BDA Sees Blu-ray Growth For Years To Come

By Greg Tarr On Jan 10 2012 - 10:56pm

LAS VEGAS — The future of home video entertainment may be coming from the Cloud, but the trusty Blu-ray Disc player continues to drive volume sales growth and revenue opportunities today.

That was the assessment of Andy Parsons, Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) U.S. promotions committee chairman and Pioneer Electronics communications and advanced product development senior VP. The BDA is a multi-industry-supported promotional group that is dedicated to promoting developments in the Blu-ray Disc (BD) format.

 

Samsung Unveils Wi-Fi Direct Blu-ray Player

By Greg Tarr On Jan 10 2012 - 11:23pm

LAS VEGAS – Samsung is introducing at International CES a new Blu-ray Disc player with Wi-Fi direct functionality that will allow sharing content over a direct connection with other Wi-Fi devices without the need for a central access point or PC.

Model BD-E6500 is a 3D-enabled Bluray player offering FullHD 1080p video playback, and built-in Wi-Fi connectivity. The player also supports Samsung Apps and adds a full web browser.

Bravia TV, Blu-ray Owners Get 'Cloudy' Rental Exclusive

By Greg Tarr On Nov 23 2009 - 8:00am

Sony Electronics and Sony Pictures have teamed up to make animated box office hit “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” available to rent exclusively by owners of Sony networked Bravia HDTVs and Blu-ray Disc players as a streaming title for four weeks prior to the general DVD retail release.

Sony Pushes Blu-ray In NYC Showcase

By Greg Tarr On Dec 7 2009 - 8:00am

Looking to drive adoption of its many Blu-ray Disc players and movies through the holiday selling season, executives from Sony Electronics and Sony Pictures staged an elaborate showcase here last month for key products and releases.

Central to the messages of both Sony divisions was the arrival of new broadband-connected BD-Live interactive extra content that is included on such key new Blu-ray Disc releases as the following:

2010 Should See Blu-ray Transition Into A Mass-Market Product

By Greg Tarr On Jan 7 2010 - 8:00am

Approaching the end of 2009, sales of Blu-ray Disc players were expected to be one of the great consumer electronics success stories of the year.

Blu-ray Group Welcomes 3D Into The Fold At CES

By Greg Tarr On Jan 18 2010 - 8:00am

The Blu-ray Disc Association greeted the dawning of the 3D age at International CES by celebrating the strong adoption rate of the Blu-ray format, and by pointing out that more than 20 2D and 3D Blu-ray Disc products were being introduced by manufacturers.

The group also launched here a new 3D Blu-ray logo that will help consumers quickly discern 3D-capable Blu-ray players from 2D-only versions.

Blu-ray, Digital Up As Video Sales Dip

By Greg Tarr On Aug 2 2010 - 4:01am

LOS ANGELES — The Digital Entertainment Group (DEG) had both good news and bad for home video sales in the first half of 2010 — Blu-ray Disc and online digital purchases were up but over video software sales were down as DVDs continued to slide.

The group said consumer spending on DVDs, Blu-ray Discs and digital distribution dropped 3.3 percent to $8.8 billion for the first half of 2010 compared with the same period last year.

However, consumer spending on home entertainment products was up 2.3 percent in the same period, the group said.

Pioneer Unveils 1st 3D Blu-ray Players

By Greg Tarr On Oct 4 2010 - 4:01am

ATLANTA — Pioneer gave CEDIA Expo attendees a sneak peek at the company’s first Blu-ray Disc players with 3D playback capability.

In total, the company showed three players — two under the high-end Elite badge and one under the core Pioneer trademark.

Little, except the core feature sets, was said to be finalized on any of the players, including pricing and model numbers.

Blu-ray Growth Seen Despite IP Streaming

By Greg Tarr On Jan 6 2011 - 6:01am

LAS VEGAS — Despite the growth of streaming movie services through connected devices in 2010, Blu-ray Disc player sales seem to remain on a surging growth track for the foreseeable future, key hardware and software industry executives told TWICE.

Andy Parsons, U.S. promotions committee chairperson for the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) and Pioneer Electronics USA senior VP,said BD player and disc sales growth exceeded expectations in 2010.

3D Spreads Through Blu-ray Lines

By Greg Tarr On Jan 6 2011 - 6:01am

LAS VEGAS — More and more new Blu-ray Disc players slated for 2011 will offer 3D TV support and Internet streaming services and apps as disc-based system continues it rapid penetration into U.S. households.

The following is a snapshot of new models planned for the year ahead by some of the industry’s top brands:

LG Electronics has expanded its assortment of 3D-capable Blu-ray models from one to five in 2011, all of which will include its newest streaming video platform.