Moviefan1234
08-26-2002, 10:22 AM
This is on Cnet.com:
"Toshiba, NEC working on new DVD format
By Reuters
August 25, 2002, 7:10 PM PT
update TOKYO--Toshiba and NEC said Monday they are planning a new format for next-generation DVDs that would cut costs but be incompatible with a format proposed by Sony and other industry giants.
A Toshiba representative said that the companies' planned standard for high-capacity blue-laser discs, which could hit the market as early as next year, was preferable to other standards because it would allow greater compatibility with existing red-laser discs.
She added that while the format would be incompatible with the Blu-ray blue-laser DVD (digital versatile discs) standard proposed earlier this year by Sony, Matsushita Electric Industrial and others, Toshiba was still developing Blu-ray technology and may support it in the future.
"As the first market (for blue-laser DVDs), our view is that it would be best to have compatibility with existing DVDs," she said.
"In the future, these two would not necessarily be competing standards," she added, suggesting that it was possible the Blu-ray format may eventually become the industry standard for blue lasers.
Japan's electronics industry has placed high hopes on blue-laser DVDs, which can store several times more data than red-laser discs because of the shorter wavelength of blue light--enough to hold a typical high-definition motion picture on a single disc.
Toshiba, Japan's biggest chipmaker and a major player in DVD equipment, was one of the few Japanese electronics giants not to join the Blu-ray consortium when it was launched early this year.
A Sony representative said her company's commitment to Blu-ray was unchanged, but she declined to comment on whether the Toshiba-NEC format would pose a threat to acceptance of Blu-ray as an industry standard.
The fragmentation of standards for red-laser DVD recorders was blamed for hindering the takeoff of the DVD recorder market, although sales have been strong in recent months.
Several industry executives have warned that such fragmentation should be avoided with blue-laser DVD players and recorders, which are expected to hit the market as early as next year.
Toshiba and NEC said their standard would let manufacturers use existing DVD-related plants and equipment, bringing sizable cost savings, and would allow the design of players and recorders that can handle both red-laser and blue-laser discs.
The other members of the Blu-ray consortium are Japan's Hitachi, Pioneer and Sharp; South Korea's Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics; Philips Electronics of the Netherlands; and France's Thomson Multimedia. "
Well, what does everyone say?
"Toshiba, NEC working on new DVD format
By Reuters
August 25, 2002, 7:10 PM PT
update TOKYO--Toshiba and NEC said Monday they are planning a new format for next-generation DVDs that would cut costs but be incompatible with a format proposed by Sony and other industry giants.
A Toshiba representative said that the companies' planned standard for high-capacity blue-laser discs, which could hit the market as early as next year, was preferable to other standards because it would allow greater compatibility with existing red-laser discs.
She added that while the format would be incompatible with the Blu-ray blue-laser DVD (digital versatile discs) standard proposed earlier this year by Sony, Matsushita Electric Industrial and others, Toshiba was still developing Blu-ray technology and may support it in the future.
"As the first market (for blue-laser DVDs), our view is that it would be best to have compatibility with existing DVDs," she said.
"In the future, these two would not necessarily be competing standards," she added, suggesting that it was possible the Blu-ray format may eventually become the industry standard for blue lasers.
Japan's electronics industry has placed high hopes on blue-laser DVDs, which can store several times more data than red-laser discs because of the shorter wavelength of blue light--enough to hold a typical high-definition motion picture on a single disc.
Toshiba, Japan's biggest chipmaker and a major player in DVD equipment, was one of the few Japanese electronics giants not to join the Blu-ray consortium when it was launched early this year.
A Sony representative said her company's commitment to Blu-ray was unchanged, but she declined to comment on whether the Toshiba-NEC format would pose a threat to acceptance of Blu-ray as an industry standard.
The fragmentation of standards for red-laser DVD recorders was blamed for hindering the takeoff of the DVD recorder market, although sales have been strong in recent months.
Several industry executives have warned that such fragmentation should be avoided with blue-laser DVD players and recorders, which are expected to hit the market as early as next year.
Toshiba and NEC said their standard would let manufacturers use existing DVD-related plants and equipment, bringing sizable cost savings, and would allow the design of players and recorders that can handle both red-laser and blue-laser discs.
The other members of the Blu-ray consortium are Japan's Hitachi, Pioneer and Sharp; South Korea's Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics; Philips Electronics of the Netherlands; and France's Thomson Multimedia. "
Well, what does everyone say?