Sony Touts Blue-ray Movies For Japan

According to Famitsu, Sony has announced that 75 movie titles will be available for the Blue-ray in Japan by the end of the year.

When the PS3 launches in Japan, there will be plenty of movies for consumers to choose from. While translating Famitsu's report, Gamespot noted that the DVD player on the PS2 was a big factor in the console's initial success in Japan. That being the case, Sony is counting on a strong movie line-up to help maintain a high level sales.

Sony's official confirmation of Japan's 75 movies by November 8th flies in the face of comments made by Sony's own president of worldwide studios, Phil Harrison. Speaking to the Guardian on August 3rd, Harrison claimed that Sony already had more Blue-ray movies available. "We have shown more playable games than ever before, so the signs are good, and right now there are more than 100 Blu-ray movies available today, in the US. More than 100 games are in development, and all the major third-party publishers have pledged their strategic support for the platform."

The official Blue-ray site lists over 120 movies, although a majority are labeled as not yet shipped or, "Not yet announced, but packaging shown at CES." No official announcements have been made about North America's Blue-ray movie selection when the PS3 launches.