Antaeus will have a controlling stake in the joint venture.

"We are seeking more support from publishers and distributors, including those in Hollywood," Zhang said.

Most EVD players will be able to play DVD discs. But buyers of the machines will most likely want to buy EVD formatted films to take advantage of the new technology, Zhang said.

Chinese manufacturers will display more than 50 models of EVD players next Wednesday, with an average selling price of 700 yuan (US$89) per unit.

"That price is roughly the same as the average price of a DVD player, which could spur the up take of EVD players in China," Zhang said.

The EVD Industry Alliance will soon offer a service that lets owners of EVD players copy digital formats of films based on the standard from a special vending machine. Consumers could put the films on their portable hard disks under a "copy-as-you-pay" model and play them on their EVD player.

Film production houses and distributors can share the revenues from charging consumers for copying. An encryption technology could limit play to one EVD player, which would help stop piracy.

Despite the Chinese Government's increasing crackdown, piracy remains a headache for Hollywood film producers.

Zhang said the EVD Industry Alliance will have 800 franchised outlets selling EVD discs by next Wednesday with hopes of raising that number to 1,200 by the year's end. Gome, China's largest consumer electronics retailer, also a member of the EVD Industry Alliance, will open 150 special areas in its shops around the country to sell EVD players.

1

2

(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)