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Blu-ray, also known as Blu-ray Disc (BD), is the name of a next-generation optical disc format. The release of the Blu-ray disc received global media attention because of its ability to store large amounts of data on one disc, beating out the capabilities of HD-DVD for both sound and picture quality. The format was developed to enable recording, rewriting and playback of high-definition video (HD), as well as storing large amounts of data. Blu-ray disc offers more than five times the storage capacity of traditional DVDs and can hold up to 25GB on a single-layer disc and 50GB on a dual-layer disc. This extra capacity combined with the use of advanced video and audio codecs will offer consumers an unprecedented High Definition experience.
Instead of the traditional red laser used to write data on optical disc technologies such as DVD, DVD±R, DVD±RW, and DVD-RAM, the new Blu-ray format uses a blue-violet laser instead, hence the name Blu-ray. The benefit of using a blue-violet laser is that it has a shorter wavelength than a red laser, which makes it possible to focus the laser spot with even greater precision. This allows data to be packed more tightly and stored in less space, so it's possible to fit more data on the disc even though it's the same size as a CD/DVD.
Blu-ray is currently supported by more than 180 of the world's leading consumer electronics, personal computer, recording media, video game and music companies. Blu-ray's first mass release to consumers was in the popular Sony PlayStation 3, that offered a high-definition gaming experience not found with other game consoles. The format also has broad support from the major movie studios as a successor to today's DVD format. In fact, seven of the eight major movie studios (Disney, Fox, Warner, Paramount, Sony, Lionsgate and MGM) have released movies in the Blu-ray format and six of them (Disney, Fox, Sony, Warner, Lionsgate and MGM) are releasing their movies exclusively in the Blu-ray format. Many studios have also announced that they will begin releasing new feature films on Blu-ray Disc day-and-date with DVD, as well as a continuous slate of catalog titles every month. |
