San Francisco—Jun 23, 2005
Dolby Digital Cinema Debuts in Japan with the Release of Star Wars: Episode III—Revenge of the Sith
Dolby Laboratories (NYSE: DLB) announced today the
commercial launch of Dolby® Digital Cinema in Japan with the release of Star
Wars: Episode III—Revenge of the Sith. Installed in numerous Japanese commercial
cinemas, Dolby Digital Cinema was utilized for the movie’s first industry
screening in Japan on June 18 and will be used for the official premiere on July
2, which director George Lucas and the cast will attend.
Building on the successful launch of Dolby Digital Cinema with the release of
Revenge of the Sith in the United States and throughout Europe, Dolby continues
to deploy its digital cinema solution in theatres worldwide. For the movie’s
scheduled debut in Japan, Dolby has installed six Dolby Digital Cinema units in
top cinemas.
“The release of Star Wars: Episode III—Revenge of the Sith has created a new
awareness for digital cinema and the incredible experience it brings to
moviegoers throughout the world,” said Tim Partridge, Senior Vice President and
General Manager, Professional Division, Dolby Laboratories. “We’ve seen an
increase in interest for our solution by exhibitors and consumers alike, and we
are thrilled that Lucasfilm Ltd. selected Dolby Digital Cinema for all their
major screenings and world premieres of Star Wars.”
Since the movie’s US debut, Dolby engineers have traveled with Lucasfilm
throughout the world installing Dolby Digital Cinema for key screenings and
offering their ongoing support and services. As a result, Dolby Digital Cinema
has provided high-quality digital cinema experiences for the latest episode of
the Star Wars saga. Dolby Laboratories anticipates continued interest for
installing Dolby Digital Cinema in theatres throughout the world for future
releases mastered for digital cinema.
Dolby Digital Cinema provides all the elements for digital movie playback and
show management: storing, decrypting, decoding, scheduling, and interfacing to
existing cinema systems, while delivering the quality, reliability, security,
and flexibility necessary for digital cinema. The system has been built to
industry standards as specified by the Digital Cinema Initiative (DCI), a joint
venture of the major studios formed to establish industry specifications for
digital cinema solutions.