The DVD player market in Europe and why approval for 625 line progressive video (576p) outputs is now urgently needed John Dawson Chairman A & R Cambridge Ltd CPTWG

About Arcam Founded in 1976 in Cambridge UK Designs and manufactures hi-fi and AV separates - amplifiers, tuners, receivers, CD players and (from September 2000) DVD-video players Manufactures over 40,000 units / year, 80% sold in Europe 110 staff, of which 20 in R & D Sales $17 million / year, growing at 20% p.a. Very high performance and reasonably priced - anyone with a job can afford Arcam :-) DVD licence payer and member of DVD Forum

About the European DVD player market Growing rapidly - 229% year on year to to a total of 2.7 million units sold to consumers Forecast for next year - roughly to double again About one year behind the US growth / uptake curve Largest markets in 2000 were UK (28%), France (27%) and Germany (21%) Close parallels with the rapid uptake and growth of widescreen TV in Europe 3.1 million 16:9 sets sold in 2000 (42% growth) Also 114,000 rear projection sets (76% growth)

About the European DVD player market Local specialist manufacturers include Arcam, Meridian, TAG (in the UK); also some Philips models and units based on Philips kits. 480p progressive models already available in Europe from Arcam, Denon, Pioneer, Onkyo, Sony, Toshiba. Probably coming soon - Meridian, Philips, Rotel, TAG. Suitable display devices (CRT, LCD and DLP projectors, plasma screens) already sold by over 100 specialist AV dealers and installers in the UK. Awareness and desire to own top end models is growing as more specialists enter the market.

The market need for 576p capable players For higher quality. In audio, and now video, there are always customers who strive for the best possible reproduction of recorded material. In my opinion this aligns well with the desires of producers, directors and artists. Most movie material on DVD starts progressive and, though recorded interlaced, lends itself to perfect reconstruction with a suitable de-interlacer, inside or external to the DVD player, with excellent results for the consumer. Suitable display devices (partly driven by HDTV in the USA) are rapidly growing in number, and falling in cost. 480p capable players are now almost mandatory for the mid to high-end market in the USA and Japan. The chipsets are improving in quality and falling in cost, and are already 576p capable at no extra cost. Yet only 480p is available for European consumers.

Display compatibility Prompt action is needed now to ensure the bulk of 576p capable displays are fully compatible with the chosen method of copy protection. Currently the installed base is low and disruption will be correspondingly low.

Content Protection issues Little if any increased threat to content producers because - Video quality from a consumer 576p DVD player will be better than 576i alone but no better than today’s permitted 576i plus a top quality external de-interlacer/scaler; a solution which is already available to consumers. The incremental quality, for the same content, of 576p/50 over 480p/60 is small. Thus while 576p will improve the DVD viewing experience of many Europeans and others, particularly in the middle to upper middle part of the market, it will not make any material improvement to the best possible current quality. Assuming similar content protection methods, the risks associated with copying 576p analogue content are no different from copying today’s 480p analogue content.

Removal of Market Anomalies Promptly approving 576p will remove or alleviate a number of market anomalies in Europe and elsewhere In an area such as R2, where both 525/60 and 625/50 DVDs are permitted, there will no longer be a need to switch between 480p and 576i in the player or display device, or transcode 576p to 480p. This always adds cost or compromises quality. One progressive scan player type (with appropriate region and language settings) can serve all markets. The threat to both content providers and DVD player makers from both compliant (HTPC) and non compliant products, which may include features such as 576p without copy protection, is reduced. Approved 576p removes the need for European consumers to “chip” today’s 480p-only top end DVD players and to import many R1 DVDs in order to obtain the best video quality.

End of presentation and time for action