What is more surprising, however, is Sony's decision to also stop the production of writable MiniDiscs and MiniDV tapes.
MiniDisc, a Sony-developed storage format introduced in 1992, was initially aimed at replacing CDs for music listening. It gained a brief period of popularity in the 1990s but was quickly overtaken by recordable CDs and, later, MP3 files at the turn of the millennium. Sony ceased production of MiniDisc players in 2013. While the MiniDisc format is largely considered a footnote in the history of digital media, the MD Data format, used for computer data storage, was even more obscure.
MiniDV, a digital video format introduced in 1995, was a key player in the format wars of the late 1990s. It emerged as the dominant standard for consumer digital camcorders, but was eventually overtaken by memory card -based camcorders and, later, smartphones, which became the primary tool for home video recording.
All production of these three formats will cease in February 2025. However, writable Blu-ray discs for home use will still be available, as other companies like Verbatim continue manufacturing them. The fate of writable MiniDiscs, however, is more dire, given that Sony has long been the primary manufacturer of these discs, with few alternatives available.
It's important to note that Sony's announcement (Japanese) does not affect the production of professional-grade Blu-ray discs for the film industry, which will continue.
Written by: Petteri Pyyny @ 24 Jan 2025 11:27
