The Blu-ray Disc Association is deploying several initiatives throughout Europe to bring awareness of the hires disc format to the next stage. Some industry tenors had lamented that not enough had been done so far to engage consumers.

To ensure that the retailers are up to speed on the BD and HD technologies to help consumers make informed decisions, in Sweden, the Blu-ray Forum and the HDTV Forum teamed up with the local electronics association to create a new joint certification programme which tests participating retailers on their technical knowledge. Successful entrants receive a badge and door sticker for their store, that ought to give customers greater confidence in their staff.

The certification programme was launched in June and has so far been a great success, claims the BDA, with a wide range of retailers lining up to take part. So far, over 300 retail stores and 1,000 sales reps have been certified, and it is hoped that 1,500 sales reps can be successfully trained by the end of October.

After phase one is completed, a second phase will be rolled out to the other Scandinavian countries, starting with Denmark.

To show consumers the true potential of their HDTVs, the Blu-ray Disc Association is going on a tour of shopping malls throughout the Benelux. In that region, over half of households now own high-definition televisions, but many still only use them to watch standard definition content. The tour lets the public have hands-on time with the latest BD players and discs, “experiencing films in the way originally intended by the filmmakers.”

The tour began in Amsterdam this weekend. The whistle stops include:

- Utrecht (Hoog Catherijne shopping mall), Friday 30 and Saturday 31 October
- Luik (Les Galeries St. Lambert shopping mall), Friday 6 and Saturday 7 November
- Brussels (City 2 shopping mall), Friday 13 and Saturday 14 November
- Amstelveen (Amstelveen shopping mall), Friday 20 and Saturday 21 November
- Rotterdam (Zuidplein shopping mall), Friday 27 and 28 November
- St. Niklaas (Waasland shopping mall), Friday 4 and Saturday 5 December
- Antwerp (Stadsfeestzaal shopping mall), Friday 11 and Saturday 12 December

Getting a supportive press is a key component of the BDA promotion strategy. Last month, Blu-ray Partners France – the national Blu-ray Disc promotion group – held its Blu-ray Disc press summit at the Deauville American Film Festival. The event was the first in a series of BD Film Festivals organised across Europe, which have been scheduled in Milan, Prague, Stockholm and Brussels during this Autumn.

The press summit included a visit to the specially-designed Blu-ray booth, where BD experts were on hand to demonstrate and discuss the latest players and discs.

After Milan and Prague, upcoming Blu-ray Disc Film Festivals will take place in Brussels (29 October), Stockholm (19-20 November) and Oslo (24-25 November).

Story filed 25.10.09