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China, the world's biggest maker of DVD players, moved on Tuesday to create its next-generation rival, the EVD, a step toward a new national industry standard that would bypass royalty payments to Japanese DVD makers.

Beijing E-world Technology, the corporate entity of a government-backed consortium of businessmen and academics, and two DVD manufacturers unveiled the indigenous, higher-definition Enhanced Versatile Disc.

Five of the more than 100 makers of DVD players in China have signed up to make EVD players. SVA Electronics, one of China's biggest DVD makers, with annual output of about five million, has started mass production, a company spokesman said. But some analysts doubted that EVD's would be widely adopted in the rest of the world even if China were to embrace it.

Source: IHT