Philips drop Peter Crouch

According to industry sources, quoted by the Surrey-based Electronics Weekly newspaper and website, Philips UK were set to produce a limited edition vertical-aspect TV as a special souvenir promotion if England reached the World Cup Final. However, this one-off project, apparently inspired by 6' 7" striker Peter Crouch, is believed to have been very quickly scrapped following England's disappointing 3-1 defeat by Portugal in their quarter-final penalty shoot-out on July 1. It is not known how far production of the 9:16 format LCD flat-screen, provisionally titled TallTV, actually went beyond the prototype stage [see photo] at the industry-leading Philips Applied Technology facility in Redhill, Surrey, in anticipation of England's successful progression to the final. However, enthusiastic World Cup 2006 memorabilia hunters and hardcore Ebay operators are expected be on high alert over the coming weeks in the hope of getting their hands on an item that's as rare as an England World Cup win. // ELECTRONICS DAILY DIGEST, 1830 GMT, Friday July 7.