China's DVD challenge

China has announced a government-funded project to promote an alternative to DVDs and “attack the market share” of the global video format.

The roll-out of the project, known as EVD, or enhanced versatile disc, was timed to coincide with the beginning of what China calls the “golden sales” period – known elsewhere as the Christmas shopping season.

Development of the new, high-definition compression format has been sponsored by China’s State Trade and Economic Commission and its Ministry of Information Industry.