest of a growing number of network manufacturers and prospective operators. A major factor in the interest in LMDS comes from the competitive threat to copper- and fiber-based systems.
Two companies to watch in LMDS include:
· Formus Communications Inc. and
· Bosch Telecom Inc.Formus is a Denver-based startup concentrating on developing LMDS fixed-wireless systems in overseas markets. Their view is that LMDS is a means for telecom companies to increase throughputs can catch up with the processing speeds of desktop computers, eventually moving toward a 10 Mbps.
A typical LMDS system includes a central facility with fiber-linked PSTN and Internet connections and the microwave link. The key to LMDS is the relay, i.e., multiple microwave links, which is accomplished via point-to-point links. These, in turn, pass the signals along to hubs (located on rooftops or as standalone towers) for point-to-multipoint communications to office or apartment buildings and single-family dwellings.
The Formus approach is to market its services mainly to large corporations and medium-sized and small businesses. Formus last week announced a supply arrangement with Northern Telecom (Nortel) that contemplates a minimum of $250 million in equipment purchases, plans to begin its inaugural 28 GHz network buildout in Poland early next year. The deployment initially will serve Warsaw's central business district, but Formus intends to install single cells in outlying cities to enable interconnection services for high-volume business customers before expanding the size of the other cities' networks. Initial services will include Internet access at speeds of up to 2 Mbps, dedicated digital private circuits and point-to-point and point-to- multipoint local area network (LAN) connections.
The terms of each of the operating licenses that Formus holds for Poland, Ecuador, New Zealand and Germany are different. In Germany, for instance, the company has a 40 percent stake in a joint venture holding licenses for the operation of transmission facilities and of telecom services on a nationwide basis; applications for spectrum to provide broadband wireless access are pending. The joint venture thus will operate as a kind of competitive local-exchange/interexchange carrier to start, integrating LMDS-based broadband wireless later on. Formus is licensed in New Zealand to offer all types of communications services nationwide. The company also plans to bid in Australia's LMDS license auction, scheduled to begin in the early part of 1999.
Formus has issued $86 million in convertible preferred and common stock held by investment banks and venture-capital firms.
Bosch Telecom is an equipment supplier that competes against Nortel, Lucent Technologies, Alcatel Telecom, L.M. Ericsson AB and Siemens AG. The Richardson, Texas-based subsidiary of Germany's Robert Bosch GmbH bought the LMDS technology operations developed by Texas Instruments Inc. in mid-1997, then struck an "internetworking alliance" with Cisco Systems earlier this year.
Bosch Telecom is convinced of the LMDS value proposition as the first commercial deployments show the full range of services-trunked or multiple-line telephony, private and commercial data circuits, remote access, LAN interworking, Internet connectivity, and wireless cable television-that can be delivered off the LMDS platform.
***CellularVision Changes Name to SpeedUs.com (December 22)
CellularVision USA announced that its Board of Directors unanimously agreed to change its name to SpeedUs.com, Inc. The name change is scheduled to take effect on or before January 7, 1999. The new NASDAQ symbol will be SPDE.
The name change reflects the Company's exit from the subscriber television business and the dedication of its Metro New York Federal Communication Commission license to the Internet. The Company has built a new full-featured Internet Service Provider (ISP) and configured its broadband cellular network to deliver super high-speed Internet service in New York. The service will be marketed under the service mark SPEED. The SPEED service uses a 48 Mbps (48,000 kbps) downstream SPEED modem, which has approximately 1,700 times the downstream capability of a standard 28.8 kbps modem.
The Company's ISP and SPEED services are fully functional and are operating from its Network Operations Center (NOC) in the Brooklyn Army Terminal. The new ISP provides direct dial-up service for standard and ISDN modems, and the super high SPEED Internet access service. In addition to direct dial-up services for both standard and SPEED subscribers, the new ISP has web hosting and e-mail capabilities.
The SPEED service requires the purchase and installation of the SPEED modem and signal availability. The SPEED modems are currently only available from the Company for $350.
The signal coverage is currently limited to parts of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. The Company plans to arrange financing for the cost of the modem to consumers and to increase its signal coverage area before commencing a major marketing campaign.
This is a major change in direction for the LMDS industry. CellularVision was the pioneer of the technology and they filed the original application with the FCC for the spectrum and the service that was based on two-way television. It got a pioneer's status and had the first operational LMDS system in place in New York. With this announcement it signals that the era of LMDS for two way television is dead. However, this announcement states that the medium is all about IP based digital delivery.
At 4th Wave we have stated on numerous occasions that those who have access to and delivery using wireless will increasingly define the era of information appliances. When it comes to the having the broadest range of services spectrum is king. LMDS, with 1.5GHz of bandwidth, is the king in that there is no FCC license with greater bandwidth. Watch for more developments in LMDS.
***Diamond Multimedia's Viper V550 Graphics Accelerator Chosen by Fujitsu (December 8)
Diamond Multimedia Systems announced its Viper V550 graphics accelerator has been selected by Fujitsu for the Fujitsu FMV-6400TX2 and FMV-6450TX2 Pentium II desktop systems for the corporate environment.
The Viper V550 16MB AGP graphics board is standard in the FMV-DESKPOWER TVIII457 Pentium II personal computer for the power-PC consumer market.
***Development Platform for Ubiquitous Computing Introduced at Java Business Expo (December 14)
Scientific Computing Associates has announced the availability of Java Paradise, a development platform for distributed applications designed for ubiquitous computing environments. In such environments, programs/data are distributed "just in time" to a seamless network of PCs, PDAs, and Internet appliances.
Java Paradise supports pure Java applications, those that incorporate Java components, and those written in other languages such as C and C++. It is based on the concept of Virtual Shared Memory (VSM). VSM allows applications to share objects and process data across distributed networks incorporating LANs, WANs, and wireless devices.
Java Paradise provides the following:
fault tolerant execution of Java application programs and applets, it allows for dynamic load balancing and optimal utilization
of all computer resources across heterogeneous operating systems and platforms on the network, and it serves as a seamless bridge between Java and other applications written in languages such as C and C++.Pricing for the Java Paradise Starter Kit, including licenses for a server and four nodes, begins at $1,000. Larger systems and various support options are also available.
***Siemens releases real-time 3D Ultrasound software (December 4)
Siemens Medical Systems and Ultrasound Group released 3D ultrasound imaging software that enables both real-time 3D scanning and real-time volume interaction on a premium ultrasound system.
Fully integrated within the SONOLINE Elegra ultrasound system, 3-Scape Real-Time 3D Imaging allows clinicians to view 3D volumes building in real time while they scan a patient.
It is hoped that this will take 3D ultrasound imaging from its current role in high-profile research environments to real-world, daily clinical use.
The innovation allows clinicians to interact in real-time with 3D volumes and 2D image slice planes. Using 3-Scape Imaging, clinicians can:
· View images in three scanning planes at once, for better visualization of complex anatomies;
· Select any 2D image slice from the 3D data set, in much the same way as they now select MR or CT slices;
· Acquire gray scale and power Doppler information in a single scan; and
· Rotate the 3D volume up to 360 degrees, in real time, and instantly select specific 2D slice views.Real-time 3D imaging may help clinicians better evaluate complex anatomical structures and instantly acquire coronal views that are difficult or impossible to obtain with conventional 2D ultrasound systems. Its primary clinical applications include obstetrics and tumor assessment.
By fully integrating 3D technology within the premium SONOLINE Elegra system, Siemens has eliminated the need for time-consuming, off-line processing. This integration also allows clinicians to switch seamlessly between 3D and 2D color, power, Doppler and SieScape panoramic imaging modes during the course of a normal ultrasound exam.
The 3-Scape Imaging software upgrade for the SONOLINE Elegra system is FDA-cleared and is available immediately for order; shipments will begin in the first quarter of 1999.
Siemens Ultrasound has installed more than 48,000 ultrasound systems in hospitals, clinics and physicians' offices, making the company the second largest supplier of ultrasound systems in the world.
***Credo Interactive announces PowerModels (December 7)
Credo Interactive announced PowerModels, a collection of ready-to-animate 3d character models. Including over 40 Life Forms ready models, the collection provides an extensive range of human characters-plus six original insects-to users of many of today's most popular 3D packages. Each PowerModels character is not only ready-to-animate in Life Forms, but is also provided in both 3D Studio (3DS) and LightWave 3D (LWS) formats-two of today's most popular 3D model formats.
As the first tool dedicated specifically to character movement, Life Forms is the only software that makes movement a simple, intuitive process. With PowerModels, Life Forms users can now populate their projects with diverse characters, easily create multiple character interaction, and quickly create large crowd scenes.
The PowerModels collection includes 24 multi-racial human characters from Zygote Media Group, 13 human characters from Geo-Metricks, and 6 original insects created by Credo Interactive.
Availability: January 4, 1999 Pricing: $249 SRP $199 - Special introductory price (on orders processed before shipping date). $129 - Current Life Forms users price (including new orders).
***Pioneer Digital and SeaChange to Develop and Integrate Video-on-Demand Application (December 2)
SeaChange International and Pioneer Digital Technologies announced an agreement to develop and integrate a video-on-demand (VOD) application based on SeaChange's ITV MediaCluster video server and Pioneer's Passport Navigation and Applications Software Suite.
The Pioneer/SeaChange video-on-demand conforms to OpenCable standards, which will allow cable operators to deliver videos to their customers on demand.
Operators can also provide other interactive digital services to millions of subscribers who have standard digital interactive set-top boxes from Pioneer and other companies producing compatible digital set-top boxes.
SeaChange International's ITV System is a video server-based software system designed specifically for cable operators video-on-demand requirements. The SeaChange ITV System provides scalable, fault-resilient performance and automation to minimize operational costs and ensure viewer satisfaction.
The SeaChange ITV System's major components include the SeaChange ITV MediaCluster, a video server system; and the SeaChange Command Center, a master control center-based software suite enabling highly automated ITV operation and end-to-end fault resilience.
Pioneer's Passport software provides a digital set-top solution that includes a wide range of features, including interactive program guides; channel banner browsing; pay-per-view; and other downloadable interactive applications, such as Web browsing, VOD, e-mail, chat, weather, sports, stocks and news.
The company's set-top box, Voyager, along with the Passport Navigation Suite, will deliver interactivity in a home environment. The Voyager is designed with a built-in, real-time RF reverse path transmitter to enable a range of new two-way applications, video-on-demand training/education-on-demand, Web browsing, direct-purchase merchandising and local information services.
http://www.pioneerdigital.com
http://www.pioneercatv.com
http://www.schange.com
***Intel to Showcase PC-Based Video Phone Designed Specifically for Cable Connections (December 2)
Intel has shown the Intel Video Phone software which has been designed specifically for cable modems and high-speed cable Internet connections.
Intel is also working with several vendors to showcase the momentum of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) H.323 communications specification, which ensures products from different vendors talk with one another.
Intel plans to begin trials of its broadband enhanced PC-based Video Phone with Internet Cable Corporation (ICC) over US Cable Coastal Properties' high-speed cable Internet connections in the Wild Dunes suburb of Charleston, S.C.
Intel Video Phone delivers a real-time video experience to cable connections. The Intel Video Phone will also support high-quality voice communications offering interoperability with standard telephones, Internet phones, and other PC audio solutions that support the H.323 specification.
Intel Video Phone software is shipped factory-installed on systems from leading computer makers. Many of these computer makers will ship systems with the new broadband enhanced Intel Video Phone software in the first quarter of 1999. This new broadband version of Intel Video Phone will also be available in the Intel Create & Share Camera Pack in the first half of 1999.
H.323, endorsed by Intel, is the ITU standard for real-time multimedia communications and conferencing. The H.323 specification gives vendors the information they need to ensure that their audio and video applications communicate with solutions from other vendors.
***Interactive
Talk Radio Hits The Web
(December 11)
Inter@ctive Week reports that a pioneer of the PC game business is setting his sights on making it big with a new form of talk radio that integrates interactive elements of the Internet and creates a new category of online programming.
The man targeting the Internet to create his next fortune is Ken Williams who was the founder of PC game developer Sierra On Line.
Williams and his business partner/wife Roberta Williams formally announced plans for their newest company focusing on interactive talk radio.
"If I was going to come out of retirement, it was going to be for something big," Ken Williams said. "I didn't want to do a $100 million company. I've been there and done that. This has the potential to grow into a $3 billion to $5 billion company."
The company of which Williams speaks is the mostly unknown. WorldStream, which in June quietly launched a site that combines the streaming audio of original talk-radio programming with on-screen chat areas and related graphics.
Williams so far has poured about $3 million into the project and now is on the hunt for between $8 million and $12 million of outside venture capital. In the process, he has begun building a team of experienced broadcasters to staff the online service, including James Golden, who had produced Rush Limbaugh's radio show for seven years.Williams' vision certainly is compelling. The TalkSpot service offers streaming audio of regularly scheduled broadcasts that can be presented alongside interactive elements, such as a chat window and a still image of the broadcaster that is updated on-screen every 40 seconds.
WorldStream is developing programming for four topic-specific channels, such as News & Politics. It also plans to recruit outside companies to develop programming to be presented on the TalkSpot network. Williams envisions the partnership strategy will allow TalkSpot to develop 100 channels of original, regularly scheduled Web programming within a year.
WorldStream will supply the technology infrastructure needed to produce the online talk programming. The company also will sell ads on its partners' behalf, sharing in commissions generated from programming that will feature both rotating on-screen banner ads and 12 minutes of audio commercials during each hour-long broadcast.
Williams views TalkSpot as a vehicle that independent organizations, such as political parties or religious groups, can use to communicate their message cost-effectively. A group with volunteer broadcasters handling the show could make money with as few as 100 listeners, Williams estimated.
At its June launch, the TalkSpot site was generating 100,000 minutes of cumulative listening time per month. With no marketing, that usage had increased to 1.3 million minutes of listening time by October. The average user now tunes into TalkSpot for 21 minutes at a time.
TalkSpot's usage totals still pale in comparison with other sites trying to create a new genre of programming that combines streaming media with interactive chat. Pseudo Programs Inc., for instance, last month attracted more than 1 million unique viewers, said Pseudo President Josh Harris.
Williams is not likely to take any alliance talks lightly. With TalkSpot, he does not seem to see a medium that has yet to prove its worth with listeners and advertisers. Rather, he sees the chance to build a giant in the coming era of interactive media.
"We're interested in developing new content for a new medium," Williams said. "In 10 years, interactive media is going to be a $50 billion business. And we want to dominate it."
***Microsoft and Qwest Team to Deliver Next-Generation Internet Broadband Services (December 14)
Microsoft and Qwest Communications International have announced a strategic relationship for electronic commerce, Web hosting, and other mission critical business software applications and services. The Qwest service, built on Microsoft Win NT Server operating system and Qwest's Internet Protocol-based fiber optic network is designed for businesses of all sizes.
Microsoft will license a broad range of its software to Qwest. In addition, Microsoft will become a shareholder in Qwest by purchasing $200 million of Qwest's common stock at $45 per share.
Beginning in Q2, 1999, Qwest will offer businesses a complete, single-source high-speed service that is scalable and secure. The network will also support the development, integration, and maintenance of advanced hosting services, including dedicated electronic commerce, Web application hosting, streaming media, managed software services and virtual private networking built on Microsoft platforms. Qwest will create a new business unit focused on the new markets starting in January 1999.
Qwest expects the service to generate approx. $150 million in revenues during the first two years, most of it in 2000. The company expects the earnings before income taxes plus depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) for this business to be slightly negative in 1999 and slightly positive in 2000.
The services offered will include the following:
*Dedicated electronic commerce, offering businesses an easy-to-use, customized system that will allow business partners to purchase goods/services and monitor order status in a secure, high-speed network environment.
*Web application hosting, allowing companies to migrate business applications such as electronic mail, human resources, finance, and other operations to secure off-site servers with high-speed access and a single point of contact for around-the-clock customer support.
*Streaming media, providing businesses with a scalable, on-demand delivery capability that will enable distribution of images to single and multiple locations to support videoconferencing, PC-to-PC conferencing and video distribution services.
*Managed software services, providing an outsourced solution of platforms, tools and utilities to enable the enterprise IT organization to effectively and efficiently provide for asset management, software distribution and management, network management, network performance tuning, and desktop management.
*Virtual Private Networking and Virtual Private Dial-up Networking, offering businesses an end-to-end solution to connect their LANs, hosting sites, business partners, branch offices, telecommuters and mobile employees in an integrated, secure, and simple manner.
***Mobile
application link takes shape
(December 2)
Wireless Today reports that a initiative promoted by manufacturers of data-oriented mobile communications devices and by software developers has surfaced under the name of Mobile Application Link (MAL). Proponents said open source code, documentation, and application programming interfaces (APIs) will be able to act as a "network conduit" between handheld devices and server software using the MAL platform. Software developers will be able to incorporate and compile MAL code in coming up with products for end-users.
Manufacturers of cellular devices, along with application developers and vendors of handheld personal organizers, are expected to get behind MAL.
With MAL, proponents believe they have hit upon a means to provide easy-to-implement APIs that will result in streamlined connectivity between corporate intranets and handheld and "smart" phone data. Users of handheld devices will benefit from MAL through gaining access to multiple applications-including E-mail, Web content, and "groupware" (such as Lotus Notes and Microsoft Exchange) -- across any type of connection: kiosk, dialup, wireless or any desktop computer.
Key players behind MAL include:
Puma Technology, a developer of synchronization solutions for mobile devices, and San Mateo, Calif.-based AvantGo Inc., which specializes in managing mobile information.MAL's development platform will be based on AvantGo's open source code, with Puma contributing its expertise in providing synchronization for both small devices and enterprise applications.
The MAL initiative will extend beyond the Palm family with the aim of providing uniform and open connectivity for other mobile communications devices, singling out the Windows CE operating system developed by Microsoft in this regard. Microsoft and Symbol Technologies, among other hardware and software developers, "have reacted enthusiastically" to word of the MAL initiative, according to Puma and AvantGo.
MAL's backers plan to make client APIs and source code available for the Palm operating system and Windows CE, along with desktop conduit source code for Windows 95, 98 and NT, and server APIs and source code for Windows NT, Solaris, FreeBSD and Linux. These will become available within 60 days via AvantGo's Web site.
***Silicon Gaming Readies for New Business Model (December 8)
Silicon Gaming took another step in the process of reinventing itself. Several months ago, the Company began a strategic shift that would narrow its focus to core entertainment values. That move first led to changes in top management and now to a broader redirection of the Company's 203-person workforce. Effective today, the Company will reduce its staff by approximately 20%. This, along with other expense reductions, is expected to reduce the Company's annual overhead by approximately $10MM.
"In 1994, we created a Company that we believed would breathe innovation into an industry that historically has been slow to change," observed Andrew Pascal, Executive Vice President of Game Development and Marketing. "But in the last four years, the competitive landscape has transformed dramatically. Our business has changed more and faster than I think any of us could have imagined. As a result, we too must change. One of our first steps is to adjust the composition of our workforce in a way that we believe will reduce our overhead while preserving the talent we need to execute our new plan."
The Company's unfolding strategy carries it into new segments of the slot market, most notably the multi-player system and revenue-sharing arenas. "Our launch of the Big Win wide-area progressive and our agreement to jointly develop product with Anchor Gaming are examples of this new strategic direction," hinted Paul Miltenberger, Silicon's Vice President of Sales. "We believe that a successful entry into these two segments will yield much higher margins than our traditional build-and-sell business model."
"This Company has made some significant decisions in recent months, but they have all been driven by a return to basics," said David Morse, Chairman and CEO of Silicon Gaming. "We are tightening discipline, leveraging our strengths, and focusing our efforts on preserving and building value. The Company was conceived with a very specific vision in mind, to take the experience of playing a slot machine to the next level. All of these decisions reaffirm our belief in that original vision."
Silicon Gaming designs and manufactures of innovative slot machines. The Company's Odyssey and Quest games are found in nearly every major gaming market across the U.S.
***NVIDIA
Launches High I.Q. Program
(December 2)
NVIDIA announced its High I.Q. program to identify, market and sell leading-edge software titles that take advantage of the advanced 3D capabilities of the RIVA TNT.
The program, which is co-sponsored by PC Gamer, STB Systems and Diamond Multimedia, is the result of the "Raise Your I.Q." developer program launched in the first half of the year to assist developers with improving the image quality of their latest software titles. The High I.Q. titles are identified and sold via the NVIDIA software store found on NVIDIA's homepage.
In addition to providing users with access to the hottest titles, the High I.Q. program rewards and promotes software developers that provide the best examples of the improved image quality now possible with today's RIVA TNT-based platforms.
Each quarter, a new list of the hottest High I.Q. titles will be identified by NVIDIA. All of these titles will use standard API's and will take advantage of NVIDIA's key product features, such as support for AGP Texturing, 32-bit color mode and the ability to achieve screen resolutions up to 1600x1200.
This program is designed to recognize the efforts of the industries best 3D software companies and will promote their products to the end-users.
***Gemstar Files Patent Infringement Suit Against Scientific Atlanta (December 7)
Gemstar International Group announced that it has filed a patent infringement suit against Scientific Atlanta in the Federal District Court, Northern District of California. The suit claims, among other matters, that Scientific Atlanta willfully infringed certain Gemstar intellectual property, specifically two of the so-called Levine patents, by virtue of Scientific Atlanta's deployment, marketing, offers to sell and sale of its cable set top boxes containing an interactive program guide not licensed under these patents.
The Levine patents broadly cover, among others, an interactive program guide using locally stored or cached data. Gemstar is seeking an injunction and monetary damages.
Scientific Atlanta is currently a licensee of Gemstar's wholly-owned subsidiary StarSight Telecast, Inc. This license agreement was entered into after StarSight won a $10 million punitive damage award and an injunction against Scientific Atlanta for willful misappropriation of StarSight's interactive program guide technology and intellectual property.
The StarSight-Scientific Atlanta license agreement was entered into prior to Gemstar's acquisition of StarSight, and did not include Gemstar's intellectual property portfolio, which contains the Levine patents. Cable boxes containing an electronic program guide shipped by Scientific Atlanta have never been licensed under the Levine patents or other Gemstar patents.
Gemstar develops, markets and licenses proprietary technologies and systems aimed at making technology user-friendly for consumers. Gemstar's technology and intellectual property are licensed to major companies in the consumer electronics, satellite, cable and personal computer industries, including Aiwa, Akai, Cox, Daewoo, Funai, GTE, Hitachi, Hughes Network Systems, JVC, LG Electronics (Goldstar), Matsushita (Panasonic, Quasar), Microsoft Corporation, Mitsubishi, Orion, Philips (Magnavox, Philips), Samsung, Sanyo, Scientific-Atlanta, Sharp, Shintom, Sony, Southern New England Telephone, Thomson Multimedia (GE, Proscan, RCA, Thomson), Time Warner, Toshiba, Uniden and Zenith.
Gemstar has over 60 issued U.S. patents in the general area of audio-visual technologies with more than 1,000 claims and over 70 foreign patents with more than 1,000 claims. The company continues to pursue a worldwide patent prosecution program and has over 130 pending U.S. patent applications and over 160 pending foreign patent applications.
Gemstar's VCR Plus+ instant programming system is a world standard for VCR programming. VCR Plus+ allows a user to record a television show simply by entering a number-the PlusCode number printed in television program guides. The PlusCode numbers are published by over 1, 800 newspapers and television program guides worldwide, with a combined circulation of over 330 million.
The VCR Plus+ system has been licensed to virtually every major television and VCR manufacturer and is now available in 40 countries and 6 continents, including the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Continental Europe, Japan, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, South America and South Africa.
Gemstar is a leading provider of electronic program guide services, which allow a user to view a television program guide on screen, obtain details about a show, sort shows by themes or categories, and select shows for tuning or recording, all through the remote control. In the United States, data for Gemstar's electronic program guide services are carried on the ABC, FOX, CBS, NBC, UPN and PBS networks by hundreds of over-the-air broadcast stations and on a number of cable networks.
Gemstar's electronic program guide has been built into a number of models of new televisions, VCRs and TV/VCR combination units. Gemstar's electronic program guide is also licensed to cable, telco and MMDS service providers, and has been integrated into direct broadcast satellite receivers, digital and advanced analog cable set-top boxes, PCTV, Internet devices and computer operating systems such as Windows 98.
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