Dolby Theatre turns up the volume for first Oscars

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Dolby is ready for its first date with Oscar.

The Academy Awards will be broadcast from the Dolby Theatre for the first time since the audio-visual technology company plastered its name and logo on the awards venue last summer. While the 11-year-old space mostly looks the same as it has in years past, Dolby has diligently worked for the past seven months to ensure it will sound different come Feb 24.

"We looked at this from the inside out," said Mr Ramzi Haidamus, Dolby's vice-president of marketing and business development. "It was never, 'Oh, here's a building. Let's put our name on it because the Oscars are here.' It was about this being the place where the industry's best come to showcase their content, and how we can elevate their experiences with our technology."

Since the venue previously known as the Kodak Theatre was re-christened the Dolby Theatre last June, the space has hosted premieres for the Oscar nominated films Brave and Zero Dark Thirty. It also served as the headquarters for the Cirque du Soleil production Iris until the cinema-themed acrobatic production closed last month following poor ticket sales.