With the first Dual Disc releases now on the market, Sony Electronics in the US yesterday alerted their retailers of the limitations of the new format. Dual Discs are a compact disc which acts as an audio CD on one side, and as DVD on the other. The new technology has been pioneered by Warner Music, and they and independent label Silverline Records have already released a handful of titles using the format. All other major labels, including Sony, are expected to follow suit in the next few months.
However Sony Electronics remain cautious of the new technology, telling their retailers this week: "As you are no doubt aware, the music industry is on the verge of launching a new two sided media product called Dual Disc. The audio side of this new media does not meet the technical specifications to be called an Audio Compact Disc. The DVD video content on the DVD side of the Dual Disc should play on, and be compatible with, Sony DVD players and DVD drives. However, Sony DVD players and drives do not support DVD Audio and these devices will not play the DVD Audio formatted content offered on the DVD side of a Dual Disc but should play all other audio content offered on the DVD side. In addition, since the audio side of the Dual Disc does not comply with Audio Compact Disc specifications, it may not be read by Sony DVD and CD players and drives. In an effort to inform consumers, Sony Electronics will be placing stickers on some of our products in the future alerting consumers to these potential compatibility issues"
The people behind the Dual Disc are playing down the compatibility issues, confident the number of players unable to play the discs will be relatively low. However early reports suggest there are some problems across the board with a number of PCs, car systems, CD and DVD players struggling with the new format. If the format does prove difficult as it rolls out some artists may choose to release albums with a separate CD and DVD disc in the same box, rather than going for the 'two discs in one' option.