News

Thomson Innovations Bring Ultra-Thin HDTV to Market, Expand Capacity of Portable Audio/Video Products, and Offer New Digital Entertainment Solutions for Retailers (16/1/2004)

RCA Scenium Profiles High-Definition Television Responds to Consumer Demand for Thinner, Brighter, Integrated HDTV; Enhanced Content Security Insures Digital Delivery for Audio and Video

Responding to retailer and consumer demand for advanced digital entertainment devices that pack more functionality in a smaller space, Thomson (Euronext Paris: 18453)(NYSE:TMS), worldwide leader in end-to-end technology, equipment, and service solutions for the broadcast, telecommunications, and entertainment industries, today announced a series of new home entertainment products that will bring innovations from its global laboratories to retail store shelves in 2004.

With penetration of HDTV products doubling in the U.S. market in 2003 and sales expected to exceed five million units this year, Thomson is aggressively introducing a new line of HDTV solutions aimed at all types of consumers -- those who want the latest flat and thin technology, owners of HDTV Monitors ready for latest-generation digital satellite set-top receivers, and home theatre enthusiasts who are building their digital home theatre systems one step at a time.

Profiles: High-Definition and Super-Slim

At the 2004 International Consumer Electronics Show, Thomson today unveiled the 6.85" thin Profiles HDTV -- the new RCA Scenium ultra-thin Digital Cable Ready integrated rear-projection DLP(TM) HDTV Sets featuring slim cabinets less than seven inches deep and so light in weight they can be easily mounted on a wall. The sleek new designs in HDTV Sets will be available in 50-inch and 61-inch models later in 2004 (and in a stunning 70-inch mural-sized screen in 2005) and feature integrated ATSC tuner/decoder and Digital Cable Ready circuitry designed to capture the realism of HDTV broadcasts aired by terrestrial broadcasters and carried by cable operators to consumers.

Designed and integrated by Thomson, the sleek RCA Scenium Profiles HDTV Sets are equipped with the leading-edge DLP microdisplay from Texas Instruments and utilize a newly developed InFocus Light Engine. The exclusive Thomson electromechanical design of Profiles HDTV will bring consumers an outstanding ultra-thin design and stunning lifelike pictures on giant projection screens that make digital entertainment -- and not the television -- the centerpiece of a high-definition home theatre.

"Thomson continues to raise the bar for excellence in home entertainment featuring cutting-edge performance for fully integrated RCA Scenium DLP HDTV Sets that can be mounted on a wall, rivaling the quality and convenience of plasma and LCD models," said Mike O'Hara, Executive Vice President of Worldwide Sales & Marketing for Thomson's consumer products division. "Our product development team is responding to consumer demand for slimmer, more attractive home theatre systems. Thomson's Profiles HDTV presents consumers with a stable and mature technology choice for flat panel projection displays that serve as the centerpiece of an advanced home theatre system."

The Profiles HDTV Sets are part of an expanded line of more than a dozen new RCA and RCA Scenium Digital Cable Ready HDTV Sets that will help Thomson meet the U.S. government mandate for integrated tuning/decoding of terrestrially-broadcast digital TV signals. The new integrated ATSC and Digital Cable Ready models will be offered later this year in a broad choice of screen sizes ranging from widescreen 40-inch Sets up to 61-inch ultra-thin Profiles HDTV models. The entire range of Thomson's 2004 HDTV products includes rear projection DLP (Digital Light Processing) and CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) rear projection HDTV Sets and HDTV Monitors as well as direct-view HDTV Monitors and flat-panel LCD HDTV Monitors and Plasma HDTV Displays.

Also new for reception of HDTV broadcasts and satellite transmissions is the RCA DTC210, an advanced high-definition DIRECTV set-top receiver that will be available in February at a suggested retail price of $599. The new RCA DTC210 offers consumers the ideal combination of features and connectivity for the utmost in high definition enjoyment. The multi-format receiver delivers a stunning high-definition picture from both DIRECTV and over-the-air broadcasts, includes both conventional and secure digital connections, and offers many of the features that DIRECTV customers are accustomed to such as advanced program guide and one button record.

Thomson Enhances Security of Digital Content

Thomson was the first consumer electronics manufacturer to add secure digital interfaces to its line of HDTV Monitors and HDTV Sets in 2002, with all current HDTV Monitors now utilizing DVI-HDTV with HDCP copy protection and HDTV Sets offering DVI-HDTV with HDCP as well as twin DTVLink two-way 1394 connections protected with DTCP copy protection. In 2004, Thomson will add the High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) with HDCP copy protection to its most advanced products, an interface that is backwards-compatible with DVI-HDTV digital video connections on current set-top receivers.

Thomson's new 2004 Digital Cable Ready HDTV Sets are also designed to detect the Broadcast Flag, the FCC-endorsed digital TV broadcast content protection technology that is designed to prevent the illicit flow of HDTV content to the Internet for redistribution.

With its new line of 2004 mp3 players, Thomson plans to enable support for secure Windows Media downloads and enable consumers to easily purchase secure digital content from services such as MusicMatch and other services. The result will be more fully-functional products that both take advantage of compressed audio and insure a secure method for consumers to pay for the audio entertainment.

Slim and Stylish RCA mp3 Audio

Just weeks after the RCA LYRA Audio/Video Jukebox was named one of the top tech innovations of 2003, Thomson expands its leadership role in digital audio with the introduction of an expanded RCA LYRA mp3 product line. Joining the RCA LYRA family are five new portable models including new 40 and 20GB jukebox players with a 1.8-inch hard disc drive, a sleekly designed pocket-sized Micro Jukebox and two colorful flash-based personal digital mp3 players, all of which include FM tuner and FM record capabilities and advanced sorting options.

The RCA LYRA product line covers all bases -- from flash memory to hard-disc storage and the award-winning RCA LYRA Audio/Video Jukebox with MPEG4 in-device encoding and video playback.

Accessories for the Digital Home

As the industry leader in accessory products designed to connect digital devices in the home, Thomson is offering a wide range of new accessories designed to enhance consumers' home entertainment and computing systems. The offerings, which include the first accessory products from the recently acquired Recoton portfolio, fall under eight powerful brand names: RCA, Recoton, Acoustic Research, Jensen, Ambico, Discwasher, Advent and Spikemaster. The assortment of products ranges from remote controls, computing, reception, connectivity and media imaging to product enhancement accessories. The new products designed to simplify and improve the television, video, audio and computing experience include a RCA RF Universal Remote Control, an innovative RCA antenna, newly designed Personal Stereo Headphones and Speakers, DVD storage systems, hookup options, surge protectors and a full line of blank DVD media. Thomson is also launching a line of branded "RCA PC Stuff" computer peripherals.

Thomson's expansion in accessory offerings bolsters its efforts to globalize the company's Consumer Solutions business, which also sells accessories under the THOMSON brand throughout Europe.

"We will continue to work closely with our retail customers to provide enhanced services that assist them in merchandising our eight leading accessories brands and new product line. Through several key categories including mp3 and computer accessories, we will help retailers create new profit centers in the coming year and provide consumers with a 'one stop shopping' experience," said O'Hara.

New RCA Telephone Line Introduced To Meet Home Office Needs

Thomson will break new ground in 2004 with the launch of the ATLINKS division's first line of RCA-branded telephone products, designed especially for the growing small office/home office (SOHO) marketplace. The RCA Executive Series consists of four new telephone models including a modern-styled silver and black Conference Phone, and three innovative multi-line Speakerphones. ATLINKS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Thomson, is the market leader in home telephone products in the United States with GE-brand telephones. The first models in the RCA Executive Series will be available in February, with additional models in the spring. As this new line of telephones expands in the second half of 2004, enhanced features and capabilities will be added. The RCA Executive Series Telephones will be distributed through nationally recognized office superstore retailers.

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