AfterDawn: News

Disney announces more interactive Blu-ray releases

Walt Disney Studios would like to add more excitement to Blu-ray releases by including Web-enabled and picture-in-picture features on their new BD discs.

National Treasure will be configured as a BD-Live disc, the format’s term for software that features interactivity accessed through the Web.



Picture-in-picture, with which a separate video streams plays concurrently with the feature film, will be included on Finding Nemo and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Although no current set-top Blu-ray players can handle picture-in-picture interactivity, and few besides the PS3 can access the internet to take advantage of BD-Live content, Disney sees these features as important for the format's success.

All Blu-ray players introduced after Oct. 31 are required to handle picture-in-picture. Manufacturers also are expected to start rolling out BD-Live-capable hardware at that time.

Source: Video Business

Written by: Rich Fiscus @ 17 Aug 2007 19:34

• Previous article

• AOL re-launches video search site

• Next article

• Sony launches new HD marketing campaign

• 5 comments

• Unfocused

  Didn't the DVD camp use the special features angle to sell their discs initially?
  
  I remember early DVD's having all kinds of cool extras, but as time wore on, the only way to get these features was to buy four different versions of the same movie just to get an extra five minute interview or a 4 second cut scene.

  17.8.2007 22:58 #1

• nobrainer

  Originally posted by Unfocused: Didn't the DVD camp use the special features angle to sell their discs initially?
  
  I remember early DVD's having all kinds of cool extras, but as time wore on, the only way to get these features was to buy four different versions of the same movie just to get an extra five minute interview or a 4 second cut scene.yes but the problem is that most blu-ray players don't have an rj45 connector and cannot get onto the interweb.
  
  imo extras suck all i want is the film without the added cost of a team of hd disc (both formats) crud fillers.
  

  Track What Companies HaveEdited Wiki http://wikiscanner.virgil.gr/ (very heavy load atm)

  18.8.2007 03:33 #2

• armorthis

  Quote:Originally posted by Unfocused: Didn't the DVD camp use the special features angle to sell their discs initially?
  
  I remember early DVD's having all kinds of cool extras, but as time wore on, the only way to get these features was to buy four different versions of the same movie just to get an extra five minute interview or a 4 second cut scene.yes but the problem is that most blu-ray players don't have an rj45 connector and cannot get onto the interweb.
  
  imo extras suck all i want is the film without the added cost of a team of hd disc (both formats) crud fillers.Same, I almost never watch the extra features.

  18.8.2007 08:01 #3

• Unfocused

  Granted, they could do so much more with special features to make them interesting.
  
  I think all that any of us really want is to put the disc in and have it play the movie within three seconds. I don't want to see previews for other movies or a 5 minute motion menu that I can not fast forward. Just show me the movie.

  18.8.2007 08:15 #4

• borhan9

  Quote:Didn't the DVD camp use the special features angle to sell their discs initially?Some dvds have this feature as a special feature. They are just re-introducing it for the next generation DVD's.

  21.8.2007 22:05 #5