HDTV-Reviews.co.uk

Friday, 21 July, 2006

HDMI reduces HDTV licensing fees

HDMI Licensing LLC, the US based firm responsible for licensing High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) specification, announced in Beijing that it has reduced its annual licensing fee to $10,000 from $15,000.

The fee reduction will apply to HDMI annual fee payments that come due after 1 November, 2006.

HDMI is a connector that transfers video, audio, data, and control signals between a HDTV and other electronic devices such as DVD players, video game players, home theatre receivers, and cable or satellite tuners.

Silicon Image Inc, which developed the HDMI technology and is the parent of HDMI Licensing, also announced a new agreement with the China Video Industry Association (CVIA) in which the CVIA and Silicon Image will work together to develop HDMI technology.

The two bodies will jointly promote HDMI adoption among domestic Chinese electronics manufacturers, co-develop new HDMI-related technology and collaborate on establishing testing and interoperability certification labs, Silicon Image said in a statement.

“Under this agreement, China’s companies will not only embrace the global HDMI standard but will partner with Silicon Image to participate in future technology development for HDMI,” said CVIA vice-secretary general Hao Yabin.

Meanwhile, Silicon Image will lend support to the China Digital Interface Industry Alliance (CDIA), an industry alliance consisting of major Chinese electronics manufacturers.

CDIA will promote the use of HDMI in consumer electronic products, communication among manufacturers in China and abroad, and strengthen coordination between hardware manufacturers and content providers, the statement said.

China manufactured 82m televisions and 140m DVD or VCD players in 2005, according to the CVIA.

Sales of plasma and LCD TVs are forecast to grow 105% this year to $5.5bn, and are estimated to reach $10.5bn in 2008, according to data provided by IDC.