HomeMovie.Com Turns Spruce DVDVirtuoso into
First Internet Video-to-DVD Transfer Service for
Consumers
July 12, 2000 (San Jose, CA)—HomeMovie.Com has
built a powerful web-based interface for the DVDVirtuoso
authoring system from Spruce Technologies Inc. that
provides consumers and professional videographers with
the world's first affordable Video-to-DVD
transfer service bureau.
The HomeMovie.Com facility, located in Everett,
Wash., features 20 workstations -- 10 Spruce DVDVirtuoso
DVD authoring systems and 10
Spruce MPX-3000 video encoding systems. Spruce
made its application programming interface (API)
available to enable HomeMovie.Com to build the system.
HomeMovie.Com then constructed a web-based video
editing interface that leverages the API to
create command sets for controlling a DVDVirtuoso
system. This interface leverages the Spruce API to
create a package of commands that can be fed directly to
Spruce DVDVirtuoso to automatically create a finished
DVD title.
According to HomeMovie.Com President John Larsen, "We
first looked at Spruce because of the overwhelming
recommendations we heard while doing my research. We
tried a wide variety of 'low-range' systems, but for the
most part it was obvious to me that at that level you
really only get what you pay for -- which wasn't much.
Spruce DVDVirtuoso offered an affordable solution that
had the level of sophistication we needed. The MPX3000
encoders offered excellent image quality. Most
importantly, Spruce was clearly prepared to provide the
level of support we needed to build our business. Coming
from a software background, I know the value of great
support. Once we spoke with the staff at Spruce, we
stopped looking immediately."
HomeMovie.Com is offering two forms of its services,
one geared at the home video transfer
market and the other at professional videographers.
Consumers can take advantage of HomeMovie.Com to
permanently preserve irreplaceable family videos by
transferring them from rapidly degrading
videotape to DVD. Professionals can leverage a
broader set of customization tools to provide full
service DVD production to their customers without having
to invest in additional equipment.
According to Larsen, "Customers actually do most of
the work because our interface gives them virtual
control over the DVDVirtuoso DVD authoring
process. They come to our web site and log in their tape
based on the time codes on their VCR or video
camera. They give editing instructions and can
freely define their chapter points and other DVD-style
information. We provide them with a wide variety of menu
styles to choose from as well. Then they just label
their tape and ship it off to us in the packaging we
provide.''
Once HomeMovie.Com receives the video, the operator
just places it in the appropriate deck and begins the
video transfer process. The Spruce
MPX-3000 used by HomeMovie.Com is the same system being
used by major Hollywood and corporate production
facilities. This enables HomeMovie.Com to apply
sophisticated techniques such as variable bit
rate encoding to ensure customers receive the
highest quality digital video and audio
from their originals. HomeMovie.Com is equipped to
handle a wide array of popular video formats
including VHS, VHS-C, SVHS, 8MM, Hi8, Mini-DV,
DVCAM, DVCPRO, and BetaCamSP. After
encoding, the digitized video
footage is sent to DVDVirtuoso where the customer's
instructions, submitted via the web site, automatically
direct the DVD authoring process.
The key to the HomeMovie.Com system is automation.
The facility is designed to deliver 1000 consumer home
video titles per week by using highly automated
processes that enable HomeMovie.Com to run its facility
with minimal staff -- often just one or two people.
Larsen continued, "In an automated operation like ours,
profitability is based on our systems being able to
perform flawlessly, day in and day out. DVDVirtuoso and
the MPX3000 encoders are the only products we saw in
their class and price range that meet that level of
professional-strength reliability.''
Further information about HomeMovie.Com is available
on the company's web site at http://www.homemovie.com/.
About Spruce Technologies, Inc.
Spruce Technologies develops and markets DVD and Web
DVD authoring software and MPEG encoders
for the corporate, new media, and entertainment markets.
Based in San Jose, Spruce combines the best Silicon
Valley software expertise with extensive DVD, MPEG and
video postproduction knowledge.
Note to Editors: DVDMaestro, DVDStation, DVDConductor,
DVDVirtuoso, Convergence, DVDonCD, RealSync, and
RealView are trademarks of Spruce Technologies, Inc.
Other company and product names are trademarks of their
respective owners and may be registered in certain
jurisdictions.
Contact:
MarComm-On-Call, Inc.
Evan Sirof, 718/225-9225
esirof@concentric.net
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