The Fraunhofer Institute, credited with the development of the seminal MP3 coding algorithms, was showing off their new MPEG Surround format on the show floor at CES.

MPEG Surround allows for multi-channel audio to be compressed into a stereo stream that is fully backwards compatible with existing receivers. The encoding process creates a stereo downmix of the a 5.1 or 7.2 source that includes a metadata stream that describes to the decoder how to fold back out the surround channels. This results in a very low bit-rate representation of high quality, multi-channel signals perfect for Internet broadcasting. They played several demos that sounded as good as one can expect on the show floor and also had a prototype MPEG Surround iPod Dock with an optical output.

Looks promising for the future of surround audio for Web distribution.

The Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA), an organization of over 240 CE companies created to develop an interoperability framework for consumer electronics devices, parked a DLNA-enabled connected home out in front of the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The home demonstrated how to share and access digital media easily across a variety of wired and wireless technologies, such as MoCA, Wi-Fi and Ethernet, and showed streaming content between CE devices, mobile handsets, STBs and PCs.

Over 300 new DLNA compliant products were announced at the show.  Some of the biggest news is that any device that wants to be Windows 7 certified must be DLNA certified first which should help to accelerate the number of devices available.

The DLNA was also showing a product endcap for retail locations that helps the consumer understand the capabilities of the system and the value-add for DLNA certified products.  In the past, DLNA marketing has been sparse so it is nice to see expanded efforts on this front.  Ray Berardinelli who is leading the DLNA marketing and PR efforts assured me that this year there would be greater visibility for DLNA products and that several retailers were onboard to help with the effort.

Where to see it:

• Central Plaza

3D was a big topic at the Sony booth, which included programs with guest speakers such as Real D’s Josh Greer and 3Ality’s Steve Schklair.

Sony previewed prototype 3D-ready TVs, using a variety of content, including previews of Sony Pictures Animation’s Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs, DWA’s Monsters Vs. Aliens and Fox’s Blue Sky Studios’ Ice Age 3;  as well as some live action and video game clips.

Another popular Sony booth attraction was the Flex OLED prototypes. The highlights included the 2.5-inch video display (160×120 pixels, 0.2 mm thickness), a future concept Reader, a bracelet-like Walkman and a Vaio notebook (pictured below).  The prototypes were all based on curved OLED screens made from what Sony calls “flexible bio plastic.”

Sony’s new Vaio P Series Lifestyle PC, which weighs 1.4 lbs., was another big attention grabber.

Where to see it:

• Central 14200

This spring, Dish Network will begin offering the ViP 922 SlingLoaded HD DuoDVR that includes placeshifting technology.  The ViP 922 can be controlled using SlingGuide, a new way for consumers to control their TV viewing experience over the Internet.

Developed by EchoStar Technologies, the DVR notably incorporates Sling Media’s Slingbox, which is designed to allow a viewer to watch and control his or her content remotely, via a broadband Internet connection on a laptop or mobile phone.

Also on display is the new Sling Monitor – a 15-inch HD display that you can Sling video to from Dish’s 1TB HD DVR over Wi-Fi.

Where to see it:

• Central 14438

Also see:

Open Mobile Video Coalition Details Mobile DTV Roll-Out Plans

Visit the site: Open Mobile Video Coalition.

The Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE) – created to address DRM issues and a standard way for consumers to acquire content online – announced six new members during CES.

With the addition of Panasonic and Samsung, the initiative now includes five of the bigger TV manufacturers, six studios, five tech companies, and an array of other heavy-hitters connected to entertainment media.

DECE continues to navigate the tricky waters of identifying appropriate formats for streaming and downloading media in addition to the technical requirements for CE devices.  The ultimate challenge is dealing with effective DRM while still providing consumers the most convenient access to their media.

Asus Computer International is leading the charge at CES, with their impressive selection of netbooks and notebooks.

At Tuesday’s press conference, the company discussed touch-based computing and a new ultraportable with 512 GB SSD that will run for up to eight hours on a single charge. Unfortunately, the new Asus Eee T91 and T101 swivel-touchscreen netbooks have no release date yet, but it looks like they’ll be ready in ‘09.  CEO Johnny Shih said that they are also thinking about doing an Android-based Eee PC.

The swivel-touchscreens were a big hit in the ASUS booth, as was the newly announced W90Vp gigantic gaming laptop (pictured below).  At 18.4-inches it comes close to Dell and HP’s record of 20.1-inches.  Powered by an Intel Core Duo with up to 6GB of RAM and a dual 500GB hard drive, ASUS calls it the “Ultimate Multimedia Notebook.”

Also, if you’re jumping on the “green” bandwagon, be sure to check out the limited edition ASUS U6 Bamboo Notebook…

Where to see it:

• South 4 35301

Toshiba showed off its take on what their connected experience will be.  Like Sony, Samsung, LG and Vizo, Toshiba will have Yahoo! widgets across three of their product categories – REGZA LCD TVs, LCD TV/DVD Combos and standalone players.  But they will take it a step further and offer Extenders for Windows Media Center giving consumer access to their PCs via Windows Media Center.

Toshiba’s products will take full advantage of what Windows Media Center has to offer, from being able to view photos to watching videos over the home network.  If consumers do not have Windows Media Center, the Toshiba products will also offer DLNA support which would allow access to other devices on the home network that are DLNA certified.

InstaPort: Toshiba will also introduce a new feature into its REGZA line up, InstaPort.  Many HDMI users out there know that when you want to switch between different HDMI sources, there can be a several second delay.  But with InstaPort, Toshiba says the switch “will connect in a fraction of the time.”

AutoView: Toshiba’s displays are now equipped with AutoView.  This feature allows the TV set to automatically adjust the picture to give the consumer the best image quality.  By looking at the ambient room light sensor and video content the AutoView system adjusts the brightness, contrast, gamma, sharpness and color saturation.  The AutoView system can also adjust the color temperature to compensate for changes in the color of the home lighting.

Where to see it:

• Central 12814

Dolby is demonstrating its invention aimed at delivering 3D to the home, in a private room in the South Hall.

The setup: A Mitsubishi 3D-ready TV with active glasses, a Panasonic Blu-ray player and an HDMI cable connection.

It played 3D with the setup via a Blu-ray Disc that was created by using a Dolby development for pre-filtering and preparing the content for encoding (H. 264).

It next played the 3D content on a Hyundai 3D-ready LCD TV with passive glasses.

The goal was to show that one could get 3D in the home via standard players and available display systems, as well as mimic current professional and consumer paths. Dolby added that the technology could also lends itself to broadcast apps.