4K TVs were everywhere, and most people had expected to see a 4K Blu-ray standard announced at the show. CES kicked off, and nothing happened, but the BDA group says that it will come - by year’s end.
No 4K Blu-ray standard announced at CES
What is a 4K TV without the content? Our regular Full HD Blu-ray discs are not good enough. Netflix is determined to make 4K streaming a reality, but many people have still expected a 4K Blu-ray standard announced at CES.
Nothing was announced, so the committee have felt compelled to comment on things. They tell The Hollywood Reporter that they have just approved work to extend Blu-ray to include 4K. They now need to form the baseline for the standard, and decide on aspects such as HEVC vs. VP9 compression (not a hard choice at this point) and other factors.
Are you prepared to wait another year for a 4K Blu-ray standard?
The target for completion of a 4K Blu-ray standard is year’s end, according to Victor Matsuda, chairman of BDA Global Promotions Committee.
Samsung has chimed in, too, reiterating the “year’s end” timeframe. Samsung tells The Australian that they expect the standard to use four-layered Blu-ray discs with 100GB capacity, and adds “except for the standard, it's good to go”. The technology is in place and the standard will emerge “once everyone is on the same page”.
But the real question is if it is too little too late? DVD reached the mass market, but the same cannot be said for Blu-ray. Physical formats are dead in the eyes of most consumers and streaming is emerging as an alternative. Sony has also said that they believe more in internet delivery than a physical format.
One thing is certain; the window of opportunity is closing and Blu-ray is not defining the market in any way. It is hard to understand why we have to wait another year, when all the all the pieces have already fallen into place for a 4K Blu-ray standard.
- Source: The Hollywood Reporter & The Australian via HDTVtest
No 4K Blu-ray at CES, but it is coming by year's end
