facts, figures, & findings

Emedia Professional, April, 1999

why DVD DIDN'T displace CD in '99

While DVD hypesters and prognosticators promised a DVD revolution in 1998, sales figures for the year suggested otherwise. To be fair, DVD, ROM drive manufacturers sold nearly six million units in 1998--an impressive figure given the limited number of titles available. According to International Data Corporation (IDC)'s annual year-in-review-and-preview, end-user demand for DVD-ROM wasn't as strong as expected because of drastic price reductions among 20-32X CD-ROM drives as well. In Optical Storage Market: 1998 Year in Review and 1999 Forecast, IDC predicts that 0EMs will be ready to incorporate DVD-ROM drives into their PCS, but that limited drive availability will impede the rate of transition. Conversely, IDC expects CD-ROM to continue its market dominance in '99, though shipments will steadily decline through the year. (508/872-8200; http://www.idc.com)

DVD: if not now, WHEN?

Freeman Associates' annual Optical Storage Outlook--released in mid-February --echoes IDC's prediction that DVD won't overtake CD this year. Indeed, say its authors, all DVD formats have been hindered by shipping delays among DVD manufacturers and strong CD-based drive sales. Specifically, the report suggests that DVD will move into the mainstream, but nearly two years later than originally forecast. In the meantime, they say, CD drives will continue to propel both the read-only and rewritable markets. (805/963-3853; http://www.freemaninc.com)

MORE information on Y2K needed

Not surprisingly, most Americans can't stop thinking about the Y2K dilemma. In fact, a poll conducted in mid-January by the Media Studies Center found that more than half of the American public consider Y2K to be one of the most important problems facing the country. Respondents are particularly interested in learning whether their communities' medical establishments and emergency services--as well as the U.S. military, banks, and local electric companies--are Y2K-ready. And despite what already feels like media saturation, more than half of the survey population could not adequately define the problem and its potential consequences when the world's clocks strike midnight on January 1, 2000. (212/317-6500; http://www.freedomforum.org)