Blu Ray in Patent Infringemet suit

[neil wilkes]

From an original post at
http://www.mmbforums.com/ipb/index.php?showtopic=19611&pid=118673&st=40&#entry118673

More on-topic is the revelation that a prominent American scientist has filed patent infringement complaints against thirty companies including Sony, Toshiba, LG, Sharp, Samsung and Panasonic. The complainant, Gertrude Neumark Rothschild of Hartsdale, New York, is Howe Professor Emerita of Materials Science at New York's Columbia University, and has a long and distinguished history of research into semiconductors. She holds a patent detailing LEDs and laser diodes that emit short-wavelength light and in particular the blue-laser diodes that are key components in Blu-ray Disc and HD-DVD players and storage devices. Rothschild wants the US International Trade Commission (ITC) to ban the import into the US of any products the organisation finds that contain components that infringe her patent. If the ITC finds in her favour, it will be rather bad news for those manufacturers - and for Hollywood - who are desperately trying to promote BD.

It's not such good news for mobile phones companies either. The ITC is also investigating, among others, Nokia, Motorola and Sony Ericson based on the same patent-infringing complaint.

Hers is not, I am reliably informed, a classic "patent squatting" ambush.

Interestingly, THX's Chief Scientist, Laurie Fincham, predicted this week that Blu-Ray will never really take off. "By the time Blu-ray really finds a mass market, we will have 128GB cards," he says. "I would guess that getting studios to supply movies on media cards, or offer downloads, will be a lot easier than getting them to sign up to support a disc format." "In the future I want to be able to carry four to five movies around with me in a wallet, or walk into a store and have someone copy me a movie to a USB device," Fincham forecasts. "Stores will like that idea, because it's all about having zero inventory. I don't want to take up shelf space with dozens of HD movies."

Fincham's remarks echo those of Steve Jobs but Jobs is in the business of selling downloads. Fincham is not, he's a content producer so possibly has greater credibility.

One cannot help but laugh at this.

 

[PossumPete]

Imagine the size of the hard disc you would need to store all those downloads! I have over 1000 dvds (Blu, HD and SD). That's why I don't think downloads will take off the way a very few people have suggested. Plus people like shiny things to hold on to.

 

[winopener]

That will be really ridiculous... after shooting HD-DVD to death someone else is going to kills blu-ray but from a different perspective - and a very tough one!
What's left, the chinese EVD, which is red-led based, as a HD format? Maybe they will include dvd-a backward compatibility too...

For the 128Gb card... i tend to agree. Sure a SD looks a lot less sexy than a shiny disc, but... even the black disc (vinyl) steped down from his throne for the little-cute-shiny offspring... a further transition among the same kind of media, which is digital, is very likely. Reliability is to be seen but for sure long-term should be better than any R/RW shiny disc of today, be cd or dvd, and physical storage space will become finally irrelevant.
Maybe most of you have some extra room for all the hardware and software stuff, i'm very packed into a 4,50x4,00 meters room along with nearly 5000 digital discs (all kind), hundred of Q8 tapes, quad and stereo vinyls that are waiting to enter the digital domain, books, tools and the main quad system. The possibility of squashing all these walls of bits into a stack of SD cards that will take the space of a cigarette carton box is *very* welcomed from me!!!

 

[Chris Gerhard]

I read about this some time ago and I don't have a clue if this patent infringement suit will amount to anything, but it isn't good news for Blu-ray which is off to a slow start in any event. As far as downloads and 128GB media cards, who knows at this point? Personally, I hope Blu-ray finds a market.

Chris

 

[winopener]

Download isn't a way for movie content until there is real broadband but media card it is... just think how much sale space will save. Any kiosk could have a rack of hard drives with movies ready to copy on SD card. No inventory, no returns... much more than appealing. Look for it in three years.

 

[JonUrban]

Download isn't a way for movie content until there is real broadband but media card it is... just think how much sale space will save. Any kiosk could have a rack of hard drives with movies ready to copy on SD card. No inventory, no returns... much more than appealing. Look for it in three years.

And when a "remastered" anniversary edition comes out, you just write over the old version!

Of course, by the time that happens, all of us "quad guys" will be being wheeled around and having our drool wiped off our chins!

 

[Bob Squires Jr]

Of course, by the time that happens, all of us "quad guys" will be being wheeled around and having our drool wiped off our chins!

Dunnow about the wheels but the drool thing... I do that already! :kitty:

 

[ClarkNovak]

i'm very packed into a 4,50x4,00 meters room along with nearly 5000 digital discs (all kind), hundred of Q8 tapes, quad and stereo vinyls that are waiting to enter the digital domain, books, tools and the main quad system. The possibility of squashing all these walls of bits into a stack of SD cards that will take the space of a cigarette carton box is *very* welcomed from me!!!

Winopener, when you finally do this, I'll take all that worthless inventory off your hands for you. I won't even charge you anything to haul it away

 

[winopener]

Clark,

i'm sorry for you but i've just been notified last week that in the next months i will be moving on another location - now in Rome - so there is the real possibility to be on a larger room and not so packed as today.
However, if you want to come here and give me a hand for packing/unpacking... that's very welcomed. I can give to you in advance some "extremely rare, don't miss this opportunity, last time i've saw that on iBot was 32 years ago" Charley Pride or Danny Davis Q8 - the Ford "introduction to quadrasonic sound" carts are already reserved for someone else.