Surge In DVD Sales Prompts New Models, Selection Of Recordable DVD Format For Thomson Multimedia

DVD players, the consumer electronics industry's fastest growing product category, are expected to pump up the volume even more in the year 2000, and the RCA brand from Thomson Multimedia (NYSE: TMS) is poised to introduce an all-new line of heavily featured models.According to the latest industry statistics, 1999 unit sales of DVD-Video players to dealers surged nearly 300 percent over the previous year, and some forecasters are predicting a doubling of player shipments for the new year.Anticipating the near-unprecedented consumer demand, Thomson's RCA brand has three new DVD models scheduled for debut early in the second quarter of 2000, each with powerful new convenience features. The three models are the RC5215P, the RC5225P, and the RC5227P (suggested retail prices to be announced).""When consumers take one of these new RCA DVD players home, they'll get more than great digital quality pictures and amazing Dolby Digital Surround Sound,"" said Thomson's Larry McKinney, Vice President - DVD Product Management Worldwide. ""They'll also get all the high-end DVD features that make home movie viewing special - features like language options, extra footage and scene navigation, multiple aspect ratios, and sophisticated programming functions.""DVD players, set-top devices that easily connect to the family TV to display digital-quality movies from a small five-inch disc, were introduced only three years ago and have quickly moved to a household penetration of 4.5 million U.S. households. While growth of the category has been remarkable, new capabilities such as recordable discs and DVD Audio hold the promise of even greater popularity for the players in coming years.""The ability to record video images and sound on DVD discs is expected to ignite another round of growth for these players,"" said Thomson's Enrique Rodriguez, Vice President - Multimedia Products Worldwide. ""As a result, we plan to introduce a recordable disc player that is targeted for release late in 2000. The recordable device will utilize the 'Plus RW' format which offers maximum compatibility with current DVD players.""During 1999, Thomson experienced a near-400 percent unit sales increase in RCA, PROSCAN, and GE brand DVD players to establish a leading market share position in the popular product category.""With the new convenience features of our three RCA players becoming available early in the year, followed by two newly-designed PROSCAN models later in 2000 and the expectation of a recordable player, plus our major investment in the DVD category, we are bullish on our prospects for maintaining a DVD industry leadership role in the new year,"" said McKinney.About Thomson MultimediaWith sales over $6 billion in 1998 and 48,000 employees in over 30 countries, Thomson Multimedia (NYSE: TMS) is the fourth largest global supplier of consumer electronics products. The group has four main activities: Displays and Components, Consumer Products, New Media Services, Patents and Licensing. Within its activities Thomson Multimedia develops, manufactures and sells television displays and components, consumer products such as televisions, VCRs, camcorders, audio and communications products, digital decoders, DVD players and professional video equipment.

Thomson Multimedia is the parent company of the U.S.-based Thomson Consumer Electronics, Inc. Visit Thomson Multimedia on the Web: http://www.thomson-multimedia.com.