Cleverdis : a clever vision of the display world


		• Blu-ray Disc – At the heart of the HD Home Entertainment System • Top Sony Management from HQ Drive BD Message Home at IFA 2006 • Sony’s new range of HD products • Conclusion by Gérard Lefebvre

by Richard Barnes,
Editor in Chief

High Definition has been long coming in Europe, and despite the fact that for some time now, HD Ready TVs have been available on the market, many potential clients rightfully asked the question, “what about content”? While High Definition broadcasting is now a reality, the true onset of HD in Europe could only happen once High Definition recording and playback were possible, and when consumers could rent or buy movies in High Definition…

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	YUKINORI KAWAUCHI (left) General Manager Planning Department DB Strategy Office SONY AKIRA SHIMAZU (right) Senior General Manager DB Strategy Office SONY

One of the main highlights of this year’s IFA trade show in Berlin was the Blu-ray Disc stand in Hall 26. Sony was the dominant exhibitor at the stand, with a demonstration model player, a Vaio Blu-ray Disc equipped laptop, and the soon-to-be-released PS3 attracting a huge amount of attention. Representing Sony HQ at IFA were two of the people at the very heart of the company’s Blu-ray Disc development and deployment, Yukinori Kawauchi, General Manager, Planning Department, BD Strategy Office and Akira Shimazu, Senior General Manager, BD Strategy Office. This interview thus gives us unprecedented insight into Sony’s Blu-ray roll-out.

What is Sony’s road-map for Blu-ray Disc?

A.S.: The first generation products are emerging. In Japan we already have a recorder on the market. Here in Europe, the VAIO has already been introduced. The Playstation 3 and our BD player will be launched in spring ‘07 in Europe.

Looking at the advantages of Blu-ray Disc, what do you see as being the biggest plusses?

A.S.: We feel that the main advantage is the capacity – up to 50 GB, and also we have superior transfer rates. For example, maximum video transfer is 40 MBPS. It gives us superiority when it comes to fast moving, difficult pictures that require a high bit-rate to be viewed properly. So … we have better picture and sound quality and it’s possible to have more bonus features because there is enough capacity. In terms of interactivity, we have Java and networking activities, which are not however exclusive to our technology… so the real benefits are in capacity and transfer rate.

Y.K.: HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc look similar when we glance at them, but we at Sony believe very strongly that philosophically they are completely different. Firstly, HD-DVD, by our understanding, is the evolution of the DVD. The construction is the same. The Blu-ray Disc is completely different from a DVD or a CD. It’s a kind of a revolution of the format. As HD-DVD is simply a new version of the DVD, what they can do in the future must be limited. But Blu-ray Disc is just on the starting line, so we can do many things in the future. We are talking about plans spread out over ten years! So the disc looks similar, but conceptually and philosophically it’s completely different. It’s a 21st century format.

How important will Blu-ray Disc be as part of the future of home entertainment as Sony sees it?

A.S.: As you can see here at IFA, there are many HD TV’s on display and importantly, Sony now has a number of Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) sets on the market. Both the input side and output side now has full HD resolution. But to really enjoy Full HD resolution, we need a carrier which will reproduce such theatre quality at home. So for playback purposes, Blu-ray Disc is the most appropriate carrier to reproduce a movie at home. Broadcast recording is another issue. BD has a lot of capacity and a sufficient transfer rate, enabling it to record all kinds of HD sources. So for both playback and recording, Blu-ray is the best format for HD home cinema.

The next step for Sony is obviously the PS3. What has the feedback been about the capacity of this machine and how will this drive demand for HD content and hardware?

Y.K.: Here at the IFA, as you can see, the crowd gathered around the PS3 display stand there transfixed by the beauty and precision of the images. The feedback from this show and other shows like CES demonstrate the massive interest for High Definition gaming.

But the PS3 is not just a gaming machine, but also a Blu-ray video player. The big difference between PS2 generation and PS3 generation is the introduction time. In the case of PS2, it also played DVD, but it was launched three years after the introduction of the DVD format. It nevertheless accelerated the penetration of DVD. This time, PS3 will be introduced in the first year of Blu-ray, so we can expect a sharp rise in the Blu-ray market including players, the PS3 as well as BD software targeting consumers, PC owners and PlayStation owners.

How big, as a driving factor, will be the release of films on BD, and the fact that the Blu-ray Disc Association has a large number of agreements with film studios already?

A.S.: The support of studios for the Blu-ray Disc format is superior. Out of seven studios, all, except Universal, are supporting Blu-ray Disc, and in the case of HD-DVD, only three studios have given their support to date. We have more than 80% share and they have around 40% share. When two products are launched at the same time, what is important is which one the customer feels safe to buy. I think the customers will feel that buying Blu-ray Disc is much safer because there is more support from the studios.

Looking at the Sony HD eco-system and the fact that Sony has such a long background in the development of HD TV, do you feel this puts Sony into a different position compared to other companies launching HD related products?

A.S.: Many companies have different divisions which will be involved in BD-related business, but as you say, in the case of Sony, almost all the divisions are involved in this format. For example, Sony Pictures, Sony Music, Sony Computer Entertainment and Games… Hardware, such as PlayStation, Players and the VAIO… In components, we are perhaps the majority supplier of blue lasers and components. We also have the recording media and disc duplication – not only for Sony but for other studios. So many divisions are involved, and all the divisions are supporting the establishment of Blu-ray Disc as we can see it will be a big industry.