Just as Samsung started shipping its long-anticipated BD-UP5000 combo Blu-ray/HD DVD player, the company announced that the product will be discontinued as of May or June of this year, stressing that this time frame is subject to change. Retailers will be allowed to sell their existing inventory, but production will cease. A new model is scheduled to be released sometime in the second half of 2008, but no other details were revealed. Meanwhile, the company will continue to support the BD-UP5000 with firmware updates.

Greetings to all UAV readers! As you may have heard, there have been some changes around this digital watering hole. Shane Buettner has moved over to head Home Theater magazine and its associated website, leaving some mighty big shoes to fill here at UAV, a challenge I happily accept.

On August 4, 2005, Infinity invited a number of journalists to their home at the Harman International corporate campus in Northridge, California, for a tour of the facilities and a sneak peek at their latest speaker line, dubbed Cascade. Why are you only hearing about it now? Because Infinity embargoed the information until August 25.

Lions Gate Home Entertainment (LGHE), a division of Lions Gate Entertainment, announced last Wednesday that it will release content on the Blu-ray Disc format. As part of its cooperation with the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), LGHE will begin releasing new films, TV programming, and other titles from the company's vast library when Blu-ray hardware launches in North America.