BDA finalizes specification for 4k and 8k UHD Blu-ray recording in Japan

The Blu-Ray Association has the recordable UHD Blu-ray specification ready to store 4k and 8k broadcasts. The organization will start licensing the standard for recordables in January. 4k/8k satellite broadcasting will start in Japan at the end of 2018.

The BDA targets the Japanese market with the standard because blu-ray has a large market share in the country and is widely used for broadcast recording. About 75 percent of the blu-ray hardware would be a recorder, according to the Japanese AV-Watch.

Victor Matsuda of the BDA calls the expansion of recordable Blu-ray with UHD content a logical step “as 4K becomes the standard not only for TVs, but also for mobile devices and video cameras.” When the BDA begins licensing the specification in January, recorders will be able to develop devices with support for the format over the course of the year.

These could then hit the market at the end of 2018, in time for the start of 4k and 8k satellite broadcasts in the country. The NHK channel wants to start those broadcasts in order to fully master the broadcasting techniques for live images during the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2020.

Details about the recordable UHD Blu-ray specification are not yet published by the Blu-Ray Association. For example, it is unknown whether there are any changes to the aacs 2.0 copy protection.