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DVD6C to license DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD-RAM and DVD-Audio patents

DVD6C, a consortium that owns the key patents related to the DVD Forum approved technologies, such as DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD-RAM and DVD-Audio, announced yesterday that it expects to start global licensing for its patents by 1st of January, 2003.

Patent owners in the consortium are AOL TimeWarner, Hitachi, IBM, Matsushita, Mitsubishi, Toshiba and JVC. DVD6C offers a one-stop licensing for companies willing to use the DVD patents owned by its member companies. Consortium also announced the licensing fees for various products.



The licensing price for DVD-R/RW/RAM media will be $0.075 per disc or 4% of the net selling price, whichever is greater. For DVD recorders -- both PC drives and stand-alone recorders -- the licensing fees will be 4% of the net selling price or $6.00, whichever is greater. The consortium also happens to hold the patents to DVD-Video and DVD-ROM discs and the licensing fees for these are $0.065 per disc.

DVD6C also set the new licensing fees for DVD-Video encoders and read-only DVD players and DVD-ROM drives -- all of those products are licensed by DVD6C. The group hopes that by clarifying the licensing fees it can finally crush the competition coming from the Philips-led DVD+RW Alliance.

Source: Yahoo!

Written by: Petteri Pyyny @ 19 Nov 2002 14:57

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• 4 comments

• cblanche

  This is fine but after reading the specs for the two formats, I think the +R/RW format offers the most flexibility for the user, and is compatible with more drives. I hope the DVD+RW Alliance comes out with similar definitive licensing rates. I must admit I like having a choice. I was unsure about DVD+R/RW until I finally found out what the difference was.
  

  cblanche

  22.11.2002 02:27 #1

• dRD

  Then again, I'm strongly leaning towards DVD-R/W due pure facts and lessons from the good olde 1980's -- technology doesn't matter, markets matter (Beta was definately much, much more advanced video format than VHS). And this years estimates in worldwide blank media sales:
  
  DVD-R : 90,000,000 discs
  DVD+R : 13,000,000 discs
  
  ...and in rewritable, the ratio is DVD-RW 75/DVD+RW 25.
  

  Petteri Pyyny
  Webmaster
  http://AfterDawn.com/
  
  Please read our guides before posting questions! Guides are available here:
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  23.11.2002 01:38 #2

• Randnet

  Keep one tidbit in mind. A certain software maker announced earlier this year that they plan to incorporate native support for packet writing DVD+RW data. They make a product called Widows. Know who they are? Don't you think their declaration gives DVD+RW an edge in survivla?

  9.12.2002 12:57 #3

• dRD

  True, MS has power, but can they reverse the economics. It seems that the price gap between formats is still wide and doesn't seem to get much narrower -- one just assumes that actually making "plus" discs simply costs more. Whether this is due stupid licensing fees or due technical issues, it doesn't matter. Users simply pick the media that costs less.
  
  Now, all of you who have dual-format DVD writer, such as Sony DRU-500A, raise your hand if you have burned more than 100 discs, have DVD player that plays both plus and minus discs and still buy only plus discs?
  

  Petteri Pyyny
  Webmaster
  http://AfterDawn.com/
  
  Please read our guides before posting questions! Guides are available here:
  http://www.afterdawn.com/articles/

  9.12.2002 14:01 #4