Chinese DVD Makers Again Push Home-Grown EVD Format

Chinese manufacturers of DVD players relaunched their EVD format machines Wednesday with a campaign they hope will enable them to take over the DVD market in China and possibly make inroads globally.

The EVD (enhanced versatile disc) technology began in 2003 and has sputtered since then. But more than 50 manufacturers unveiled new models at a show in Beijing this week, according to press reports.

Zhang Baoquan, general secretary of the EVD Industry Alliance, boasted that the homegrown format would replace the Blue-ray and HD DVD formats that are battling each other for dominance in non-Chinese markets. EVD manufacturers claim their format has more capacity, produces clearer images and sound, and has better anti-piracy features than established DVD formats.

The EVD models are generally priced competitively with existing DVD players. Market researchers have noted that Chinese firms currently manufacture the majority of the world's DVDs. The manufacturers, however, have grumbled for years that they have to pay too much to non-Chinese firms for DVD intellectual property.