e.Digital Corporation (fka EDIG)

[Tenderloin]

Sony, 8 Others To Begin Licensing Of Blu-ray Disc Format
TOKYO (Dow Jones)--Thursday February 13, 5:34 PM

Nine global electronics makers including Sony Corp. (SNE or 6758) announced Thursday they will begin from Feb. 17 licensing the rewritable format of "Blu-ray Disc", a next-generation large-capacity optical disc utilizing blue-violet laser.

The introduction of products based on the first optical disc format capable of recording high-definition digital broadcasts will allow users to enjoy greater picture quality at home, they said.

The eight other companies are Hitachi Ltd. (HIT or 6501), LG Electronics Inc. (Q.LGE), Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. (MC or 6752), Pioneer Corp. (PIO or 6773), Royal Philips Electronics NV (PHG), Samsung Electronics Co. (Q.SSE), Sharp Corp. (J.SRP or 6753) and Thomson (TMS).



-Tokyo Bureau, Dow Jones Newswires; 813-5255-