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Fans Help Unravel Tangled Web of Blu-ray Region Codes
Wed Dec 27, 2006 at 02:04 PM ETTags: Region Coding (all tags)
Although region coding was thought to be in place for all commercial Blu-ray releases as of this fall, the reality of the situation turns out to be a bit more complicated -- but that's good news for multi-region disc buyers.
Back in early October, the Blu-ray Disc Association announced that they had decided to require burning a new and improved set of regional codes onto discs. Reports at the time indicated that member studio Warner Bros had opposed the system, citing the ineffectiveness of the current coding setup for conventional DVDs, but had been outvoted.
And while some Blu-ray supporting studios (namely Sony, Fox, Disney and Paramount) quickly began releasing discs with the new region-codes, some fans have discovered that only handful of the discs released by these studios have been "region-locked," meaning that most discs still play on non-matching region players.
At the same time, it seems both Warner and Lionsgate have yet to adopt Blu-ray region coding at all, leaving all of their discs burned with "no region," and hence also playable across all regions.
Sound confusing? It is, but thanks to some enterprising fans, now there's a web resource that helps make sense of this increasingly tangled web. First pointed out to us by High-Def Digest Forums member zombieflanders, the site (accessible directly at http://bluray.lindsite.dk) tracks which US and European Blu-ray titles are region-coded, which are region-blocked, and which are region-free.
As the site points out, there is one golden ticket in the land of Blu-ray region-codes -- but it comes at a price. The US launch version of Samsung's BD-P1000 with the original firmware is effectively a region-free player, allowing playback of all discs, regardless of region-code. Of course, without the firmware upgrade, you'll have to put up with a host of other inefficiencies, but perhaps they're worth it for some...
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Related links:
- List of US and EU BDs with Region Code Info [http://bluray.lindsite.dk]
- Earlier on High-Def Digest:
- Blu-ray to Begin Region-Coding This Fall (Oct 04, 2006)
Blu-ray to Begin Region-Coding This Fall
Wed Oct 04, 2006 at 12:39 PM ETTags: Region Coding (all tags)
It looks like the days of region-free Blu-ray disc playback are coming to an end. The Blu-ray Disc Association has decided to begin burning regional codes onto discs sold in the format beginning this fall.
While the Bu-ray group had devised a regional coding system last year, there was some question whether it would be used to prevent playback across regions.
Variety is reporting this morning that the decision to institute the coding system emerged from talks between Advanced Access Content System members who belong to the Blu-ray Disc Association. Warner Bros. reportedly opposed the system, citing the ineffectiveness of the current coding setup for conventional DVDs, but was outvoted.
On the bright side for consumers, the Blu-ray group's regional coding system splits the world into three markets (instead of the more restrictive six markets for standard DVD). Those markets are as follows: Region A, covering Japan, South Korea, the Americas and most of Southeast Asia; Region B, which includes Europe and the Middle East; and Region C, which includes China, Russia, India and other countries.
The HD DVD camp has yet to institute region codes, and has said in the past that they won't.
- Related links:
- Blu-ray regional code to fight piracy [Variety, subscription req'd]
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