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SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 4, 2000-- Ligos Technology, the leading developer of real-time MPEG software encoding solutions, announced today a major breakthrough with the release of the first software-based timeshifting technology for video recording.
Until now, timeshifting has been limited to applications requiring hardware support.
As the latest feature of GoMotion(TM), the only real-time, software MPEG-2 codec, Ligos Technology is leading the industry with this software solution for digital video recording on a desktop PC. Timeshifting enables viewers to pause, rewind and playback video, all while recording the entire program in the background.
Video is 7recorded as an MPEG-2 file on the system hard drive, and simultaneous playback can be initiated at any point within the same file. The efficiency of GoMotion's revolutionary LightSpeed(TM) motion estimation algorithm significantly reduces the amount of CPU resources associated with video compression.
This makes timeshifting without the need for costly compression hardware a reality on today's personal computer.
``This breakthrough in software technology completely negates what industry pundits have long stated -- that timeshifting could only occur in an application with hardware support,'' says Peter Forman, president and chief executive officer of Ligos Technology. ``Our timeshift-capable software codec provides the same capabilities as found in popular consumer electronic devices like TiVo and ReplayTV, but is less expensive and easier for PC manufacturers to integrate than a hardware codec. This means faster time-to-market and greater profits for our customers.''
GoMotion-enabled timeshifting was demonstrated for the first time at Comdex `99. Targeted at the OEM market and provided as a software development kit (SDK), the GoMotion SDK is available for licensing. The timeshifting feature gives licensing partners the ability to turn Pentium III-based PCs into an alternative to set-top box personal TVs.
With the latest generation of GoMotion-enabled video editing applications, users can do even more with the video once it's been recorded.
``This technology not only provides high-quality video recording and playback in real-time, but these are the only fully compliant ISO MPEG-2 files that can be easily used in a consumer editing application,'' says Ricky Cowart, vice president of engineering for Ligos Technology. ``This means users can record and later edit the programs they're watching; archive the finished video to the hard disk, CD-R, or DVD-RAM; and playback in any system with an MPEG-2 player. It opens up a whole new way that the consumer will work with digital video, beyond the capabilities provided by set-top personal recording devices.''
As the dominant player in software-based MPEG-2 technology, Ligos continues to provide professional-level solutions for video compression, digital video recording, editing and playback for the consumer market.
Current leaders in the industry using Ligos' MPEG technology include: ATI, Avid, 3dfx, Cinax, Compaq, CSK Research Institute, Dazzle Multimedia, Gateway, Hauppauge, Matrox, MGI and Ulead.
About Ligos Technology
Headquartered in San Francisco, Ligos Technology is the leading worldwide provider of real-time software-only MPEG encoding and decoding technology. Ligos is an award-winning developer of multimedia software, dedicated to delivering the highest quality MPEG solutions to enable the future of digital video on the desktop and beyond.
Ligos is a subsidiary of Integrated Data Systems of Savannah, GA., developers of the first software multimedia codec for standard PC's. For more information on Ligos Technology, MPEG products or licensing, visit the company web site at http://www.ligos.com or call toll-free 888/464-8765.
GoMotion(TM) and LightSpeed(TM) are trademarks of Ligos Corporation. All other trademarks or registered trademarks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
For Ligos Technology
Leslie Powers, 415/453-4045
leslie@medialinkgroup.com
or
Ligos Technology
Susan Stearman, 415/249-0100 x104
sstearman@ligos.com