meritocracy

Press Release:

Agoura Hills, Calif. (September 27, 2004) -- DTS (Digital Theater Systems, Inc.) today announced that its DTS Coherent Acoustics coding system has been selected as mandatory audio technology for both the Blu-ray Disc (BD) and High Definition Digital Versatile Disc (HD-DVD), the two next generation high-definition disc formats for home video. In addition to the Company's core technology, DTS' extension technologies have also been selected as options. Encompassing higher data rates, lossless operation and additional channels, DTS' extension technologies, identified by the DVD Forum (HD-DVD) and Blu-ray Disc Association collectively as DTS++, have been approved as optional features on both HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc. DTS++ is also the only lossless audio technology selected for both disc formats.

"As a mandatory technology in the next generation standards, a DTS decoder will be built into every next generation player that incorporates either HD-DVD or Blu-ray Disc, therefore allowing content providers the freedom to choose the audio technology best suited for their needs," said Jon Kirchner, President and CEO of DTS. "We are both excited and pleased, and believe that this is a vote of confidence in DTS' technology and market leadership. Although we do not expect to see revenue until the next generation products become available, we believe the mandatory inclusion sets the stage for a very positive future."

"Over the past several years, we have seen a marked increase in DVD titles that include DTS soundtracks, and we expect this number to accelerate as DTS becomes an audio standard for next generation formats," said Patrick Watson, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Business Development at DTS. "The mandatory inclusion of DTS in both the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray standards demonstrates the industry's support for value-added DTS audio technologies. At the same time, DTS remains committed to artists, consumers and the industry by continuing our tradition of developing new technologies that offer superior performance and backwards compatibility."


DTS Coherent Acoustics

DTS Coherent Acoustics, first introduced into the market in 1996, was designed to be both extensible and backward-compatible based on its core + extension structure. Subsequent extensions to the original 5.1-channel format were an additional discrete channel for 6.1-channel audio (DTS-ES), and a 96 kHz sampling rate for high-resolution audio (DTS 96/24). DTS audio tracks using either of these enhancements can be played on any existing DTS decoder, making them compatible with more than 280 million DTS-licensed consumer electronics products today, with advanced decoders able to play the extension data.

Now, with the extra space and bandwidth afforded by HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc, content providers and consumers alike can appreciate DTS audio tracks encoded at data rates greater than 1.5 Mbit/s, all the way to fully lossless operation - meaning that the soundtrack is bit-for-bit identical to the master. Both the mandatory DTS core technology, as well as optional higher sampling rates such as DTS 96/24 and additional channels up to 7.1, enable both Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD formats to offer DTS' premium audio quality to consumers while retaining compatibility with all existing DTS decoders. This is the only approved coding system offering this range of performance yet maintaining full backward compatibility, therefore allowing a single audio track to provide advanced features and to support the large population of existing multi-channel preamps and receivers.

HD-DVD and Blu-ray Discs are next generation packaged media formats with large storage capacity capable of delivering high-definition video in addition to other advanced technologies for an enhanced consumer experience.

For more information on HD-DVD, please visit www.dvdforum.org
For more information on Blu-ray Disc, please visit www.blu-raydisc.com

TylerDurden_73

dts all the way...

trigun

Wouldn't this just make future players more expensive by duplicating capability already found in my receiver?

RDYoung

I think probably so. I wonder if that's true?

r

reubs82

Or maybe recievers would get cheaper b/c of there is no need to put a decoder in them? I don't know how this works. I'm still using the stereo speakers in my TV.

Green Jello

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh hhhhh!

Now, let the bitching, whining and arguing begin.

Green Jello

Since this is a press release from DTS, there is no mention if Dolby will be mandated as well.

Mr. Salty

If it's a mandatory format, the players are going to have to be as compatible as possible with a wide variety of setups.

Not everyone who buys one of these players is going to have an outboard surround sound system, as hard as that is for many of us to believe. They are going to plug the audio straight into theor HDTV sets, and for that to work the player is going to have to have a decoder.

trigun

http://news.designtechnica.com/article5492.html

"Dolby Laboratories announces that Dolby(R) audio technologies have been selected as mandatory formats for both High-Definition Digital Versatile Disc (HD DVD) and Blu-ray Disc. The DVD Forum has selected Dolby Digital Plus and MLP Lossless(TM) as mandatory audio formats for HD DVD. The Blu-ray Disc Association announced that Dolby Digital will be a mandatory technology on its new format, the Blu-ray Disc. Both discs are next-generation packaged media formats designed to deliver high-definition picture quality."

Green Jello

So....

HD-DVD:
Dolby Digital
MLP
DTS

and

Blue-Ray:
Dolby Digital
DTS


Is that what we are look at? I hope they aren't sacrificing too much space to contain all kinds of various audio formats.

trigun

I would think that a HD-DVD / BD would only have to contain ONE of the mandatory audio tracks.

Armando

This doesn't mean a release will be forced to have both formats at the same time. I interpret this as meaning all DVD players will have to be able to decode both formats. And since the player can do it any 5.1 receiver with 5.1 in will be compatible.

eau

Yeah! It sounds like both DD and DTS are mandatory. Best of both worlds

The optional DTS++ sounds cool.

steebo777

It'll be nice to have every disc with DTS

TomOpus

Considering how expensive the players will be, adding a DTS decoder would be a minimal increase.

Josh Z

You're reading it correctly. I think a lot of people in this thread are mis-interpreting the announcement to mean that every disc will have DTS, which isn't the case. All it means is that the player must be able to pass the DTS bitstream (if you recall, many first-generation DVD players were not DTS compatible).

trigun

Except that is NOT going to happen.

DVD Polizei

...DTS' extension technologies have also been selected as options

...The mandatory inclusion of DTS in both the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray standards demonstrates the industry's support for value-added DTS audio technologies

What I take from this is that DTS will in fact be mandatory on every disc, BUT, DTS Extension Technologies will be an option.

So, it looks like DTS will be on every disc. An email to DTS could clear this up.

Same for the DD mandatory thing. However, there will have to be an exception to "older" movies who didn't have those tracks. But for the latest movies as of a few years ago, I would expect all HD discs to have DTS and DD on the disc.

trigun

I don't see anything in the press release that indicates every disk will have DTS. It just means that the players will have to be able to handle DTS soundtracks.

DVD Polizei

Well, I emailed them.

Green Jello

If you recall back in 1996 (or maybe you don't) when the DVD spec was being finalized, Dolby Digital was chosen as the audio format for the discs and was announced in much the same way. This looks like the same thing.

davcole

Well let's look at what's mandatory for DVD:

DOLBY DIGITAL and PCM are the mandatory sound formats. That means that a DVD has to have either of those formats. You can have a DVD with just PCM or one with just DD. You cannot have a DTS only disc however. You'd have to have DTS with either DD or PCM.

How it will work with HD- DVD is that a disc will either have to have one of the following:

DD+ (which will be compatable with a regular DD decoder
DTS ( the standard codec without extensions)
MLP ( we know at least the 2 channel version of it)

So that means any disc will have to be able to have a soundtrack in one of the above formats. It also means that each HD-DVD player will have to be able to pass all 3 of these formats.

DTS++ is an optional version of DTS that each player may be allowed to pass and each disc has the option of having in addition to either (DD+, MLP, DTS)

On BLU- RAY the mandatory formats are:

DD (the standard version of it)
DTS (the standard version of it)

... now it's unclear wheter regular PCM is required?

what is optional with BLU-RAY is that DTS++ (their extensions including lossless)

In sum BLU-RAY must include DD or DTS on each player and each disc must have either DD or DTS. If they chose they can have the option of the DTS++ extension including LOSSLESS.

At least that's my take on it!!

JupiterPrime

It would be nice to have PLAYERS decode as well as output the stream for those whose receivers do not decode DTS signals, otherwise there are going to be a lot of angry people out there if they feel that they are forced to not only HAVE to get new players, but also have to get new HT Receivers as well

Backwards compatability with existing media must remain constant

DVD Polizei

Ok, I heard back from DTS. They are always pretty quick to respond:

HI,

I was reading the latest press release, and I'm trying to decipher the wording. Is DTS going to be mandatory on all HD-DVD or BLU-RAY movies that are released?

Best Regards,

Response:

Yes, DTS' core 5.1-channel technology, also known as DTS Digital Surround, will be mandatory according to the standards both HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc have released.

So, there you have it.

Green Jello

How will anything be different? If you don't have the equipment to play DTS with current DVDs, how is it a problem if you can't play it with HD-DVDs. The discs will still have Dolby as well.