Ann Arbor, MI Ð Interactive compact discs with video, sound, and graphics may one day be produced on desktop computers running NeXTSTEP as the result of a new strategic alliance between Imagine Multimedia and Philips Consumer Electronics B.V.
The partners will work together to develop a graphical solution for the creation of CD-I (Compact Disc-Interactive) discs that can be played on any television set with CD-I hardware available from Philips and third parties.
CD-I is a proposed standard for the delivery of interactive media. It has been endorsed by leading consumer-electronics companies including Philips, Sony, and Matsushita.
But CD-I has had trouble penetrating the marketplace, in part due to the difficulty of developing titles for the medium. Philips claims there are approximately 100 CD-I titles available, but analysts say this figure is inflated. "The whole category has been really slow to develop," said William Coggshall, an analyst with Pacific Media Associates of Mountain View, California. "A lot of titles have been announced that have yet to show up on the shelves."
Imagine's Callisto technology is expected to accelerate the process by making it easier for developers to create the point-and-click interface that characterizes CD-I. According to Imagine COO Ken Slayton, scripting languages generally require several pages of code to define a single hot-spot; all it will take now is dragging an icon to the screen.
Slayton said the goal was to create the "PageMaker of interactive media publishing," so that authors can concentrate on content instead of worrying about low-level details. Callisto will generate playback files with CD-I compatiblity.
"We wanted a desktop-creation facility for multimedia presentations that was intuitive to use and yet internally powerful enough to handle the huge processing requirements transparently, without interfering with the creative process," said Alty Van Luijt, business unit manager for Philips' CD-I authoring tools division.
Philips is not alone in its attempts to define an interactive media standard. The crowded field includes Tandy's VIS, Commodore's CDTV, Apple's Sweet Pea, and 3DO. Imagine has plans to adapt its software to whatever standard emerges, but the company will be concentrating on CD-I in the short term.
Imagine can be reached at 313/ 930-7777.