The editorial received the following e-mail from America:
-VDOnet to Supply Cutting-Edge Technology for Historic Internet 'First'-
LOS ANGELES - Continuing its leadership role in bridging the past and future in the moving image arts, the American Film Institute (AFI) today announced groundbreaking plans to begin presenting classic Hollywood movies on the World Wide Web. The historic announcement marks the first time early classic films will be presented in their entirety to a worldwide audience over the Internet. AFI will present the movies on the new "AFI OnLine Cinema," part of the award-winning AFI Web site, using cutting-edge technology that eliminates time-consuming downloading delays.
AFI will launch AFI OnLine Cinema on January 22 at 7:00 p.m. PST with the Internet premiere of the Charlie Chaplin classic THE RINK (1916). The Chaplin film will be presented through the month of January, after which AFI OnLine Cinema will begin featuring a continuing program of different classic Hollywood movies. The second feature, scheduled to run in February, is Buster Keaton's THE BOAT (1921). AFI OnLine Cinema will be located at http://www.afionline.org/cinema/.
"This is watershed moment in the continuing effort to bring entertainment to a worldwide audience over the Internet," said Dan Harries, AFI Director, Online Media. "For the first time in the history of the World Wide Web, anyone, anywhere across the globe will be able to log on and watch a classic Hollywood movie in its entirety, on-demand and complete with sound.
As the Internet continues to dramatically change the way the world communicates, does business and is entertained, we believe the launch of the AFI OnLine Cinema marks a major contribution to the expansion of this still brand-new medium.
The creation of AFI OnLine Cinema underscores AFI's core mission to advance and preserve the art of the moving image in all its forms to a global audience.
Through its renowned hands-on training programs and its digital media salons where AFI exhibits the most significant examples of the latest achievements in new media, AFI has stayed ahead of the curve in identifying and understanding new technologies impacting today's moving image artists and the general public.
AFI OnLine Cinema will use sophisticated new technology developed by VDOnet that will enable viewers to watch the film without going through time-consuming downloading delays. VDOnet's new technology enables virtually anyone on the Internet to view video in real time, a feat not possible before the company's technology was developed. The Internet is a complex web of very narrow pipes and any video running through them must be compressed to a very small size and can easily lose data, resulting in loss of quality. VDOnet has solved the problems posed by bringing video to the Internet through a sophisticated series of technologies that adjust automatically to the available bandwidth and protect the integrity of the video as it is running through the pipe.
In 1995, AFI created the popular AFI OnLine on the Internet's World Wide Web to provide global access to AFI's rich resources in film, television and new media. Located at http://www.afionline.org/, AFI OnLine provides an international authority source for all aspects of the moving image arts, a one-stop guide for anyone interested in this art form. One of the most valuable assets on the AFI Web site is CineMedia, the Internet's largest film and media directory with links to more than 10,000 sites worldwide.
THE RINK is presented in cooperation with Film Preservation Associates, Kino On Video and Michael Mortilla.
VDOnet Corp., based in Palo Alto, Calif., has developed and markets technology and products enabling Internet video broadcasting (VDOLive) and video telephony (VDOPhone) on the Internet and over regular telephone lines and private networks. Today, VDOLive is being used by hundreds of companies as well as CBS News, PBS, Preview Media, corporate intranet users and many others. VDOnet was founded in 1995 and today has offices in the United States, Israel and Japan. VDOnet's URL is http://www.vdo.net/.
The American Film Institute is dedicated to advancing and preserving the art of film, television and other forms of the moving image. AFI's programs promote innovation and excellence through teaching, presenting, preserving and redefining this art form.
Contact: Seth Oster, Communications Director
213/856-7667 / soster@afionline.org
