Ulead VideoStudio 9 Meets Video Editing Needs of Novices & Hobbyists

March 10 /PRNewswire/ -- As more and more consumers use digital camcorders, cameras, and camera phones to take videos and photos, all too often these digital memories never reach their intended audience. To help consumers begin sharing these memories as fun-to-watch DVD movies and slideshows, Ulead Systems, Inc., a 15-year developer of digital media software, debuts VideoStudio 9, the newest version of its easy-to-use and powerful video editing software. Ulead designed VideoStudio 9 to make it scalable, with three different video editing modes, to meet the skill level and various project demands of both novices and hobbyists.

Building on the success of version 8, which received 7 Editor's Choice Awards in 2004, VideoStudio 9 takes automated video editing to the next level. Novices can start with the new DV-to-DVD Wizard which, in two steps, automatically takes video straight off a DV camcorder and turns it into an edited DVD production. For both automation and control, the enhanced Movie Wizard lets users choose a stylish movie template like Sports, Holiday, Vacation, and even Drive-in Movie Theatre, and edits the video with text, music, transitions and a DVD menu -- all of which can be customized. For complete control, the full Video Editor provides a set of easy-to-use yet powerful video editing tools including Chroma Keying, Flash Animation overlays, Pan & Zoom on video and a variety of video and audio filters.

"Here at Ulead we recognize that people don't need or want to go deep into the editing process with every project," says Ian Andes, video editing product manager at Ulead Systems. "Sometimes the right thing to do is just hook up your camcorder and get a set of shots onto DVD as quickly as possible. The new DV-to-DVD Wizard is ideal for this. At other times, you want more control with options to add a personal touch. The Movie Wizard meets this need. And for those times when you want full creative control, there is the main Video Editor. We've made VideoStudio 9 completely scalable so novices won't outgrow it and hobbyists are equipped with all the right tools depending on the task at hand."

The number of consumers who are recording their digital memories -- either as digital video or photos -- is growing exponentially. IDC forecasts that 12.9 million DV camcorders will ship worldwide in 2005 reaching 15.3 million DV camcorders in 2007. At the same time, InfoTrends/CAP Ventures projected that worldwide unit sales of consumer digital cameras would reach nearly 53 million in 2004, with digital camera sales expected to experience a compound annual growth rate of 15% over the next four years, to reach 82 million units in 2008. *

Fast Movie Making
The new DV Quick Scan feature lets consumers save time by quickly scanning video clips on the DV tape and selecting only the clips they want to capture. Once the clips are selected, the new DV-to-DVD Wizard automatically turns videos into edited DVDs with a DVD menu, titles, transitions, and music. The Movie Wizard now offers over 20 movie templates to choose from. At the same time, it includes smart pan & zoom which automatically detects flesh tones on photos.

Powerful Video Editing Tools Made Easy
For complete control, users can go into the full Video Editor. Its complete seven-step workflow guides them through the movie-making process. Chroma Keying lets users add different video backgrounds to their productions. This is perfect for making a person appear like they're somewhere else -- e.g., traveling through Paris, flying through space, or in a newsroom -- any video will work. It's now possible to combine flash animation with video to add artistic flair and sophistication to video productions. Users can choose from a variety of Flash animations provided or create their own. With new ripple editing, it's possible to trim, rearrange or remove unwanted scenes and VideoStudio 9 will automatically shift video clips, music, titles and overlays so that they are in-sync.

Unique in the market, users can now distort or reshape video and images so that they appear at an angle. New mask effects create optical transitions to create a fluid-like effect. At the same time, new video filters include particle effects like clouds and rain. Enhanced titling lets users place multiple titles on the same video frame and animate each title separately.

Enhanced Audio
VideoStudio 9 offers new audio filters to create more compelling audio and soundtracks. These include volume leveling to match the volume of loud and soft video clips, and audio reverb to add a sense of acoustic space. The second generation auto music maker features an enhanced music engine that creates an infinite variety of unique royalty-free tunes. It's also possible to create full stereo sound by duplicating a single audio channel into both right and left channels.

More Ways to Share
Once a movie is finished, VideoStudio 9 can transfer to tape, DVD, CD and the Web. Users can create Hollywood-like DVDs with theme-based menu templates that include motion backgrounds and buttons. Not only is it possible to edit 16:9 video, but users can create a home theatre-like experience by creating 16:9 DVD menus. The new Movie Screensaver creates a Windows screensaver from a favorite slideshow or video clip complete with music. VideoStudio 9 can edit and output files from MPEG-4 devices, 3GPP mobile camera phones, and provides unique support for WMV HD files as well as WMV files for Smart Phones and Pocket PCs. Within VideoStudio 9 users can effortlessly encode and upload videos to share via Neptune.com MediaShare, a pioneering web site for sharing videos over the Web.

Availability and Price
The box and electronic download of VideoStudio 9 will be available in April for $99.99 at www.ulead.com. VideoStudio 9 will be available in May in North American retail stores and catalogs for an MSRP of $99.99. Previous owners of VideoStudio can upgrade for $49.99 at www.ulead.com.

* Sources:
IDC 2003 Worldwide DVCam and DSC Report;
InfoTrends 2003 Worldwide Consumer Digital Camera Forecast

Source: Ulead Systems, Inc.

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