Katarzyna Petru
Sony Japan has officially announced that it will cease the sale of all current Blu-ray recorder models worldwide, and there are no plans for successors. This decision aligns with the company's earlier actions, as in July 2024, Sony reduced 40 percent of its workforce in the optical media department, and in January 2025 confirmed the end of production of recordable Blu-ray MiniDiscs and tapes. In this context, the withdrawal from the Blu-ray recorder market is not surprising but rather a further step towards completely moving away from physical media.
Changes only concern Blu ray recorders
The decision by Sony only relates to Blu ray recorders with recording functionality, and the company does not plan to discontinue the production of standard Blu ray and UHD Blu ray players intended solely for movie playback. Along with the official announcement, models BDZ ZW1900 from 2024 and BDZ FBT4200, BDZ FBT2200 and BDZ FBW2200 from 2023 have been withdrawn from sale. Other Blu ray recorders are to be phased out gradually after February 2026, which signifies the definitive end of this category of devices in Sony's offering.
As noted by FlatpanelsHD, major players such as Oppo, Samsung and LG have already fully exited the Blu-ray player market. Today, these devices are mainly offered by Sony, Panasonic and a small number of specialised premium brands. However, questions are increasingly being raised about the future of the Japanese company in this segment. A key factor could be Sony’s upcoming partnership with TCL, announced for next year, which may influence the company’s long-term strategy around physical media.
Source: sony.jp, FlatpanelsHD
