Sony has announced that it will cease Blu-ray disc production entirely, along with several other legacy formats.
As of February this year, Sony will no longer produce Blu-ray discs. The company had already stopped Blu-ray production for the consumer market, and now the business segment no longer generates enough revenue to continue. Along with Blu-ray, minidiscs (which were still being manufactured), related MD data discs, and mini DV tapes will also be discontinued. If you still use an older DV video camera, now is the time to stock up on tapes.
The End of an Era for Physical Media
Other manufacturers have already taken similar steps to phase out Blu-ray. It remains unclear whether Sony will also halt production of its Blu-ray players, but the trend suggests it’s likely. LG stopped producing 4K Blu-ray players in December 2024, and Samsung ended its Blu-ray player production in 2019, at least in the U.S.
With Sony’s withdrawal, the future of Blu-ray as a format seems uncertain. Blu-ray never gained significant traction among consumers, who have increasingly embraced streaming services – a shift that’s hardly surprising.
A Dwindling Market
Sony’s decision marks the gradual end of an era for physical media. For those interested, Sony’s official announcement (in Japanese) can be found on their website. Don’t forget to use your browser’s translation tool to read it. Unless you read (and understand) Japanese fluently, of course.