Lite-On takes over development of Blu-ray PC drives for BenQ

May 13, 2006

This news from DigiTimes tells us that Lite-On will begin production of half-height PC Blu-ray drive this summer. Basing the hardware on technology from Philips Electronics, Lite-On has taken over the development from BenQ's optical disc drive unit.

The H/H BD drive models had been originally developed by BenQ's ODD unit and Lite-On IT has taken over the development, including the use of technology from Philips that was licensed to BenQ, the sources pointed out. Lite-On IT is expected to take control of BenQ's ODD business in June of this year.

Orders for H/H BD drives were received by Philips BenQ Digital Storage (PBDS), a joint venture between BenQ and Philips, and the production for all OEM/ODM orders received by the company will be taken over by Lite-On IT, the sources indicated.

Interestingly, the report goes on to say that Lite-On IT had cooperated with Sony in an effort to produce the drives initially, however they were unable to make good progress due to reluctance of Sony and other Japanese companies to give key technologies in order to do so. Chipsets and pick-up heads for instance, were being withheld due to concerns of the impact of the competition this would create coming from Taiwan. Lite-On IT has now found a workaround though as they now have access to these technologies through its agreement with BenQ.

Source: DigiTimes