'Live' interactivity still no-show for Blu-ray
Feature to be touted at CES; Fox targets second half of 2007
By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 12/8/2006
DEC. 8 | BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.—At the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show, Blu-ray Disc supporters hyped BD Live, the format’s ability to deliver new content to disc via broadband connections. At the 2007 show, the Blu-ray camp will once again beat the drum for BD Live with demonstrations of the technology, which isn’t expected to actually be used on movie releases until the second half of next year.
The PS3 is currently the only Blu-ray player that supports BD Live.
In fact, the first stand-alone Blu-ray players from Sony, Philips, Panasonic and Samsung in stores now lack the interactivity capabilities necessary to download media content onto system hard drives. That’s expected to be remedied with second-generation players due some time next year.
Sony’s PlayStation 3, which is severely limited in quantity, is currently the only Blu-ray player that can handle BD Live interactivity.
Most studios have shied away from pinpointing when they will use BD Live on their movies. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment has said it won’t release its first BD Live-infused titles until the latter half of 2007.
Philips and Fox executives talked of the limitations during a recent Blu-ray informational meeting here.
“You’ll see it happen soon,” said Marty Gordon, Philips VP, following the meeting. “At this point, it is like the chicken or the egg question. We want there to be hardware in place and want to have the software in place.”
Rival HD DVD technology also includes the ability to refresh titles over the Internet. With its built-in Ethernet connection, Toshiba’s HD DVD player can already download content. The company has already offered several Ethernet-enabled firmware updates.
But no HD DVD titles featuring connectivity have so far been slated.
Both Blu-ray and HD DVD camps are preparing to first demonstrate Internet-enhanced bonus features at January’s CES.
Potential demos might include two different high-def players synchronizing, so users can watch an event and interact with it at the same time. Or studio execs might show off deleted scenes that viewers access some time after the disc streets.
Kevin Collins, director of HD DVD evangelism at Microsoft, believes the Internet connectivity feature will help drive consumers to its side.
“BD Live is an optional profile for their players,” Collins said. “It’s mandatory and one of the biggest advantages to the HD DVD players.”
However, Philips’ Gordon noted that many interested Blu-ray consumers are not even equipped to handle BD Live.
“Some have an Internet connection by their TV and some don’t,” Gordon said. “We are watching consumer demand closely.”
Retailer Crutchfield.com believes that its first Blu-ray consumers aren’t focused on advanced bonus features but rather influenced most by upgraded video and sound.
“If there is a fringe audience worried about that, why don’t they just go on a computer and download all of that?” asked Rick Souder, Crutchfield.com executive VP of merchandise. “The people that would be interested in downloading are early adopters, and they are the only [consumer segment] that would be thinking about that. But the lack of that feature [on Blu-ray stand-alone units] is not stopping them from buying the players.”
Crutchfield’s two bricks-and-mortar stores sold through initial Sony stock on the first day players became available, which was after Dec. 4. The retailer does not carry Philips products, but Toshiba HD DVD and Panasonic player sales also have been steady.
Fox believes the wait for BD Live might actually spur momentum for the format.
“It will add to the attraction of Blu-ray and keep the ball rolling with the hype,” said Clayton Biele, Fox IT operations manager. “By holiday season of 2007, Blu-ray will be in full force.”
By that time, it’s probable that some Blu-ray manufacturers will roll out BD Live-enabled, next-generation stand-alone players. Additional PS3s should be released into the market through the upcoming holidays.
