Tokyo, October 4, 2006 - Memory-Tech Corporation ("Memory-Tech") and Microsoft Corporation ("Microsoft") today announced their agreement on technical collaboration to optimize high-definition (HD) quality for animated contents using VC-1, video compression technology for next-generation DVD standard including HD DVD.

Memory-Tech, Japan's largest optical disc manufacturer and a leader in HD DVD disc manufacturing, has exercised global leadership in developing standards for the DVD Forum as well as innovating techniques to mass-produce optical discs. Microsoft, on the other hand, has been promoting VC-1, the latest SMPTE video compression standard based on Windows MediaR Technology that streams music and video over a network. According to Microsoft's survey data, the VC-1 technology is currently used to manufacture 98.7% of HD DVD movie titles released by the U.S. film companies. The animated contents have had a noise problem created during the process of digital video compression. The objective of this technical collaboration is to solve this problem to optimize HD quality of the Japanese animation contents, promoting its market expansion domestically and globally.
It has been agreed that Memory-Tech is to send their engineers to Microsoft's headquarters in the U.S. beginning in October 2006 for a collaborative research on the optimization of picture quality for animated contents using VC-1; and that Microsoft is to set up a private office for Memory-Tech in the headquarters and designate the engineering department to work directly with Memory-Tech on the collaborative research.
"I would like to congratulate this agreement between Memory-Tech and Microsoft on the technical collaboration. There is a high demand for high-definition pictures and the latest technology to deliver information. The development of cutting-edge technology like VC-1 to be used for the next-generation DVD is a welcoming factor to the future growth of the Japanese animation industry," said Hidenori Oyama, director of Toei Animation Co., Ltd.

About VC-1
VC-1 is a video codec specification developed by Microsoft that has been standardized by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) and implemented as Windows Media Video 9 Advanced Profile. VC-1 content is transport-independent and container-independent, which allows delivery over MPEG-2 and real-time transfer protocol (RTF) systems as well as advanced systems format (ASF). This enables device manufacturers and contents services to create interoperable solutions. VC-1 also ensures improved high-definition resolution and adoptability in a broad range of industries. It can be used for different networks, consumer electronics devices, and professional video equipments.

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