Digital Cinema Gets Universal Standard
(released
7/29/2005)
By Douglas Lorah
Wednesday, July 27th marked a giant step in making digital cinema a reality. Digital Cinema Initiatives, LLC (DCI) completed the final overall system requirements and specifications to help theatrical projector and equipment manufacturers create uniform and compatible digital cinema equipment throughout the United States.
"After three years of careful planning, discussion and reaching out to all the various constituencies who make up our industry, DCI member studios are pleased to have reached unanimous agreement on the necessary overall system requirements and specifications for digital cinema," said Walt Ordway, CTO of DCI. "We now have a unified specification that will allow manufacturers to create products that will be employable at movie theatres throughout the country and, it is hoped, throughout the world. In fact, the specification is being translated for international markets."
"These specifications should provide a common ground to spur innovation and encourage many more players who were previously resistant to invest capital in technology that may or may not have been viable," said Ordway. "And as the market gets more competitive, the price of the equipment and its installation -- previously thought to be a major barrier to digital cinema -- will become increasingly affordable, to the point where that stumbling block should no longer be of consequence."
A hot topic at ShowEast this past year, many theatre owners seemed adamant to wait for the 4k projectors and specs.
DCI member studios and industry leaders hailed this long-awaited development, which will be applicable to both 2K and 4K resolutions. DCI was created in March 2002 and is a joint venture of Disney, Fox, Paramount, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Universal and Warner Bros. Studios.
Print this article
|