The PS2 version of Need for Speed: Underground from Electronic Arts (EA) was again the #1-rented videogame in the U.S., Rentrak’s preliminary Home Video Essentials data for the week ended Jan. 11 showed Thurs. Rentrak said the title, in its 8th week of availability, earned an additional $406,267 in the week, increasing its total rental earnings to date to $3.95 million. EA again had the most games in the top 10, this time with 4 -- all for PS2. The others were Medal of Honor: Rising Sun at #3 (up 1 in its 9th week, earning an additional $222,322 in the week for total rental earnings of $4.55 million), The Sims: Bustin’ Out at #8 (up 2 in its 4th week, $178,927 and $983,017), Madden NFL 2004 at #9 again in its 22nd week ($172,323 and $5.95 million). PS2 again dominated the top 10. Only one game wasn’t for Sony Computer Entertainment’s console: Nintendo’s Mario Kart: Double Dash for GameCube at #10 (up 3 in its 8th week, $147,892 and $1.54 million). Faring best among the other publishers again was Activision. Its True Crime: Streets of L.A. again was #2 in its 10th week ($264,603 and $3.65 million). Activision’s Tony Hawk’s Underground dropped one position to #4 in its 11th week ($199,050 and $4.04 million). Rounding out the top 10 were Atari’s Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 at #5 (up 1 in its 6th week, $197,723 and $1.81 million), Take-Two Interactive’s Manhunt at #6 (up 1 in its 8th week, $190,535 and $1.97 million), Sony’s SOCOM II: U.S. Navy SEALs at #7 (down 2 in its 10th week, $190,516 and $2.91 million).

HD-DVD demonstrations held for reporters Wed. at the MGM Tower in L.A. gave no clear evidence, but tantalizing hints, that the balance of crucial studio support was tipping toward one side in the format war -- against Blu-ray. Similar sessions were held in N.Y.C. in Nov. (CED Nov 4 p1), and separate demonstrations were planned for studio representatives Thurs. to which all major film companies but Sony’s Columbia TriStar were invited, a source told us. Universal also wasn’t expected to take part because it’s on the fence, the source said, as if implying that the other studios had accepted invitations because they were leaning toward HD-DVD.

The International Trade Administration (ITA) frequently issues notices on antidumping (AD) and countervailing (CV) duty orders which Broker Power considers to be "minor" in importance as they concern actions that occur after an order is issued and neither announce nor cause any changes to an order's duty rates, scope, affected firms, or effective period.

In its 2nd full week of availability, Universal’s Unrated version of American Wedding was the #1-rented DVD in the U.S., Rentrak’s preliminary Home Video Essentials data for the week ended Jan. 11 showed Thurs. Rentrak said the title, which moved up 3 levels for the week in terms of combined DVD and VHS rentals, earned an additional $5.92 million on DVD and an am extra $8.32 million in combined DVD and VHS rentals. To date, Rentrak said, the title earned $11.92 million on DVD and $17.36 million on DVD and VHS. In their first full week of availability, MGM’s Out of Time starring Denzel Washington, Columbia TriStar’s horror film Underworld and MGM’s comedy Uptown Girls each made the top 10 as well, Rentrak said. In combined DVD and VHS rental earnings, Rentrak said #3 Out of Time took in $7.23 million for the week and $7.32 million to date, while #4 Underworld took in $5.81 million for the week and $$5.89 million to date, and #5 Uptown Girls took in $5.51 million for the week and $5.58 million to date. In DVD rental alone, Rentrak said Out of Time took in $5.08 million for the week and $5.15 million to date, while Underworld took in $4.47 million for the week and $4.52 million to date, and Uptown Girls took in $3.86 million for the week and $3.91 million to date. Last week’s #1-rented DVD -- Columbia TriStar’s S.W.A.T. -- meanwhile, dropped to #2 in its 2nd full week of availability, earning an additional $5.8 million for the week on DVD for a total of $19.38 million to date, and an additional $7.71 million in combined DVD and VHS earnings in the week for combined earnings to date of $26.13 million. Rounding out the top 10, in combined DVD and VHS rental earnings, were Fox’s League of Extraordinary Gentlemen at #6 (down 4 notches in the week), Fox’s The Order at #7 (up 1), Universal’s Seabiscuit at #8 (down 5), Disney’s 2003 version of its own Freaky Friday at #9 (down 4), MGM’s Jeepers Creepers 2 at #10 (down 4).

The ITA states that the CV cash deposit rates for all non-reviewed companies are unchanged by the results of this review.

The ITA states that as of April 2001, Ichon Iron and Steel Company (Inchon) changed its name to INI.

(a) Sanjian has an AD duty rate of zero; no cash deposits will be required although suspension of liquidation will continue.

CompUSA, in its first moves since closing on its Good Guys purchase last month, has swept aside several of the chain’s top executives. Meantime, CompUSA is said to have been in extensive discussions to buy Goodguys.com from a group of investors that once included Good Guys founder and ex-CEO Ronald Unkefer.

The International Trade Administration (ITA) has issued its final results of the changed circumstances antidumping (AD) and countervailing (CV) duty reviews of certain pasta from Turkey, concluding that Tat Konserve Sanayi A.S. (Tat) is the successor-in-interest to Pastavilla Makarnacilik Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. (Pastavilla) for AD and CV duty cash deposit purposes.

On January 7, 2004, the Department of Transportation's (DOT's) Maritime Administration (MARAD) issued a press release announcing that the Cargo Handling Cooperative Program (CHCP), a partnership between MARAD and private industry, has released the results of testing it performed on five electronic security seals (e-seals) proposed for use on intermodal freight containers.