Loading ...
Fred C Th...
Technology & Engineering
Misc Engineering and Innova...
13
0
Try Now
Log In
Pricing
Iomega Proprietary – Not for Public Distribution V-001.2 11/29/01 AO-DVD The Digital Film Distribution Media of the Future AO-DVD (Articulated Optical Digital Versatile Disk) technology is a newly conceived low-cost data distribution and content execution media for integration into mainstream CD and DVD optical data storage drives. It was invented recently at Iomega Corporation, the removable data storage company that has brought the world such data storage innovations as the Zip Drive, Jaz Drive, PocketZip Drive and Peerless Drive. Iomega has also made a name for itself with several performance enhanced CDRW optical data storage products. AO-DVD can be seen as the next generation of CD-ROM or DVD-ROM for distribution of content. The reason for this statement is that AO-DVD has the potential to support areal densities, which are 20 to 100 times greater than those presently shipping in CD or DVD-ROM formats. AO-DVD technology is also amenable to being designed into the drive architecture of a CD or DVD drive at very low additional cost. This means that it is a high-value augmentation technology for these present mainstream technologies rather than a competing new standard. New AO-DVD-enabled CDRW or DVD-RW format drives will still be able to record data at present CD/DVD densities, but will have access to low-cost AO-DVD content which, for example, is 40X larger than that of these present optical ROM medias. Inherent in the data architecture of AO-DVD is an increase in the transfer rate of data from the media to the drive. This transfer rate increase is equivalent to the increase in capacity. With transfer rates at multiple tens of times faster than presently available from optical ROM media, a whole array of new applications and markets for both CD and DVD drives with AO-DVD modes is opened. A principal one is the ability to distribute and play high-definition video content at low cost. Others include running interactive software and games directly from one’s optical drive, be it in a computer or Set-Top Box. The implications are enormous. The ability to create low-cost media with the same type cost structure as current CD-ROM and DVD media is believed to be of paramount necessity for the success of AO-DVD technology. In fact, on a per MB or capacity basis it can be shown that AO- DVD’s costs to produce are significantly less than CD or DVD-ROM media. Some possible new applications and products that could be enabled by the commercial development of AO-DVD technology would include: • Media the size of a quarter (DataPlay size disk, 32 mm) holding a full length HDTV movie (20GB). o A micro personal video player the size of a packet of cigarettes to play video content. • A standard size 120 mm AO-DVD disk holding a film studio’s full menu of summer releases (e.g. 10-15 movies) with a core DRM technology built in. This would enable the free distribution of this content to consumers much like the AOL mass marketing of their ISP services through mass CD-ROM mailings. • A film artist’s (actor or directors’) complete works supplied and direct marketed to consumers upon the purchase of a single title. In this way impulse purchase of films of the same genre are consumer enabled. • AO-DVD can be viewed as a technology to be leveraged in the developing Set-Top Box market share wars. Entire libraries of DRM-accessible films on just a few AO-DVD disks can be supplied to the consumer for production costs of pennies a movie. • A standard size 120 mm AO-DVD disk (>180 GB, single sided/single layer) would be one of the enabling technologies, which would allow for cost-effective distribution of full-length fully digital movies to theaters. The cost-saving implications for that industry are alone of considerable magnitude. • Enhanced CDRW drives with the capability to play full-length DVD movies on AO-DVD media (>20 GB) with lower drive production costs than DVD. This value offering represents the capability to play movies but not record them. AO-DVD opens a whole new vista in content distribution, much like CD-ROM created a whole new model for content distribution in the 1990s’ and DVD-ROM has over the past couple of years. Iomega is interested in exploring possible routes to AO-DVD’s commercialization for the distribution and marketing of studios’ digital video products. We are looking for the right synergism and support with corporate champions within the film industry. Let us tell you about the technology behind this revolutionary new content distribution media we are developing. Contact Information: Fred Thomas Phone: 801-332-4662 Chief Technologist, Advanced R&D Fax: 801-332-1030 Iomega Corporation Email: thomasf@iomega.com 1821 West Iomega Way Roy, Utah 84067
