Blu-ray Discs production surge expected by December

After Toshiba suspended the production of HD-DVD video disc players, only Blu-ray Disc remains in the standard 1920×1080 format and is largely dominant in the disc player and video disc markets. But due to the lack of Blu-ray Disc sources in China’s market, Blu-ray Disc players sold by Sony, Panasonic, and Pioneer attract few buyers in the China market.

Fortunately, lacking Blu-ray Disc sources in China’s market is a problem that will soon be solved. Yesterday, Tootoo.com  learned from Blu-ray Disc Association Press Conference that Shanghai Epic Music Entertainment Company Ltd. will start to produce Blu-ray Discs in China’s mainland. The company’s workshop extension project in Shanghai is almost completed. The modified workshop will have 13,000 square meters, and Blu-ray Disc production has been scheduled to begin about December this year.

Meanwhile, Sony, as one of the major members in Blu-ray Disc Association, announced yesterday an attractive promotion of buying Blu-ray Disc players in China with a gift of reserved-copy Blu-ray video discs. That is, from now on, if you buy a BDP-S300 Blu-ray Disc player, you can receive three reserved-copy Blu-ray movie discs, which are kung Fu Hustle, Spider-Man 3 and Open Season.

At present, Blu-ray products have entered a rapid development period of popularity in the Japanese market; its disc player sales amount to over a 50% market-share of Japan’s entire disc player market. In United States over 11 million Blu-ray movie discs have been sold.

Blu-ray Disc Association, with 180 renowned member companies, is dedicated to developing and promoting the Blu-ray Disc format. Its Board of Directors is composed of 18 member companies including Apple, Dell, Panasonic, Philips, Samsung, Sharp, Sony, Disney, and Warner Bros.

In Europe, America and Japan, Blu-ray Disc players, 5 times clearer than common DVDs, are rapidly substituting the humble DVDs. To speed up the industrial production steps in China, Blu-ray Disc Association has pursued a “good will” policy to the technical standard of China’s Independent Intellectual Property Rights, so as to encourage China’s native enterprises to actively participate in Blu-ray products’ production.