10 March 2005

PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release

Disc Duplicating Industry to be well represented at MEDIA-TECH EXPO

After a few years of division, the international optical disc Replication and Duplication industries meet together again in the one large and inclusive industry show, MEDIA-TECH Expo, the largest international trade show for the optical disc industry in four years.

The EXPO is an opportunity to meet and see most of the major equipment and services suppliers who will be exhibiting and launching their latest duplicating, disc printing and replicating equipment, services and supplies to the thousands of attendees.

The IDDA is presenting a Disc Duplicating Conference that dare not be missed by anyone involved in duplicating optical media, either as a service, as a supplier, or in house. With the falling prices of media, faster equipment and new printing technologies, the disc duplicating industry is growing rapidly. Replicators are finding that disc duplicating is a viable alternative for shorter runs, duplicating services are producing longer runs at lower prices, and corporations are installing in-house duplicators.

The IDDA have also secured the services as co-presenter of Jean-Luc Renaud, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief of DVD-Intelligence / DVD Primer, see www.dvd-intelligence.com.

Jean-Luc Renaud is Globalcom Ltd founder and managing director. He has been involved in various aspects of the new media industry for over 25 years. After graduating from the universities of Lausanne and Geneva, in Switzerland, he earned a Ph.D. in the United States where he lectured. Jean-Luc co-authored The Future of the European Audiovisual Industry while a Fellow at the European Institute for the Media in Manchester. He worked as a senior consultant at Logica, the UK's largest independent IT company before setting up Globalcom Ltd to carry out consultancy assignments and develop the company's publishing activities to which he now devotes most of his time.

Globalcom launched www.dvd-intelligence.com – Europe's premier source of news, data and analysis for DVD professionals. It also publishes the DVD Primer (now in its 7th year), the Filmmakers' Guide to DVD, and organises the annual Film-to-DVD Seminar in London.

Says Bernhard Kirschner, speaking as director of CD-ROM Services P/L, Australia, and one of the biggest duplicating services.
"I personally find that Trade Shows are most valuable to meet other duplicators and discuss solutions. It is an opportunity to make your business more profitable and production and management easier, as well as an opportunity to develop new ideas. If you want to grow in a quickly evolving business, you will need to absorb the new ideas at suitable trade shows. For example I heard of YesVideo tape to DVD services at Media-Tech in Las Vegas, and it is now a growing portion of our business"

The IDDA conference discussions and presentations will be of interest to novices who want to learn about disc duplicating, and will be invaluable to professional disc duplicators and in-house corporate users who want to learn about the latest duplicating advances and techniques.

The IDDA conference will have presentations on industry trends, include subjects such as solutions to disc printing, packaging ideas, production control and administration systems, new markets, new techniques, and disc quality, all aimed at the disc duplicating industry. Attendees will learn about the new disc formats, disc testing, media quality and compatibility. There will also be presentations on piracy, copy protection, digital rights, and patents.

The MEDIA-TECH Expo 2005, May 10 -12 in Las Vegas - not to be missed by anyone serious about the business of optical media production - will be a show set in the beautifully fitted Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, one of the largest convention and meeting facilities in Las Vegas.
For more information see http://www.discdupe.org/i/ddu2005.htm

Summary of the IDDA Duplicating Conference Program

Tuesday May 10 - Marketing and management solutions, accounting solutions, more for the duplicator executive
A look at the present, the future, and opportunities in disc duplication, for the experienced and newcomers, including how and when duplicating replaces and complements replicating.
Learn ways to increase profits, with ideas on value added services, marketing strategies, and minimizing waste.
Lessons from duplicators on how they've been there, done that, broken it, fixed it, and made money doing it.
See demonstrations on software that will allow you to run your business smoothly, using effective production control systems.
With presentations on the best new technologies at the EXPO, we will help you decide whether and when to automate your next expansion, discussing the industry dream of lights-out manufacturing and the industry nightmare of disc printing.

Wednesday May 11 - Equipment, technical problems and solutions, for the hands on operator.
What to expect from new in media, and what works with what, and more important, what does not.
Media are not necessarily equal, nor consistent. The Media testing question is not whether to test or not to test, or rather how often to test? You might even take advantage of a special conference offer on demo equipment.
Every file is a surprise, so delve deep into the issues that cause jobs to hold up the production process.

Thursday May 12 – Emphasis on Digital rights, Copy protection, and Patents.
Not only do duplicators need to be concerned with copyright, but be concerned, very concerned with some of your legal obligations.
Are patent fees enforced effectively? Are they limiting the growth and the future of both CD-R and DVD-R duplication?
Developments in Copy Protection technologies, with suggestions on how to make this DRM market fly, with answers on its effectiveness, need, use and cost for duplicated media.
Hear the latest on the extent and validity of patents that affect our industry, from shaped discs to media manufacturing patents.

The morning sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday are from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm, and then break to allow attendees to see the Expo, with afternoon sessions from 3:30 to 5:30 pm. The Thursday legal aspects sessions will go from 9:30 am to 1:30 pm only.

Refreshments will be available during the sessions.

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