Sony to drop XDCam and BluRay Products at DVinfo.net

Daniel Wang · March 28th, 2006, 10:34 PM

http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/70284

ony to abandon further development of its Professional Disc for Data

Sony has decided to abandon any further development of its Professional Disc for Data (PDD). The PDD is a cartridge disc that can store up to 23 gigabytes of data and is a professional version of the Blu-ray disc. The drives of this type were launched in the middle of 2004, in response to Plasmon's Ultra Density Optical (UDO) system. According to its own statements, however, Plasmon in conjunction with HP has a market share of 95 percent in the field of professional optical libraries. UDO storage media can store up to 30 gigabytes of data on each side. Their 5.25-inch cartridges are compatible with magneto-optical storage media and can hence be integrated into existing MO libraries -- an advantage apparently rated higher by many customers than the somewhat higher transfer rates of PDD. Anzeige

The original plan was for the storage capacity and transfer rates of PDD to double from generation to generation every two to three years. To achieve this Sony intended among other steps to use drives with two read/write heads. This approach has come to naught, however. The PDD roadmap has disappeared from the official website. Sony will continue to sell its first-generation drives until the end of next year. Support for the devices would be maintained up until 2014, Sony has stated. The company has moreover vowed that the storage media will continue to be available beyond that date.

As an alternative to its approach so far the company would concentrate on Blu-ray discs without cartridges, which had the potential to replace the customers' extant DVD libraries, the company declared. The development of the Professional Disc for Broadcast (XDCam) and of the Japanese cartridge variant of the Blu-ray disc would according to Sony not be affected by the termination of the further development of PDD.

Simon Wyndham · March 30th, 2006, 07:37 AM

As you can see by that last statement Sony are *not* going to drop xdcam, so the title of this thread is very misleading.

Chris Hurd · March 30th, 2006, 08:04 AM

And that's why it's in Area 51, I guess.

Simon Wyndham · March 30th, 2006, 08:15 AM

Doh! :-)

March 28th, 2006, 10:34 PM	#1
Daniel Wang Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Rochester, NY Posts: 113	Sony to drop XDCam and BluRay Products http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/70284 ony to abandon further development of its Professional Disc for Data Sony has decided to abandon any further development of its Professional Disc for Data (PDD). The PDD is a cartridge disc that can store up to 23 gigabytes of data and is a professional version of the Blu-ray disc. The drives of this type were launched in the middle of 2004, in response to Plasmon's Ultra Density Optical (UDO) system. According to its own statements, however, Plasmon in conjunction with HP has a market share of 95 percent in the field of professional optical libraries. UDO storage media can store up to 30 gigabytes of data on each side. Their 5.25-inch cartridges are compatible with magneto-optical storage media and can hence be integrated into existing MO libraries -- an advantage apparently rated higher by many customers than the somewhat higher transfer rates of PDD. Anzeige The original plan was for the storage capacity and transfer rates of PDD to double from generation to generation every two to three years. To achieve this Sony intended among other steps to use drives with two read/write heads. This approach has come to naught, however. The PDD roadmap has disappeared from the official website. Sony will continue to sell its first-generation drives until the end of next year. Support for the devices would be maintained up until 2014, Sony has stated. The company has moreover vowed that the storage media will continue to be available beyond that date. As an alternative to its approach so far the company would concentrate on Blu-ray discs without cartridges, which had the potential to replace the customers' extant DVD libraries, the company declared. The development of the Professional Disc for Broadcast (XDCam) and of the Japanese cartridge variant of the Blu-ray disc would according to Sony not be affected by the termination of the further development of PDD. Last edited by Daniel Wang; March 28th, 2006 at 10:40 PM. Reason: Paste in article

March 30th, 2006, 08:04 AM	#3
Chris Hurd Obstreperous Rex Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 27,366 Images: 513	And that's why it's in Area 51, I guess. __________________ CH Search DV Info Net \| 20 years of DVi \| ...Tuesday is Soylent Green Day!

March 30th, 2006, 07:37 AM	#2
Simon Wyndham Trustee Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Malvern UK Posts: 1,931	As you can see by that last statement Sony are not going to drop xdcam, so the title of this thread is very misleading.

March 30th, 2006, 08:15 AM	#4
Simon Wyndham Trustee Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Malvern UK Posts: 1,931	Doh! :-)