Israeli company develops chip for compression of digital video

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JERUSALEM — Herzliya-based VisionTech has announced the development of the first chip of its kind in the world for compression of digital video.

The chip makes it possible to put a full-length video film on a single computer disk or digital video disk. It is cheap enough to allow widespread home and commercial uses, the company said.

VisionTech said it can also be included in still cameras or in video cameras to take high-quality films and store them.

The chip was developed in the Herzliya labs with cooperation from the DML and CSK consortia in Japan. According to VisionTech, the new product has been tried by a number of major computer and camera manufacturers in the United States and Japan, all of which are very interested in buying it.

VisionTech, which will market the product in Europe, the United States and Israel, has set up commercial representation in Palm Beach, Fla. CSK and DML will sell it in Japan and the Far East.