Taiwan's Prodisc, who are reputedly the third largest producer of optical discs in Taiwan, are set to produce 16x DVD-R discs, they will also begin shipping 2.4x and 4x DVD+R DL (single-sided double-layer) discs at the end of this month, according to the company.

Ridisc have started shipping Dual Layer, DVD-Ram and Silver Printable Surface discs into the European, African and Middle Eastern markets. Datasafe, meanwhile, have just sent us a sample of their new Dual Layer DVD+R for review and no doubt our resident DVD guru Flash will soon be weighing them all up.

DVD Burning Guru Flash has posted in his latest review which takes a hard, analytical look at the new Pioneer 108 which the manufacturer claims burns at 16x. To find out if that's true check out Flash's Pioneer 108 Provisional Results.

Philips recently took action to protect its DVD+R patent rights by warning unlicensed disc makers in Taiwan and notifying customs agencies and distributors in Europe they should block imports from Taiwan makers who violate their patents, according to the warned makers.

The Widio is currently being shipped and should be on store shelves in the US, Europe, Australia and Japan from the beginning of September, according to the company.

A Middle East based Ritek distributor has begun shipment of Ridata branded Double Layer DVD+R discs into the European and Middle Eastern markets.

A campaign has been launched in Bristol, UK to crack down on fake goods. The Patent Office-led initiative has been backed by Bristol City Council, trading standards, police and brand owners in an attempt to stamp out counterfeiting of CDs, perfumes, clothes, DVDs and alcohol.

Press Release: LSI Logic's DMN-8652 processor enables one of the market's first DVD + HDD + VCR recorders from JVC. The new DVR has feaures which include include a 120 GB hard drive; fast dubbing speed up to 32x; 1.5x speed playback; and 6-way dubbing. JVC have said they selected the LSI Logic processor for its high-quality video and audio, and ability to reduce the time, cost and complexity of system design.

The Motion Picture Association of America has settled a copyright infringement suit against 321 Studios for an undisclosed sum. The settlement concludes more than two years of courtroom battles over the legality of 321's DVD-copying software, which ultimately led federal judges in New York and California to order the product removed from store shelves.

Sonic today announced it will acquire the consumer software division of Roxio for a total purchase price of $80 million. Sonic says it believes the acquisition will provide Sonic with "a well-recognized set of consumer software brands; access to long-standing distribution channels; strong product marketing expertise; and key relationships with top-tier retail outlets." Roxio says it plans to focus its business on the digital music market and will change its corporate name to Napster and trade under the ticker "NAPS" on NASDAQ.

The roll-out of DualDisc hybrid DVD/CD media (not to be confused with Dual Layer discs) later this year could yet be hampered by a German company that claims ownership of the technology if talks between the intellectual property firm and major music industry players break down.

BenQ has upgraded its 16x DVD Dual DL burner (DW1620) to include support for DVD disc writing speeds of 16x DVD-R. BenQ launched the DW1620 at the end of June with writing speeds of 16x DVD+R and 8x DVD-R.

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved the use of Video Content Protection System (VCPS), the DVD+RW Alliance's preferred copy-protection system.

The UK's Daily Star newspaper has claimed that Tesco is to introduce trolleys to its supermarkets that come specially equipped with DVD and CD players for children.

Over 1,000 counterfeit DVDs have been seized during an undercover sting by Stockport Trading Standards officials - amid claims the crime could be funding terrorism.

As a result of a price war triggered by Japanese manufacturers such as Pioneer and NEC, OEM quotations for 16x DVD burners have dropped to US$95-100 (£52-£55), and will continue dropping according to Taiwanese OEM manufacturers.

321 Studios whose most noted product was software to copyDVDs has ended operations, the result of three federal court injunctions. "Despite 321 Studios' best efforts to remain in business, injunctions entered against 321 Studios by three U.S. federal courts earlier this year have resulted in 321 Studios no longer being able to continue operating the business," the company said in a statement.

Sony has revealed that its next-generation games console will use the Blu-Ray disc format, which is an evolution of the current DVD system and is designed to hold five times as much data on a similarly sized disc.

Hewlett Packard (HP) announced an alliance with Moser Baer India Ltd (Moser Baer), a leading manufacturer of removable data storage products, to bring HP’s branded Optical storage storage media into India and middle east market.

Exports of Chinese manufactured DVD players have been stalled because of huge patent fees. According to the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products, exports of Chinese manufactured DVD player have suffered a severe decline this year.