I read an interesting article recently on the mecca of information, www.cnn.com. It spoke of a new technology making the rounds for the optical disc industry to help the retail market prevent theft. The new technology is a microchip placed inside an optical media disc (i.e. CD, DVD, Blu-ray, etc.) that if not activated will render the entire disc useless. It’s a remarkable new technology that prevents critical information on a disc from being read by a DVD player, video game console, etc so that it’s completely inoperable. When this chip is activated, by sending and electronic pulse through the disc to turn the chip from a solid color to clear, the disc is playable.

This opens up a lot more options for retail outlets to carry these products without the fear of high theft rates. Due to the small size of optical discs, even in their packaging, they are an easy target for theft. It’s estimated that theft of electronic products including optical discs accounts for $400 million in loss revenue for retailers every year according to Entertainment Merchants Associations. With this new chip, retailers can display these items again with far less fear of loss due to theft. With more retailers willing to carry these products like movies, video games, etc., and fewer losses due to theft, sales for these items are certain to explode even more than the current levels.

This is a good time to start selling product on optical media or producing content and be ahead of the game.