PARIS, France and BURBANK, Calif.—Sep 12, 2005
Technicolor Digital Cinema Reaches Industry Milestone With Release of 100th Digital Cinema Title
Leader in Digital Cinema Services and Technologies Prepares and Distributes International Digital Version of Warner Bros. Pictures’ Summer Blockbuster Hit, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Reinforcing its global
leadership in the provision of digital cinema services and technologies to major
film studios and exhibitors, Thomson (Euronext 18453; NYSE: TMS) today announced
that Technicolor Digital Cinema, part of the Services division of Thomson, has
reached an unparalleled industry milestone with the release of its 100th digital
cinema title, the international version of the Warner Bros. Pictures’ summer
blockbuster film, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. With the global
introduction of the digital version of the film, Technicolor Digital Cinema has
now managed over 285,000 digital cinema screenings worldwide to date for eight
studios, more than any other provider in the marketplace today.
The international distribution of the digital cinema version of Charlie and the
Chocolate Factory will begin in Singapore, with a planned rollout to other
markets in North America, Europe, and Asia later this month. In addition to
managing the worldwide physical and electronic distribution of the title,
Technicolor Digital Cinema also assisted Warner Bros. Pictures with content
preparation, release booking and order management with exhibitors, generation of
encryption and compression protocols, and key management for unlocking and
uploading the film to digital projection systems. Charlie and the Chocolate
Factory is being released in a MFX interoperable file format, resulting in
reduced production costs for the studio and ensuring interoperability across the
various digital cinema server platforms.
“The international release of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory marks a
significant achievement for Technicolor Digital Cinema and Thomson, and a major
step forward in the ongoing evolution of digital cinema today,” said Ahmad N.
Ouri, president of Technicolor Digital Cinema. “This milestone serves as yet
another demonstrative proof point of Thomson’s leadership in and commitment to
digital cinema as a viable entertainment vehicle now, and for years to come.”
Technicolor’s investment in digital cinema dates back to 1999, when the company
partnered with The Walt Disney Company, Texas Instruments, and several
exhibitors to demonstrate the concept of digital cinema in 11 countries across
North America, Europe, and Asia. Today, Technicolor manages more than half of
the digital cinema system installations in North America, and its portfolio of
services includes content preparation, compression, encryption, distribution,
and key management for digital cinema titles on a worldwide basis. The division
also installs and services systems in theaters, supports all studio-approved
compression formats, and maintains open standards for the digital delivery of
movies to theaters.
