Microsoft set Jan. 23 release date for NBA Inside Drive 2002, featuring Toronto Raptors star Vince Carter. Title will be exclusive to Xbox.

Promotional efforts for next-generation consoles have extended to naming flower after GameCube title. Pikmin flower, described as white flower with yellow center resembling characters from GameCube action-strategy title, Pikmin, will be immortalized this April when Syngenta Seed starts marketing Pikmin flower to gardeners. Peter Main, Nintendo of America exec. vp-sales & mktg., joked that “naming a flower after a videogame is just one more way Nintendo is ’seeding’ creative marketing.”

Cirrus Logic completed acquisition of Stream Machine as part of deal in which it issued 5.4 million shares. In connection with purchase, Cirrus is expected to take $14-$20 million noncash charge against earnings for acquired and in-processor R&D. Stream Machine, supplier of MPEG-2 compression chips, reported less than $1 million revenue and $4 million operating expenses in quarter ended Sept. 30. Company is projected to be accretive to Cirrus earnings within 3 quarters of deal’s closing and to generate $30-$40 million in revenue in fiscal 2003, Cirrus said. Stream Machines had $2 million in tangible net assets at time of closing and is forecast to produce long-term gross margins to more than 50%.

Better than expected consumer response to its holiday title slate was reason given by Activision Tues. for raising revenue and earnings guidance for 3rd and 4th quarters of its fiscal 2002. For 3rd quarter, Activision said it now expected earnings per share of 58? vs. previous estimate of 53? on revenue 25% higher than year earlier to $330 million (vs. $285 million in previous guidance). CEO Ron Doornink said GameCube and Xbox introductions had exceeded company’s expectations and that sales of PlayStation 2, PlayStation and Game Boy “continue to perform very strongly.”

AOL Time Warner (ATW) and Microsoft executives offered upbeat forecast for digital media in online arena Tues. in keynotes at joint Streaming Media East/Internet World conference in N.Y.C. Meanwhile, Microsoft unveiled 3rd generation streaming platform technologies that will be included in next version of its Windows Media Technologies, code-named “Corona.” Technologies will allow for Web delivery of 5.1 channel surround sound with 24 bit/96 kHz sampling and HDTV-like video quality at file sizes half that of DVDs for playback on PC.

SonicBlue said it was in negotiations with rival TiVo on possible licensing agreement for patent it received last week for portion of personal video recorder (PVR) technology.

Movie Gallery Pres.-Co-Founder Harrison Parrish will resign post effective Jan. 4 and filed with SEC to sell 800,000 shares (21%) of his total holdings. Chmn.-CEO Joseph Malugen, who will assume Parrish’s title, also filed to sell 400,000 shares (10%) of his holdings.

Sanyo said it would restructure its R&D operations by April, consolidating 5 research labs into 3 to reduce costs and speed process of bringing new technologies to market. Sanyo also plans to open R&D base in China within 2 years.

House panel plans today to review report by Copyright Office on effect of Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) anticircumvention provisions and growth of e-commerce on copyright law. Oversight hearing by Judiciary Subcommittee on Internet and Intellectual Property will begin at 2 p.m. Wed. in Rm. 2141, Rayburn Bldg., and continue Thurs. at 10 a.m., spokesman for subcommittee Chmn. Coble (R-N.C. ) said. DMCA Sec. 104 report, originally due in May, was submitted to Congress in late Aug. Witnesses on Wed. panel are: (1) Marybeth Peters, Register of Copyrights. (2) Carey Ramos, representing National Music Publishers Assn. (3) Cary Sherman, RIAA senior exec. vp- gen. counsel. (4) Emery Simon, attorney for Business Software Alliance. Peters returns for Thurs. session, along with: (1) Marvin Berenson, senior vp-gen. counsel, Broadcast Music Inc. (2) Jonathan Potter, exec. dir., Digital Media Assn. (3) Gary Klein, CEA attorney.

Oct. DTV dollar shipments to dealers rose 87.2% at same time analog set shipments fell 23.7% and total TV sales were down 3.5%, CEA said. DTV shipments reached $341.75 million in Oct. vs. $182.61 million in same 2000 month, while total TV shipments fell to $969.39 million from $1.005 billion. DTV accounted for 35.3% of total dollar value of Oct. TV shipments vs. 18.2% in same month year earlier. For year’s first 43 weeks, DTV shipments rose 91.6% to $1.94 billion, while total TV shipments fell 6.7% to $7.35 billion, and analog set shipments were down 21.3% to $5.41 billion. DTV represented 26.4% of total dollar shipments for 43 weeks vs. 12.9% share in same year-earlier period.