Today at the Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA), Royal Philips Electronics launched the first commercially available DVD recorder in Europe – the Philips DVDR1000.

The Philips DVD Recorder is the latest addition to a progressive innovation of Philips optical storage products that started in 1980 when Philips first developed and patented the audio CD. DVD, which was introduced in 1997, was the logical development based on the original CD.

At the Philips press conference in Berlin, Gerard Kleisterlee, President and Chief Executive Officer of Philips called the DVD Recorder, “An exciting extension to our range of optical storage products. It confirms Philips’ position as Europe’s market leader in consumer electronics and the number three worldwide. The development from CD to DVD is an evolutionary story that points the way forward for Philips. We are building confidently and positively for a future in which we see technology as a life-enhancing force.”

Mr. Kleisterlee sees the introduction of the DVD Recorder as an important step in positioning Philips within the digital world: “We have the products, the applications and the technologies necessary to put people in touch with each other, or with their chosen sources of information and entertainment. We help our customers to interact with technology, either at home or in the workplace and it is our ambition to serve consumers through continuous progressive innovation and market leadership.”

Guy Demuynck, Chief Executive Officer of Philips Consumer Electronics Mainstream added: “We are demonstrating at this year’s IFA our best-in-class capabilities in display technologies, optical storage playback and recording and the Internet. With an exciting portfolio of well designed and easy to use products we are at the forefront of the migration of consumer electronics products from analog to digital.”

As a major exhibitor at this year’s IFA, Philips will occupy Hall 22 in its entirety, reflecting the company’s position at the forefront of the digital consumer electronics era. In addition to the latest product portfolio, visitors to IFA will get an exclusive look at some of the digital consumer technologies Philips Research is developing. These technologies, for application in products to be launched in the near future, will be on display at the Philips stand in the so-called Innovation Corner. IFA 2001 takes place in Berlin, Germany, from August 25 until September 2.