Philips and Funai Sign CE Rights Agreement – Hong Kong’s Funai Electric has signed an agreement with Royal Philips Electronics to transfer the Philips AV, multimedia and accessories businesses to Funai. The video business will transfer in 2017 with the rest doing so in the second half of this year. Funai already has existing licensing agreements with Philips. Philips’ CEO said this will leverage Philips’ strong brand, innovation strength and leadership mosition in AV entertainment, with Fanai‘s strong position in North and Central America and Japan, and its supply and manufacturing expertise. Philips has struggled recently competing with Asia competitors in the AV entertainment electronics business, and has focused more on its healthcare, consumer lifestyle and lighting products. It has also been hit by an EU probe into price-fixing in the former cathode ray tube market.
Barco Launches Auro 11.1 Surround in India – Auro 11.1, developed by Auro Technologies and powered by Barco, is the next-generation 3D surround sound format for theaters. It turns conventional cinema audio into a fully immersive 3D sound experience in three layers: surround, height and overhead—without the need for complex and expensive object-based technology. Auro 11.1 is currently deployed in over 50 installations worldwide and an increasing number of directors are embracing the new audio format. It is fully compatible with existing standards, traditional 5.1 sound formats and future object-based technologies, and requires minimal hardware and installation investment.
$12,100 for Rare Beatles Record Player – Vintage commercial Beatles memorabilia fetches a high price on eBay, and on a recent auction there a 1964 four-speed NEMS Beatles Record Player Model 1000 went for $12,100. Only about 5000 of the players were manufactured, and finding one in near-mint condition with all original parts intact was extremely rare. The opening bid for the phonograph was 99 cents—shows you how an auction can go… (This news courtesy of WhatSellsBest.com)
Amazon Has ‘Downton Abbey’ Exclusive – The big PBS hit Downton Abbey has signed an exclusive content licensing agreement with Amazon.com to offer Seasons One and Two of the series on their Prime Instand Video streaming-video service. For fans who prefer the original U.K. version, the first three seasons are available on DVD or Blu-ray at Amazon, and digitally thru Amazon Instant Video.
