| Updated
May 18, 2009
DVD
Forum FAQ
GENERAL
BACKGROUND
DVD
FORUM ACTIVITIES
FORMATS/LOGOS
LICENSING
/ REGION CODES
GENERAL
BACKGROUND
When was the DVD Forum founded?
The DVD Forum commenced on August 7, 1997.
What is the Forum's purpose?
The Forum is a voluntary association of hardware manufacturers,
software firms and other users of digital versatile disc (DVD)
formats. The Forum has two major purposes:
1. To establish a single format for each DVD application product,
including revisions, improvements and enhancements for the benefit
of consumers and users
2. To promote broad acceptance of DVD products on a worldwide
basis, including the entertainment, consumer electronics and
IT industries as well as the general public.
How many members does it have?
About 220 companies participate in the DVD Forum.
[http://www.dvdforum.org/about-memberlist.htm]
The geographic distribution of our members, as of January 2007,
was as follows:
37% Japanese, 27% American, 24% Asian, and 12% European.
What are the qualifications for membership?
Membership in the Forum is open to any corporation or organization
which is, or will be, engaged in research, development and/or
manufacture of any DVD product, and any software firm or other
users of DVD products that are interested in developing and
improving the DVD formats.
There are two classifications of membership: Principal and Associate.
What's the difference between a Principal Member
and an Associate Member?
Principal members are entities deemed to be making a significant
contribution to the development, promotion or improvement of
the DVD formats and who pay the required membership fee.
Principal members are entitled to participate in format-making
activities in Working Groups, and to accept technical information
developed through format-making activities, providing they enter
into a non-disclosure agreement to protect the confidentiality
of technical information disclosed in the Working Groups.
Associate members are entitled to access Working Group activity
reports which shall be issued from time to time.
What are the membership fees?
The annual fee for Principal members is Yen 1 million (approximately
$9,500 at the yen-dollar exchange rate as of Oct. 1, 2000).
The annual fee for Associate members is Yen 300,000 (approximately
$2,850 at the same rate).
Members who join after June 30 are entitled to reduction of
the annual fee for that year by one-half.
DVD FORUM ACTIVITIES
How many Working Groups are there?
The Forum has Working Groups on the following themes:
WG-P: Physical Format & Test Specifications
WG-L: Logical Format
WG-A: Application Format & Test Specifications
WG-C: Content Protection
WG-V: Verification
Who is eligible to join a Working Group?
Each Working Group is open to any Principal member. Participants
of WGs except WG9 are requested to enter into a non-disclosure
agreement to protect the confidentiality of technical information
disclosed within a Working Group.
FORMATS/LOGOS
How can we purchase a format book?
Information can be found at this site: www.dvdfllc.co.jp
What qualifications are necessary to use the
DVD Forum logo?
Information can be found at this site: www.dvdfllc.co.jp
LICENSING / REGION CODES
How can we get information about patent licenses
and region codes?
Please contact the appropriate licensor directly.
How can we apply for a CSS license?
Information can be found at this site: www.dvdcca.org
THE FUTURE OF DVD
What new DVD formats are in the pipeline?
Among formats now under development are DVD Stream Recording
and DVD Audio Recording. For more Information, see: DVD Book Construction (DVD FLLC's page)
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