Last week, Faroudja's parent company, Sage, announced that it has launched a "video quality certification program" that authorizes the use of the Faroudja "Flying P" logo and trademark to certified licensees for product placement, literature, and packaging.

We know that DVD is hot, but few could have predicted that the video format would become the fastest growing in the history of consumer electronics. The latest statistics reveal that, in 2001, consumer spending on DVD purchases and rental combined were $6 billion, 2.4 times more than the previous year. This represents an increase that put DVD purchases ahead of VHS purchases for the first time, despite an installed player base of 25 million DVD households versus a VCR installed player base of 96 million households.

If you've been steadfastly waiting for the perfect reason to buy a new HDTV set, here it is: NBC and HDNet announced last week they will broadcast selected events at the upcoming 2002 Olympic Winter Games from Salt Lake City in 1080i high definition video with Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround audio.

A new report released by analyst and consulting company Ovum suggests that, as digital television opens new frontiers, competition between telecommunications giants and the TV industry will increase rapidly. Ovum also predicts that digital television connections will grow from 62 million in 2001 to 350 million in 2006, creating numerous opportunities for companies throughout the new media sector.