New digital video and audio standard to arrive next year

Hitachi and Sony are amongst eight Japanese and European consumer electronics manufacturers that are teaming up to create a digital entertainment standard, to be released next year.

Philips, Sharp, Matsushita, Toshiba, Grundig and Thomson Multimedia in France are also working on the home audio-video interoperability standard, dubbed HAVi.

The HAVi standard will enable consumers to control video and audio equipment through a computer or other network device. The standard will pave the way for compatible home-networked devices.

Whilst making it easier for software companies to sell compatible software, the standard will make hardware much more appealing to consumers.