LG ceases production of Blu-ray discs and players. The media thus seems to be moving quietly towards its imminent death.
LG has not presented a new device since 2018. But Flatpanelshd announces today that the Korean technology group has simply stopped production of existing models. The readers still on sale come from stock, as no new devices have yet been manufactured.
LG, however, has not given any official confirmation to the site that it is definitively ceasing to produce players: it even seems to leave an opening in case the format regains popularity.
In fact, streaming and digital downloads have captured a major portion of the video market for some time. Samsung had already abandoned this format in the United States in 2019 – and its last model dates from 2017. Oppo, Panasonic, Sony and other producers have not released new models for years.
2005
The Blu-ray dates from 2005, when it succeeded the DVD. The format is the result of a collaboration between Sony, Panasonic, Philips and TDK. Since discs could hold up to 25 gigabytes of data (versions of 50 to 128 gigabytes also appeared later), they were suitable for films in 4K quality. At the time, the format competed with HD-DVD with comparable performance, but the industry quickly preferred Blu-Ray. Readers were thus integrated into the PlayStation 3 and 4 and later the Xbox One.
Streaming
But while the format was booming, the industry was also taking its first steps into streaming. And over the last ten years, platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime or Disney+ have largely established themselves. At the same time, both major platforms and local internet providers offer opportunities to purchase or rent films on demand. The Blu-ray format has therefore lost much of its interest.
Ars Technica notes, however, that the format is not yet dead: even if the manufacture of players has almost ceased, fans continue to cherish Blu-ray or DVD. The disappearance of many films from streaming services and the multiple examples of digital downloads that evaporated after purchase still encourage some moviegoers to prefer to have a physical copy of their favorite films or series. It also happens that scenes that are no longer “in tune with the times” are modified in the versions available for streaming. Think about racist or sexist responses. For some, this argument too can justify owning a physical copy containing the original film.
And if the big brands abandon production, the Blu-ray player is not yet completely extinct. A new device appeared at the beginning of the year, for the modest sum of three thousand dollars. But the role of the disc as a general public medium seems little by little to be over.
