InterVideo Offers WinDVD Add-On for InterActual Interactive DVD Content
Reprinted from a InterVideo press release:
InterVideo, Inc. (NASDAQ: IVII), developer of WinDVD, one of the world’s most popular software solutions for DVD playback on a PC, announced today a license agreement with InterActual Technologies, Inc., developer of the de facto technology standard for viewing dynamic Internet content and enhanced DVD titles on PCs. Under the terms of the agreement, InterVideo will offer InterActual’s DVD technology as an optional add-on pack for its WinDVD software including WinDVD Gold 5, the standard consumer edition; and WinDVD Platinum 5, InterVideo’s high-end version.
With the new add-on pack, users have transparent access to next-generation entertainment experiences that go beyond trailers and outtakes. More than 70 percent of the top 25 DVDs now include InterActual-enhanced features such as the ability to morph your own image into a character of the movie or actively participate in answering integrated trivia questions and games that provide rewards for high scores. Some videos even allow viewers to challenge other players on the Internet.
By integrating InterActual functionality into WinDVD 5, InterVideo delivers a single solution for the finest-quality video and audio playback of DVD-Videos, VCDs, SVCDs, and audio CDs plus seamless navigation of DVDs that include interactive PC content and exclusive online features. No additional software is required and potential software compatibility issues are eliminated. When InterActual-enhanced DVDs are played, the interactive experience plays automatically.
WinDVD 5’s new InterActual add-on pack enables users to enjoy all the features of enhanced DVDs with embedded features such as playback tracks, games, printables and photo galleries. When videos enhanced with web links are played, WinDVD users will have transparent access to interactive content that developers can regularly update such as commentaries, historical backgrounders and online contests. Because access to timely information from all over the world is important for research and educators, access to DVD titles enhanced with links to Internet data will also become increasingly popular for reference and educational titles.
“InterVideo’s seamless integration of InterActual’s technology makes it easier for consumers to enjoy all of the exciting interactive features included on most DVD blockbuster releases from the major motion picture studios,” said Todd Collart, President & CEO of InterActual. “Now these compelling activities are available to PC consumers at the forefront of the WinDVD experience.”
Steve Ro, founder and CEO of InterVideo, explained that while earlier versions of WinDVD were among the first to provide a Web link button for access to interactive data, consumers had to run separate software from InterActual included with the enhanced DVD discs to enjoy the interactive features. “Combined, InterActual and WinDVD redefine the consumer’s DVD viewing experience and provide compelling reasons to make the switch from passive viewing to interactive entertainment that can be easily accessed,” said Ro. “WinDVD 5 is the first PC software DVD player to offer fully integrated these interactive capabilities, and we look forward to maintaining this lead by building on our relationship with InterActual to add many more capabilities in the near future.”
As part of InterVideo’s commitment to make watching a video on a PC or laptop more entertaining, InterVideo has also added its new Smart Stretch technology to WinDVD Platinum 5. With Smart Stretch, users can customize their viewing image with intelligent compensation for the differences in displays and aspect ratios, i.e., when viewing 4:3 content on 16:9 or vice versa. InterVideo’s non-linear technology minimizes the distortion by only stretching the edges of the video and maintaining the original content in the center portion of the image.
In addition to the new InterActual add-on option, InterVideo also offers several other add-on packs that enable WinDVD 5 users to customize their playback capabilities. The Audio Booster Pack enhances the listening experience by delivering surround sound and increased user control. The Mobile Technology Pack enables extended battery life when playing DVDs on Intel processor based-notebooks.
With the introduction of its recently announced DVD-Audio Pack, InterVideo adds navigation controls and playback capabilities for the latest high-definition standard in music listening–DVD-Audio. Users can navigate the audio content, skip tracks, play music, or access the special audio disc menus to view slide shows, pictures, lyrics and bonus sessions with ease.
Pricing, Availability
InterVideo’s new InterActual add-on packs for WinDVD Gold 5 and WinDVD Platinum 5 are available at InterVideo’s web site, www.intervideo.com for a suggested list price of $19.95.
InterVideo markets WinDVD to consumers and hardware OEMs, including manufacturers of PCs, video cards, camcorders, disk drives and consumer electronics products. It can be used with PC and laptop computers running Windows 98/2000/Me/XP. The suggested list prices for WinDVD Gold 5 and WinDVD Platinum 5 are $49.95 and $69.95 respectively.
InterVideo’s DVD-Audio Pack for enabling DVD-Audio playback and navigation using WinDVD 5 is available for a suggested list price of $39.95. InterVideo also offers the Audio Booster Pack for enhanced audio functionality for WinDVD 5 for $12.95 and the Mobile Technology Pack for extended battery life for $19.95.