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The WAVE Report on Digital Media
3D --- Media Creation --- Shared Space ---Published by 4th Wave, Inc.--- Issue #0523------------------6/10/05 |
The WAVE Report is Searchable on
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0523.2 Optical Peripherals
Agilent Technologies Ships 400 Millionth Optical Mouse Sensor
0523.3 Border Biometrics
Motorola Civil Biometrics Solution Helps Protect Belgium's Borders
0523.4 Customer Care
0523.5 Home Automation
Welcome to Tomorrow: Lifeware Media Center Edition Unveiled at Infocomm in Las Vegas
0523.6 Lunar Energy
New Documentary Proposes Solution to Energy Crisis to be Found in Space
0523.7 Wireless Power Sources
Valere Power Launches Ultra-Compact Power Systems for Wireless Networks
0523.8 Solar Power
SunPower Corporation Announces Higher Efficiency Solar Panels
0523.9 Legal Decisions
0523.10 VoIP Quality Study
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0523.1 Story of the Issue
***E3 2005
By John Latta
Los Angeles, CA
May 19 – 21, 2005
In terms of coverage this seems to be the worst E3 yet. The place was mobbed. At 9am, one hour before the show floor opened, the lines were long. It was a mob scene getting in at 10am. Even into the afternoon, some of the aisles were packed arm pit to arm pit. With the launch of three consoles, the place was diluted with excitement but with little to show. This crowd lives off of anticipation – be it a console or a game. That was good enough to fill it with males looking for the next testosterone rush. The event was made all the more difficult when part of the West Hall was dark due to a power outage. Surprising, the actual hall was open but the show management and press offices were closed. To make matters worse, it went on about 2pm and then off again.
E3 Attendance is projected to be 70,000, up from 60,000 last year.
Douglas Lowenstein, President of the Electronic Software Association made an articulate plea for how the industry should grow. Some of his key points included.
The worldwide film industry stands at about $45 billion and the worldwide video game industry checks in at around $28 billion.
Price Waterhouse Coopers reported last year that video games will eclipse music as the second most popular form of entertainment by 2008, with worldwide consumer spending on video games hitting $55 billion to $33 billion for recorded video.
There are six fundamental issues the video game industry needs to address to become the dominant form of entertainment in the 21st century.
1. – Broaden the game audience by making more games with mass market appeal.
2. – Create more complete game experiences, i.e., greater emotional impact, better stories, more interesting and complex characters.
3. – Games should be more accessible and easier to play. This can also mean games which are shorter and less expensive.
4. – Need new financing models for game development.
5. – Developing emerging platforms, specifically online and mobile.
6. – Overcome cultural resistance and fear. This latter point addressed gore and killing that is present in many games.
Wave Comment
Douglas Lowenstein got to the core issues of how the industry can continue to grow. This has broad implications in terms of the platform and peripherals. This would include the following points to ponder:
There would be many more platforms for game delivery.
The range of content would be vastly larger than it is today – one only has to look at movies to understand the wide cultural appeal they have and the potential which games can have. Douglas specifically cited the movie Passion of Christ as a blockbuster movie which has no parallel in video games.
The ways in which individuals play could also change. This directly impacts the peripherals and in fact what are accessories today could become the game itself.
Both Sony and Microsoft are seeking the make the game console the center of the home living room experience. If Douglas’s forecast is telling, the living room is too confining for the potential of the game industry. Thus, one must think of people, places, life and daily interaction as the both the venue and platform for future games. As we have seen at other venues including CHI and IST there is research already to make this happen.
Innovation Vacuum in Game Interaction
The WAVE walked the exhibition halls multiple times. The place for looking at the different forms of interaction was Kentia Hall underneath the West Hall. We were disappointed with our findings:
Hot seat has a racing game seat which ranges in pri ce from $499 to $700.
Virtual GT has what they call the “World’s Finest Personal Racing Simulator.” Slight problem it costs $21,000 but at E3 the special was $17,900.
a-Rage was showing an augmented reality game which is worn on one’s back along with a HMD. The tag line is that you are in the game. We only saw a single sheet flyer and pricing could not be found.
Australian Simulation Control Systems was showing the “Dream Machine” a 3 axis chair platform. This was in a closed booth so that no one could see it other than g aining entry to the booth - $1,200 - $1,900.
Playseats was showing a fold up racing seat - $299.
Qmotions had multiple forms of athletic interactions that included golf, an exercise platform and baseball batting. The baseball game is based on a sleeve that goes around the bat - $79.79. The bike is actually a consumer clamp on to a Fun Fitness bike and the price for the add-on is expected to be less than $90. The golf game is $119.95.
PowerPlay was showing the 5.1 surround sound media chair – $999.
DDR Game had many forms of dance pads with prices ranging from $6 to $33.
Electric-spin was showing its USB game controller for the Golf Launchpad- $229.
Trimersion was touting its immersive HMD with support for first person shooting games - $299 to $799.
e-real games has a light gun that will work with any television - $50.
Adrenaline Machines was showing a racing platform/seat with surround sound - $2,300 to $2,500.
eMagin has a 3D immersive visor which uses OLED. It is the only company to have licensed active matrix OLED technology from Kodak. The company does this on silicon not glass and has its own fab. The price of the HMD is $899. It is claimed that the lifetime is 13,000 to 15,000 hours.
Shenzhen Oriscape Electronics also has a HMD LCD screen called Cyberman - $250.
Aerosoft was showing a train simulation with a train engineer control panel.
In the same hall was a Classic Gaming Expo which had many “antique” console game platforms along with arcade games. This was continually busy with individuals playing games on the arcade machines.
Hardly a game but more a visual object was the best toy of all: Batmobil/Tumbler by Warner Brothers. It was shown, under guard, at the entrance of West Hall. It is hard to tell if it even worked. None the less it was an impressive object. To be seen in the forthcoming Batman movie.
WAVE Comment
As the WAVE walked Kentia Hall, we saw the classic gaming expo contrast with the industry today, at least as reflected in the exhibitors on the floor. The cause for pause left us with the following:
Has not the rate of innovation in game play substantially diminished since the early days of the industry?
Yes, we have titles spawned by massive software development efforts which rival movies in technical accomplishment. But as Douglas Lowenstein argued, is not the funding model and conservatism to create one block buster hit after another slowing innovation? If our sample in Kentia Hall is any measure, we can only respond with a yes.
***Agilent Technologies Ships 400 Millionth Optical Mouse Sensor
TAIPEI, Taiwan
Computex
May 31, 2005
Agilent Technologies Inc. has announced it has shipped its 400 millionth optical mouse sensor since the release of its first navigation sensor in 1999. Agilent pioneered optical sensing for mouse technology and supplies these sensors to all major LED and laser optical-mouse manufacturers worldwide.
Today, optical mice using Agilent navigation sensors range from inexpensive, entry-level models to high-precision, dual-sensor versions with scroll wheels and multiple programmable-function buttons. Other mice incorporating Agilent optical sensors include miniature mice, which are ideal for use with laptop computers, and cordless optical mice for high-performance gaming applications that use power-saving technology to deliver longer battery life.
Agilent has achieved many milestones since the release of its first optical mouse sensor in 1999:
In 2001, Agilent introduced the first low-power optical mouse sensor for cordless optical mice and co-developed the first USB and PS/2 optical mouse reference design kit.
In 2002, Agilent introduced the world's smallest optical mouse sensor and co-developed the first high-performance USB and PS/2 optical mouse reference design kit.
In 2004, Agilent co-developed the first high-performance 27 MHz USB wireless optical mouse reference design kit and the first 2.4 GHz USB wireless mouse/keyboard reference design kit.
In 2004, Agilent developed its patented LaserStream illumination and tracking technology.
In 2005, Agilent introduced the world's highest-resolution optical mouse sensor for PC gaming applications.
Agilent Optical Mouse Sensor Solutions
Agilent provides a broad portfolio of mouse sensors, ranging from inexpensive, entry-level LED-based models to high-precision versions. Since their introduction, optical mice powered by Agilent's optical sensing technology have established themselves as the standard in computer input devices. Optical mice eliminate the need for a mouse pad and offer more precise pointing and movement than mechanical mice. Because optical mice have no ball or cavity, no cleaning is necessary, making them more reliable and longer lasting. Agilent's new laser mouse technology is expected to revolutionize the mouse industry yet again.
http://www.agilent.com/view/opticalnavigation
***Motorola Civil Biometrics Solution Helps Protect Belgium's Borders
SCHAUMBURG, IL
June 8
Motorola, Inc. announced that the Belgium Ministry of the Interior is now providing Belgium's citizens with vastly improved protection and better refugee tracking, as a result of an upgraded Motorola Printrak Biometric Identification Solution (BIS).
Motorola is a leading provider of Mission Critical communications solutions, including civil biometrics solutions and Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS) to help public safety agencies like the Belgium Ministry of Interior track and accurately identify individuals. Motorola is one of the world's leading biometric companies, with solutions in more than 37 countries.
The Belgium Ministry of the Interior is responsible for processing all asylum seekers who enter Belgium. When a person applies for asylum, Ministry personnel must determine whether the person has previously applied for asylum in Belgium, possibly under another name. In addition, Ministry personnel need to know if the person has applied for asylum in another European Union country.
It is important that the identities of all asylum seekers be positively verified, and that Ministry information systems can ensure that asylum seekers do not use false identities or multiple identities. This not only protects the public from security threats, but also saves the government money, since only properly qualified asylum seekers are eligible for Belgian immigration services. Asylum seekers without proper qualifications can be deported.
While most asylum seekers are properly entitled to services, the ministry and Motorola technology have determined that one asylum seeker in seven can be found in an asylum fingerprint database in Belgium or elsewhere in Europe.
This most recent upgrade is the second upgrade of the original system. The upgrade from the previous Motorola system to the Motorola Printrak Biometric Identification Solution (BIS) was successfully deployed on schedule and within four months of contract signature. It has been operational since January of 2005.
In addition to providing upgraded technology and more rapid responses, the new system provides Belgium with other significant improvements to the previous system, including secure web access, which allows authorized employees to perform fingerprint comparisons and retrievals over the internet. An interface to the Eurodac system, a multi-national European automated fingerprint identification system for the fingerprint comparison of asylum applicants and illegal immigrants who may have already been processed by other countries, also is available. This is one of several Eurodac interfaces deployed by Motorola at its European AFIS sites.
***J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Live-Person Interaction is Key to Receiving Positive Wireless Customer Care Experience
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.
June 8, 2005
Customer service issues that are handled by a service representative, either over the phone or at a retail store, generate significantly higher customer care ratings than non-human, computer-generated interaction, according to the newly released J.D. Power and Associates 2005 Wireless Customer Care Performance Study(SM).
The study, in its third year, provides a detailed report card of wireless customer care provider performance based on customer experiences in three point-of-contact methods: telephone with a service representative and/or automated response system (ARS), walk-in at a retail store, and online Internet connection. Within each contact method, processing issues such as problem resolution efficiency and hold-time duration are also measured.
Overall, customers who speak with a service representative over the phone average an index score of 109, well above the industry average score of 100. At the retail store level, the index score decreases to 102. However, those customers contacting their carrier with a problem or inquiring through an ARS system rate their experiences significantly lower, with an index score of 85. The index score drops even further (75) for those contacts made over the Internet.
The study shows that one of the main factors contributing to this performance disparity is the quality of response given. A service representative -- either over the phone or in person -- can answer customer questions and clarify answers given. This kind of flexibility is very limited in both ARS and Internet contact methods.
For the second consecutive year, T-Mobile ranks highest among the six largest wireless service providers in creating a positive experience among customers who contact their providers for service or assistance. With an index score of 108, T-Mobile performs particularly well across all factors, especially hold-time duration and problem resolution efficiency. In addition, T-Mobile customers' average hold times before waiting to speak with a service representative are 34 percent shorter than the industry average (2.27 minutes versus 3.44 minutes). Verizon Wireless, Nextel, and ALLTEL also perform at or above the industry average.
The study also finds several key wireless customer care patterns:
-- More than one-half (54%) of wireless users have contacted the customer service department for assistance within the past year, a slight increase from 2004 (52%).
-- Among those who contact their carriers, 71 percent do so via telephone and 26 percent through the carriers' retail stores. E-mail/Internet contacts account for only 3 percent.
-- The average initial reported hold time on calls to the customer service department is 3.44 minutes, compared to just over 9 minutes before speaking to a representative at a retail store.
The 2005 Wireless Customer Care Performance Study is based on responses from more than 8,600 wireless users who contacted customer care within the past year.
***Welcome to Tomorrow: Lifeware Media Center Edition Unveiled at Infocomm in Las Vegas
LAS VEGAS
June 8, 2005
A new day has dawned in the world of home and office automation with the arrival of Lifeware - intelligent, standards-based software that operates in a hardware-neutral home or office environment. Lifeware can be experienced this week in the NextGen AVolution home at Infocomm 2005 in Las Vegas, where it is controlling hardware from six different companies.
Using the same remote control they use to access and enjoy digital entertainment on a Media Center PC, a Lifeware user can seamlessly control lighting, audio, window coverings, thermostats, security, and cameras. The convergence of media presentation requirements, computers and refined control of devices makes Lifeware an ideal fit for corporate boardrooms, where control must be at once refined, elegant and graceful.
Lifeware represents the convergence of digital entertainment and refined home and office control.
It is an approach that makes Lifeware hardware-neutral as well. By embracing a standards-based, open architecture leveraging Web Services for Devices, Lifeware provides unprecedented flexibility to automation dealers and customers.
In the NextGen AVolution home at InfoComm, Lifeware can be found controlling a Lutron HomeWorks lighting system, Aprilaire thermostats, a GE NetworX security system, a Netstreams DigiLinx whole-house audio system, Z-wave lighting products and Panasonic cameras. The system also supports products by Honeywell, OnQ, Vantage, Russound, Vaux, Axis, and RCS, with more compatibility announcements in the works.
Twenty six participants in the Lifeware Early Adopter program recently completed training at the company's headquarters, which features a state-of-the-art 2,000-square foot smart house. Seamons said full scale dealer rollout is set for August, with eight training sessions slated that are filling up quickly.
http://www.exceptionalinnovation.com
***New Documentary Proposes Solution to Energy Crisis to be Found in Space
HOLLYWOOD, CA
June 3, 2005
There are two and a half ways to save the Earth and two of them are on the Moon.
A new technological study reveals that by the year 2050, there will be need a for three times as much primary power and it will have to be three times as clean. There is no earthly technology now available, or capable of becoming avialable by the year 2050, that can solve the energy problem.
Over one trillion dollars has already been spent on space technology and now its time to build on what was started forty years ago. Lunar Solar Power is a clean and renewable energy source and it could replace polluting fossil fuel plants. It uses collectors crafted from lunar material that would microwave power back to earth. Forty tons of Helium 3 used in fusion reactors could power the US for a year and would be worth over $320 billion dollars.
Emmy Award winning documentary producer, Charles Proser, presents, "Gaia Selene: Saving the Earth by Colonizing the Moon", a new documentary on the New Frontier and the future of "Homo-Spaciens".
The film's name has two meanings. "Gaia" is the ancient name for the Earth Goddess. It also represents the theory that the whole earth is one synergistic, inter-related organism. And "Selene" is the ancient name for the Moon.
"Gaia Selene" indicates that the Earth and Moon are a two planet system, and that the solutions to many earthly crises can be achieved by exploiting and colonizing the Moon and other solar bodies.
Advance copies of the film are available at Amazon.com and
***Valere Power Launches Ultra-Compact Power Systems for Wireless Networks
SUPERCOMM 2005
CHICAGO
June 6, 2005
Valere Power has announced new versions of its Mini DC Power System that expand the system's application range to include in-building and other small wireless networking sites.
The Mini DC Power System has a current level of up to 400 amps, making it the smallest (1RU or 1.5 inches high) high-power DC power system on the market. The system was originally designed for applications where power concentration is high and space is constrained, such as voice over IP (VoIP), power over Ethernet (PoE), blade-based server or router farms, metropolitan Ethernet, customer premise routing, or remote-terminal deployed broadband services.
But the announcement today of new HJ and HK models with expanded management controller and power distribution options makes the system appropriate for wireless network applications.
At least one wireless carrier has announced a major expansion of its network using microcells to provide better voice and data coverage within buildings and to compete with emerging wireless LAN options such as Wi-Fi. The challenge in powering a microcell is to provide enough power for its radio transmitter while matching the small form factor of the systems.
The Mini DC Power System HJ version is a 2RU-high unit with power distribution that is optimized for wireless applications. The system has up to six circuit breakers or 10 fuse positions for power distribution to up to 10 different networking systems. One or two low-voltage disconnect connectors are available to protect batteries from becoming too empty, a condition that can shorten the battery's life.
The HJ also features Valere's BC controller with full telecommunications functionality including monitoring of thermal conditions and management of battery capacity and health. Controller data is accessible either via a front panel LCD or remotely via a Web-based interface.
The HK configuration is 1RU high and offers up to 300 amps of current with either bulk output or up to 14 fuse-based distribution points. The system comes available with either a network interface card or a thermal relay input/output controller capability.
All of the systems use up to four of Valere's ultra-compact H-Series Rectifiers, which are available in 12V, 24V or 48V versions with current levels up to 100 A. These rectifiers are based on Valere's patented 93% efficient power conversion technology that dissipates 35% less heat than conventional technology. The systems are configured for front-to-back airflow and are NEBS level 3 compliant.
***SunPower Corporation Announces Higher Efficiency Solar Panels; New Panels Further Extend Competitive Advantage vs. Conventional Products
20th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference & Exhibition
BARCELONA, Spain
June 6, 2005
SunPower Corp., a Silicon Valley-based subsidiary of Cypress Semiconductor Corp., has announced a new line of higher efficiency solar electric panels at the 20th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference & Exhibition. The new panels offer customers even higher power density than SunPower's current industry-leading solar panels. Several performance-enhancing features have been incorporated into the new product line, including larger-area solar cells that improve power generation within the existing panel dimensions.
The new product line includes three new solar panels rated at 100-, 215-, and 220 watts and named the SPR-100, SPR-215, and SPR-220, respectively. With panel efficiencies of up to 18.3 percent, the new products produce up to 50 percent more power in a given roof area compared to conventional solar panels, and also reduce per-kW installation costs. The new SPR-215 panel incorporates the company's uniquely attractive, all-black design that enhances the appearance of roof-mounted solar systems. The new panel line will be available starting in late 2005 in North America through SunPower's dealer network, and in Europe through the company's exclusive channel partner, SunTechnics.
SunPower's solar panels have no moving parts, creating pollution-free electricity with no noise and virtually no maintenance. In addition, due to SunPower's patented all-back contact solar cell design, its high-tech, high-performance solar panels perform better than most other solar panels during both cloudy and hot weather.
http://www.sunpowercorp.com/html/Products/Solar/modules.html
***Supreme Court Rejects Lexmark's Petition
SANFORD, N.C.
June 6, 2005
The United States Supreme Court has rejected Lexmark's petition for certiorari, upholding Static Control's position against the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and copyright issues raised by Lexmark in connection with Static Control's sale of Lexmark compatible chips.
The latest ruling marks the fifth straight victory for North Carolina-based Static Control Components Inc. and the end of Lexmark's attempts to use the DMCA to create a monopoly in aftermarket supplies. Static Control now offers the only Lexmark compatible chips that have been cleared by the courts under the DMCA or copyright.
In October, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, Ohio, overturned a preliminary injunction banning the sale of Smartek replacement chips by Static Control Components for the Lexmark cartridges based upon Lexmark's claims under the DMCA and copyright. The 6th Circuit opinion turned, in part, on the design of the Static Control chips.
Lexmark appealed to the full body of the 6th Circuit to rehear the case, and that request was denied in February 2005.
On Dec. 30, 2002, Lexmark filed a lawsuit against SCC. In the suit Lexmark claimed that SCC's Smartek 520/620 chips violated the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998.
***Internet Phone Service Quality Study Kicked Off by Keynote
SAN MATEO, Calif.
June 8, 2005
Keynote Systems has launched the first study to benchmark the service quality of the leading providers of Internet phone services, also known as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), as perceived by end-users.
The study is designed to assess the market readiness of the leading Internet phone service providers by comparing the call quality of those VoIP providers in San Francisco and New York to traditional Public Switched Telephone Networks (PSTN). The study compares the quality of Internet phone service providers based on ten performance factors to accurately benchmark typical scenarios including placing coast to coast VoIP and local PSTN calls between New York to San Francisco and back as well as calls from a VoIP-enabled phone to a traditional phone.
Additionally, the study ranks leading providers on every major factor that affects the end-user experience with Internet phone service, including service availability, outage minutes, dropped calls, audio delay, listening quality, consistency and geographic uniformity. The study also analyzes various diagnostic metrics that constitute the service performance factors and evaluates the impact of the underlying network carriers on the VoIP quality perceived by end-users.
The six leading VoIP providers included in the study are: AT&T CallVantage, Packet 8, Primus Lingo, Skype, Verizon and Vonage. To understand the impact of underlying network performance on call quality, the VoIP telephone calls are carried on three T1 networks: AT&T, Sprint, and UUNET. In addition to measuring underlying network performance, the study captures the impact of the last-mile on call quality by measuring each of the six providers on residential DSL and residential cable lines as well.
VoIP has emerged as an influential technology that promises to cut consumer phone bills and enterprise communications costs, and change the way we communicate. The Keynote rankings will help consumers and enterprises assess VoIP readiness for the major markets of New York and San Francisco and highlight market leadership among the various providers.
The market for hosted IP voice services among U.S. businesses is expected to reach nearly $60 million by the end of 2004, according to IDC which projects a compound annual growth rate of 282% to reach $7.6 billion in 2008.
The need for quality and accountability both to customers and to the government was highlighted in the last few weeks when the FCC voted unanimously to require carriers to provide to emergency call centers the location and telephone numbers of callers who dial 911 from Internet phones and ensure callers reach emergency dispatchers instead of non-emergency lines.
The Keynote study will highlight the areas up-and-coming providers need to pay special attention to in order to provide high service quality to end-users and attract and retain enterprise customers in their respective markets. Moreover the insight presented will help enterprises understand industry best practices, which can be implemented during their branch-office and converged customer care deployments to maximize employee productivity and customer satisfaction.
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Copyright 2005 4th WAVE, Inc.
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