Pioneer Provides Peek At Its FutureBy Steve Smith

Pioneer Electronics USA President/CEO T. Asano provided a review of the present and a peek at the future, discussing a proposed home networking system, called Digital Network Entertainment (DNE), at a recent press briefing in New York City.During the breakfast meeting with the press, the second of its type since Asano became president in January 1998, he outlined the following plans for DNE, which is scheduled to be previewed during Comdex this fall and CES during January. Asano described DNE as ""our idea of a go-anywhere, use-anytime network of information and entertainment using an advanced user interface.""The major building blocks for DNE will be digital TV, plasma technology, set-top boxes, DVD audio and DVD-RW, using an IEEE 1394 connection, he said, adding that DNE should eventually have storage media that could include a ""hard disk drive, flash memory or optical disks.""The proposed network, which may be available by 2002, might be centered on a ""digital media organizer"" featuring a video pad that could control A/V components, video games, MP3 devices and Internet access. Asano noted that wireless control of such a network would be desirable, and he added, ""wireless should be a very hot technology in the next couple of years.""In the realm of home networking, a company's expertise in a specific technology skews how a network is designed, he explained: ""Telecommunications companies think it should be phone-based; PCs think database; white-goods firms think appliances will be dominant; and security companies think security. We're the same. We are an audio/video company, so we think a network should be entertainment-based.""However, the Pioneer CEO bluntly added, ""We can't develop everything on our own,"" and Pioneer is about to reach partnership agreements ""with some wireless companies in the U.S. and Japan."" The company is also looking at developing hard disk storage, on its own, or with either TiVo or Replay Network.Source: TWICE