DVD+RW Alliance Announces Higher Speed Specification for DVD Recording; 4x Recording Speed, 8cm Media Specification -- DVD+RW/+R Remains the Industry Leader for Consumers.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

LOVELAND, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 8, 2002

The DVD+RW Alliance, a voluntary association of industry-leading personal computer manufacturers, optical storage and consumer electronics manufacturers today announced the specifications for 4x DVD+R recording speeds and for 8cm DVD+RW/+R media. A first in the industry for speed and compatibility, these specification enhancements further solidify DVD+RW/+R as the industry leading consumer format for data and video applications.

"Anticipating future end-users' needs, DVD+RW/+R specifications have been designed from the start to offer the highest compatibility and performance for both consumer video recording and PC applications," said Maureen Weber, general manager, HP Optical Storage Solutions Business and spokesperson for the DVD+RW Alliance. "The addition of 4x write speed and support for 8cm media were the next logical steps in our roadmap to bring consumers increased performance and user-friendliness in DVD recording."

4x DVD+RW/+R Specification

DVD recorders and data drives designed to this specification will provide the ability to record at 44 megabits per second, taking less than 15 minutes to record a full capacity DVD+RW/+R disc. This added consumer convenience is testament to the strength of the DVD+RW/+R format and its ability to evolve and maintain industry leadership and innovation.

The 4x DVD+R specification is complete today with the 4x DVD+RW specification available before the end of this year.

8cm Media Specification

This new form factor allows new products to take advantage of the DVD+RW/+R format including mobile devices such as digital video cameras. Like 12cm discs, the new 8cm media specification is designed to enable compatibility with existing PCs with DVD-ROM and DVD players. With disc capacities of 1.46 gigabytes, users can benefit from the smaller form factor for data interchange applications.

About DVD+RW/+R

The DVD+RW/+R format is capable of recording up to 4.7 gigabytes of digital video, images or data. This equates to the storage capacity of seven CD-R/RWs and the potential to store thousands of digital photographs or approximately two to six hours of digital video. The primary benefit of DVD+RW/+R is its two-way compatibility, meaning that DVD+RW/+R media can be played in many DVD players and DVD-ROM drives in use today.

About The DVD+RW Alliance

The DVD+RW Alliance is a voluntary group of industry-leading personal computing manufacturers, optical storage and electronics manufacturers including Dell (Nasdaq: DELL), HP (NYSE: HPQ), MCC/Verbatim, Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG), Ricoh Company, Ltd. (ADR: RICOY), Sony Corporation, Thomson Multimedia (NYSE: TMS) and Yamaha Corporation. The companies promote the compatible, rewritable DVD+RW/+R format that enables true convergence between personal computing and consumer electronics products. DVD+R and DVD+RW discs written on DVD+RW/+R recorder can be read and played in many DVD players and DVD-ROM drives. More than 70 additional companies have formally pledged support for DVD+RW/+R technology. Further details about the DVD+RW Alliance and supporting companies can be found at www.dvdrw.com.