TDK Reveals 100GB Blu-Ray Disc

[newstech]

Contributed by Ryan

The fight to control the format of the next-generation DVD just got a lot more complicated.

On the heels of reports that Sony and Toshiba talks have failed, TDK has entered the market with a prototype Blue-ray Disc that can hold twice the data and record at twice the speed as other competing formats. The problem is that the formats differ in the way that they are built, which means one format would have to be chosen over the other. If not, consumers could be faced with a situation like the VHS vs. Beta VCR fiasco in the early 80's.

With TDK's entry into the playing field, it could cause more disagreements between the companies. TDK's disc prototype was revealed at an exhibition in Tokyo today. The new disc can record data at 72Mbit/s, double the 36Mbit/s rate for current Blu-ray Discs.

Last week Sony and Toshiba entered negotiations to negotiate how to proceed with one format. The earlier negotiations between the companies had come to a standstill. Toshiba's top negotiator Yoshihide Fujii told the Nihon Keizai newspaper that, "(Unifying the formats based on Sony technology) would be extremely difficult at this stage."

It has already been reported that the negotiations between Sony and Toshiba have failed. With TDK's announcement, the situation is likely to get worse.

The companies have all invested in new blue-laser DVD technology to provide consumers with high-definition video. They are locked in a battle to determine whose standard will be used. The market is worth billions.

"We continue to believe in the merits of establishing one format but discussions up until now have not been able to produce an agreement," an anonymous source told Reuters. "So the talks will be taken to a higher level."

The new DVD formats utilize blue lasers - which have a shorter wavelength - to allow new DVD players to read discs that can store more data at higher densities. The extra storage is needed for high-definition video.

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