http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3639585.stm

The paper discs are also expected to be cheaper to produce than current DVDs.

Does that mean DVD movies will be cheaper off the shelves? Doubtably.

Does that mean DVD movies will be cheaper off the shelves? Doubtably.

Yeah but I think it means they will now use more plastic in the packaging.

Woah... Be careful and make sure the disc stops spinning before taking it out of the drive.. Talk about a papercut!

Me.

This will make it so much easier to copy movies, just pop down to your local Kinko's.

Don't like it, not for one bit. The read surface is bare to the world. I'll grant that the read surface of current cd's is just under a single layer of paint, but that is a lot more protection than these things have.

I'm betting these things aren't very water-resistant. (or any other fluid for that matter)

If you read more closely, it says that the disc is "51% paper". They don't say what the rest of the disc is made out of. Based on the photo of somebody holding the discs, I assume it's plastic, since they appear to be rigid. It could be something as lame as replacing the current top-layer of CDs (varnish and paint) with paper and glue, for all the article has to say.

Maybe it's plastic on top, with paper "printed" below with the high-density bits as ink, toner, or heaven only knows what else. Clearly, such a system would be more vulnerable to scratching and whatnot.

Well, it does imply that the data layer is paper, as it says that the Blu-Ray spec doesn't require the laser to travel through a substrate.