e.Digital Corporation (fka EDIG)

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Zenith Digital Expected to Dominate CES; Company Focuses on HDTV Leadership [zenith now a part of LG]
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Reflecting the industry's most aggressive approach to digital television (DTV), Zenith Electronics Corporation this week will unveil its 2002 product line -- comprising more than 75 percent digital products, including a broadened family of plasma and LCD screens and an attractively priced series of integrated direct-view flat-screen HDTV models designed to help accelerate the DTV transition.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19981120/CGF017 )
Building on its 2001 transformation into a digital leader, Zenith is making a bold digital statement at the 2002 Consumer Electronics Show, which begins here Tuesday, with a comprehensive family of digital television products, from big to small, flat to thin.

Zenith's CES booth (2027) is driving home its 2002 marketing theme, ``Digitize the Experience,'' showcasing the company's new widescreen plasma display panels (PDPs), expanded line-up of liquid crystal display (LCD) digital TV monitors, and products intended to make HDTV more widely available to American consumers, according to Ken Lee, Zenith senior vice president, sales & marketing.

``The new products reflect the powerful combination of Zenith's long-time leadership in HDTV and the display and digital technologies of our parent company, LG Electronics,'' he said on the eve of the Consumer Electronics Show. (MORE)

Lee highlighted Zenith's 2002 digital product line, which doubles the number of PDPs, adding new 50- and 42-inch widescreen models to its popular 60- and 40-inch hang-on-the-wall displays. In LCD TVs, Zenith is significantly expanding its line to include a new widescreen 30-inch HDTV monitor as well as new 10-,- 15- and 20-inch digital TV monitor models. A dozen rear-projection HDTVs and HDTV monitors include two new LCD rear-projection sets for 2002: 60- and 52-inch widescreen HDTV displays.

To help drive the digital TV transition, Zenith is introducing a series of flat-screen CRT integrated HDTVs. The 34-inch 16:9 widescreen model and the 36- and 32-inch 4:3 models incorporate next-generation VSB reception capability and are priced in about the same range as comparably sized HDTV monitors (without DTV tuners). Zenith, which earned Emmy awards for its flat CRT and HDTV technologies, also is offering six direct-view HDTV monitors in the 36-, 32- and 27-inch screen sizes.

``As a long-time leader in HDTV technologies, Zenith is gratified to see the current DTV momentum,'' Lee said. ``With more and more digital TV stations on the air, growing amounts of programming and increasing sales of DTV products, the stage is set for 2002 to be a critical year in the U.S. DTV transition.

``For DTV to truly be successful, however, all industries need to do their part. Broadcasters need to provide more compelling HDTV content to help drive the transition. The cable industry should agree to carry broadcasters' HDTV programs,'' said Lee.

``As manufacturers,'' he added, ``our responsibility to the digital broadcasting transition is to make HDTV technology more widely available, simple to use and affordable. To achieve this goal, Zenith is committed to building ATSC reception into more TV sets, like our new series of direct0view HDTVs, and we hope others will follow our lead. In the end, the big winner will be the consumer.''

Rounding out the Zenith digital product line -- all told, more than 50 models -- are six front-projection HDTV displays (three CRT-based and three LCD-based projectors), an expanded line of DVD players (including progressive scan models with DVD Audio and a combination DVD-VCR), MP3 players and digital HDTV set-top boxes (including Zenith's award-winning ATSC/DirecTV digital receiver).

Zenith Electronics Corporation, founded in 1918, is a leader in digital television technologies and inventor of the U.S. digital HDTV transmission system adopted by the FCC. Zenith's Emmy award winning technologies include digital HDTV, flat-screen CRTs, stereo television and TV remote controls. For 2002, Zenith is capitalizing on its digital HDTV leadership and on the extensive technologies and resources of its parent company, LG Electronics Inc. (LGE). (Zenith merged with LGE. in November 1999.) Zenith's corporate headquarters are in Lincolnshire, Ill. Visit us on the World Wide Web at www.zenith.com .

SOURCE: Zenith Eletronics Corporation