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July 30, 2007 - Shortly after Blu-ray's launch last year the word got around pretty quickly that Sony was blocking the adult entertainment industry's access to distributing pornography on Blu-ray (link). We dug deeper into the story and interviewed Joone, the founder of Digital Playground (link). According to his experience on the frontlines, the real problem was getting the Blu-ray discs pressed in quantity, as all the major replication facilities were contractually obligated to not touch any adult material. Smaller facilities reportedly feared retribution from Sony. As such, adult entertainment in the States has seriously favored HD-DVD, leading to many analogies to the VHS / Betamax format war in which porn played a major role.

Times seem to be changing however, at least in Japan. According to several producers at the recent Adult Treasure Expo 2007 in Chiba, Japan, Sony has begun offering extensive technical support to the domestic adult entertainment industry. Various restrictions exist on how discs can be replicated in Japan as well as the US, but a workaround has been engineered in which Taiwanese replicators have been granted licenses and equipment from Sony to press adult Blu-ray releases and send them back to Japan. Mass production is slated to begin in August.

It wouldn't be surprising to see a similar solution engineered for America, and there are, in fact, already a few Blu-ray releases available here. Now the only hurdle left for Hentai fans looking for some tentacle action in 1080p is finding a reliable exporter in Japan. Stuffing your luggage full of the stuff on your next vacation won't work, as the Japanese like to keep their homegrown porn all to themselves, and they'll confiscate anything they find when you try to leave the country.

Source: http://gear.ign.com/articles/809/809250p1.html