Triple-format disc could end HD confusion

Stack rival formats on the same media, says Warner engineers

A disc format that could hold movies in the rival HD DVD and Blu-ray high-definition formats, as well as DVD, has been proposed by two leading engineers at Warner.

The two high-definition formats would be written on one side of the same disc at different depths under the system proposed by engineers Alan Bell and Lewis Ostrover. DVD and CD content would be written on the other side of the disc, reports New Scientist .

The proposals could avert confusion in the industry and on the high street over the competing formats.

Conventional Blu-ray content is stored on a disc at a depth of 0.1mm while HD DVD content is buried deeper at 0.6mm. The Warner engineers have proposed a Blu-ray top layer that would allow enough light through from a player to the HD-DVD content below.

The news comes just as Warner released both HD DVD and Blu-ray titles, a costly situation for many movie studios. See here for the patent application for the technology.