Editing LaserDisc (section)

== History ==
The origins of [[optical recording]] date back to 1963, when [[David Paul Gregg]] and [[James Russell (inventor)|James Russell]] developed a transparent disc-based system, later patented in 1970.<ref name="Transparent recording disc" /><ref name="Video signal transducer" /><ref name="Disc-shaped member" /> [[MCA Inc.|MCA]] acquired the rights to this technology in 1968. Separately, by 1969, [[Philips]] had developed a [[videodisc]] using reflective technology, which offered advantages over the transparent method. MCA and Philips began collaborating in the early 1970s and publicly demonstrated the videodisc format in 1972. Internally, the technology was known by several names, including Optical Videodisc System, Reflective Optical Videodisc, Laser Optical Videodisc, and Video Long Play.

The format was commercially introduced as MCA DiscoVision on December 11, 1978, in a [[test market]] launch in [[Atlanta]], Georgia,<ref name="CED magic" /> two years after the debut of [[VHS]] and four years before the introduction of the [[Compact disc|CD]], which is based on laser disc technology. The first LaserDisc title released in North America was the MCA DiscoVision edition of ''[[Jaws (film)|Jaws]]'' on December 15, 1978.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mast |first1=Gerald |url=https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofmo00mast_1 |title=A Short History of the Movies |last2=Kawin |first2=Bruce F. |publisher=[[Longman]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-321-10603-2 |location=Harlow, Essex |page=198}}</ref> Philips produced the players, while MCA manufactured the discs; however, the partnership ultimately proved unsuccessful and was dissolved after several years.

In 1980, [[Pioneer Corporation|Pioneer]] acquired a majority stake in the format and began marketing it as both {{vanchor|LaserVision}} (as the format name) and LaserDisc (as the brand). Some releases informally referred to it as {{vanchor|Laser Videodisc}}. Pioneer's LaserDisc players debuted in [[Japan]] in October 1981.<ref name="Pioneer End" />

By 1984, Philips and [[Sony]] had introduced [[LV-ROM]], a version of the format designed to store digital data, offering a capacity of 3.28&nbsp;GB,<ref>{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbh1XP4kCT4&t=954s |title=The Computer Chronicles - Japanese PCs (1984) |date=March 17, 2015 |medium=video |publisher=[[Computer Chronicles]] |time=15:54 |access-date=December 10, 2022}}</ref> foreshadowing the capabilities of later formats such as [[CD-ROM]] or [[DVD-ROM]].

Although LaserDisc never achieved mass-market success, the format gained modest popularity in select markets and developed a niche following. In Japan, market penetration reached approximately 10% of households by 1999.<ref name="Pioneer End" /><ref name="Flaherty" /> In the United States, about 2% of households (roughly two million) owned a player.<ref name="Indiana university" /> As of 2021, LaserDisc retains a small collector community in the United States and Japan.<ref>{{cite web |last=Van Hooker |first=Brian |date=2021 |title=The Film Geeks Who Still Watch Everything on LaserDisc |url=https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/film-geeks-who-still-watch-laserdisc |access-date=2024-06-01 |publisher=[[MEL Magazine]]}}</ref> In Europe, the format remained obscure, though it saw limited institutional use. Notably, the [[British Broadcasting Corporation]] (BBC) employed LaserDisc for the [[BBC Domesday Project]] in the mid-1980s, and from the early 1990s through the late 1990s, also used Sony's CRVdisc variant to broadcast [[History of BBC television idents|television idents]].<ref>{{YouTube|id=KQ-yIsrOUU8|time=14m12s}}</ref><ref>[https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/research/bbc-idents/global-ambition The Story of BBC Television Idents], History of the BBC, accessed July 18, 2019</ref>

LaserDisc was largely supplanted by the [[DVD]] format by the early 2000s. The last LaserDisc title released in North America was Paramount's ''[[Bringing Out the Dead]]'' on October 3, 2000.<ref>{{cite web |title=LaserDisc Museum |url=http://laserdiscplanet.com/museum2.html |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150428093625/http://laserdiscplanet.com/museum2.html |archive-date=April 28, 2015 |access-date=November 27, 2012 |publisher=LASERDISC PLANET}}</ref> In Japan, new titles continued to be released until September 21, 2001, with the final film being the Hong Kong action movie ''[[Tokyo Raiders]]'' from [[Orange Sky Golden Harvest|Golden Harvest]]. The last known LaserDisc release of any kind was ''Onta Station vol. 1018'', a karaoke title issued on March 21, 2007.<ref>{{cite web |title=Karaoke Club (archived) |url=http://teichiku.co.jp/karaokeken/kensaku.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140906112426/http://teichiku.co.jp/karaokeken/kensaku.html |archive-date=September 6, 2014 |access-date=September 6, 2014 |website=Teichiku}}</ref>

Pioneer ceased production of LaserDisc players in July 2009.<ref name="PioneerUKPressRelease20090115" /><ref name="JCNNetwork20090114" /><ref name="HomeMediaMagazine20090114" /> The company continued to offer maintenance services until September 30, 2020, when the remaining parts inventory was exhausted.<ref name="discontinuation-notice-jp">{{cite news |title=For users of laser disc players ～Notice of end of production～ (Archived) |url=https://jpn.pioneer/ja/support/oshirase_etc/ld_info/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201117062330/https://jpn.pioneer/ja/support/oshirase_etc/ld_info/ |archive-date=November 17, 2020 |access-date=March 30, 2023 |newspaper=パイオニア株式会社コーポレートサイト}}</ref> A total of 16.8 million LaserDisc players were sold worldwide, including 9.5 million units sold by Pioneer.<ref name="PioneerUKPressRelease20090115" /><ref name="JCNNetwork20090114" /><ref name="HomeMediaMagazine20090114" />