CompCore Announces SoftDVD Technology for the PC.SANTA CLARA Santa Clara, city, Cuba Santa Clara (sän`tä klä`rä), city (1994 est. pop. 217,000), capital of Villa Clara prov., central Cuba. , Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 5, 1996--CompCore Multimedia Inc. today announced its SoftDVD(TM) technology for use with Intel's upcoming family of microprocessors with MMX (MultiMedia EXtensions) A set of 57 additional instructions built into the Pentium MMX chip for improved multimedia and modem performance by performing mathematical operations on multiple sets of data at the same time (see SIMD). (TM) technology. SoftDVD will be demonstrated in Las Vegas Las Vegas (läs vā`gəs), city (1990 pop. 258,295), seat of Clark co., S Nev.; inc. 1911. It is the largest city in Nevada and the center of one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the United States. at Comdex in CompCore's booth number M2562 in the upper level of the Sands Exhibition Center. Beta versions of SoftDVD are now available to qualified OEMs for evaluation. DVD DVD: see digital versatile disc. DVD in full digital video disc or digital versatile disc Type of optical disc. The DVD represents the second generation of compact-disc (CD) technology. is the revolutionary high density CD standard for storing large quantities of digital video and audio data. A single sided, single layer DVD disc can store a high quality two hour digital movie. The DVD specification designates MPEG-2 as the digital compression standard for video. MPEG-2 generates higher quality images compared to previous Video CD players which utilize MPEG-1. Dolby Digital A digital audio encoding system from Dolby used in movie and home theaters. First used in 1995, Dolby Digital employs Dolby's AC-3 (Audio Coding-3) coding and compression technology and is the standard for DVD-Video and HDTV. 5. (6 channel AC-3) will be the audio compression standard in North America and the Far East while MPEG (Moving Pictures Experts Group) An ISO/ITU standard for compressing digital video. Pronounced "em-peg," it is the universal standard for digital terrestrial, cable and satellite TV, DVDs and digital video recorders (DVRs). audio is expected to be the audio compression standard in Europe. CompCore has developed a software application called "SoftDVD" which enables personal computers to play MPEG-2 and AC-3 content. SoftDVD is available in two basic configurations: 1) an all-software version, and 2) a software/hardware hybrid combination called Accelerated SoftDVD. To implement the all-software version of SoftDVD, an Intel microprocessor which supports MMX technology, an architectural enhancement for improving multimedia and communications on PCs, is required. Digital video decoding operates with significantly higher performance when MMX instructions are supported. Intel expects to introduce the Pentium(R) processor with MMX technology in the first quarter of 1997. SoftDVD will transform such PCs into DVD players at an extremely low cost since no specialized MPEG-2 or Dolby Digital (AC-3) hardware is required. "Intel's MMX technology provides improved performance for MPEG-2 video playback," said Frank Spindler, Intel Pentium Processor Marketing Manager. "CompCore's SoftDVD is an excellent example of an exciting new entertainment application which will be able to take advantage of multiple generations of Intel processors with MMX technology, when available." "DVD is the hottest new entertainment media to come along in this decade," said George Haber, President and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of CompCore Multimedia Inc. "With the help of Intel's planned microprocessors, CompCore's SoftDVD is expected to play a major role in proliferating DVD throughout the marketplace." In addition to the all-software configuration, CompCore will also provide a hybrid hardware/software version called Accelerated SoftDVD which will support the most popular MPEG-2 and Dolby Digital (AC-3) hardware accelerator chips. VGA (Video Graphics Array) The display standard for the PC. All PC display adapters support VGA, and Windows machines boot up in "VGA mode" before switching to higher resolutions. graphics chips which implement motion compensation acceleration will also be supported by SoftDVD. These configurations will enable currently available Pentium processor based systems and future MMX technology enabled PCs to play DVD discs using a unique combination of software and hardware. Beta versions of SoftDVD which support MPEG-1/2, Dolby Digital (AC-3), and MPEG audio decoding in software through the Microsoft MCI (1) (Media Control Interface) A high-level programming interface from Microsoft and IBM for controlling multimedia devices. It provides commands and functions to open, play and close the device. (2) (Microwave Communications Inc. interface are now available for qualified OEMs. During the first quarter of 1997, SoftDVD is planned to be available with DVD Navigator functionality, copyright protection, and a graphical user interface graphical user interface (GUI) Computer display format that allows the user to select commands, call up files, start programs, and do other routine tasks by using a mouse to point to pictorial symbols (icons) or lists of menu choices on the screen as opposed to having to supported through ActiveMovie interfaces. Contact CompCore for more information. CompCore Multimedia Inc. is a leading video and audio technology provider for MPEG (Moving Pictures Expert Group) products. Founded in 1993, CompCore is currently a privately held California corporation headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif. On Oct. 21, 1996, CompCore announced that it had reached an agreement to be acquired by Zoran Corp. This acquisition is planned to be completed in January of 1997. CompCore offers MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 audio and video hardware designs to enable its OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) The rebranding of equipment and selling it. The term initially referred to the company that made the products (the "original" manufacturer), but eventually became widely used to refer to the organization that buys the products and customers to manufacture and ship the highest quality, lowest cost MPEG chips in the industry. In addition, CompCore also provides its OEM customers with MPEG software technology. SoftPEG enables end users to play MPEG-1 CDs on their personal computers without requiring specialized hardware. Over 7 million units of SoftPEG have been sold worldwide since 1995. CompCore's technologies have been adopted by many of the largest PC, graphics boards, chip manufacturers and CD publishers in the world including Hitachi, NEC (NEC Corporation, Tokyo, www.nec.com, www.necus.com) An electronics conglomerate known in the U.S. for its monitors. In Japan, it had the lion's share of the PC market until the late 1990s (see PC 98). NEC was founded in Tokyo in 1899 as Nippon Electric Company, Ltd. , Packard Bell, Matsushita, Fujitsu, Sony, Acer, Samsung, Cirrus Logic, Diamond Multimedia, ATI (ATI Technologies Inc., Markham Ontario, http://ati.amd.com) A leading manufacturer of graphics chips and display adapters. Founded in 1985 by K. Y. Ho, Benny Lau and Lee Lau, ATI chips and boards are widely used by OEMs. , Matrox, C-Cube, and many others. -0- Note to Editors: SoftPEG and SoftDVD are trademarks of CompCore Multimedia Inc. Pentium is a registered trademark of Intel Corp. MMX is a trademark of Intel Corp. Dolby Digital is a registered trademark of Dolby Laboratories Inc. ActiveMovie is a trademark of Microsoft. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies. CONTACT: CompCore Ron Richter, 408/567-0552, ext. 29 ron@compcore.com |
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