Over 300 executives from the global home entertainment industry gathered in April 2008 in the beautiful surroundings of Paris in springtime to debate the burning issues facing their business.

Spending on standard DVD may be plateauing, but the speakers at PEVE Digital Entertainment 2008 found plenty of reasons to be cheerful. Opening keynote speaker Ron Sanders, President of Warner Home Video reminded delegates of the sheer size of the video business: "DVD is now Warner Bros.'s single largest business; it accounts for half of all revenue generated by feature films and about 30 per cent of revenue generated by television." And both he and fellow keynoter, Matt Brown, EVP International for Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, urged delegates from across the industry to capitalise on Blu-ray Disc (BD)'s ability to fill what the latter called the "HD content gap" – the fact that by 2012, Screen Digest data shows that 75 per cent of European HDTV households will still not be receiving HD broadcasts.

Declaring that "software sales are ready to explode", Sanders told delegates that "Sony is actively working with us to convert PS3 owners into Blu-ray movie watchers". The importance of such a move was reinforced by Tom Adams, President of Screen Digest's US research division, Adams Media Research, who demonstrated that even a slight uplift in average BD buy rates among PS3 homes would have a substantial impact on sales. A key issue, however, and one further addressed during a session dedicated to the future of the BD format, is the need for the industry to ramp up BD replication capacity fast enough to meet such a potential increase in demand.

A key focus of the event was the evolving digital delivery business. Although often portrayed as the nemesis of the packaged media business, it was perhaps a sign of the increasing maturity of the video sector that many speakers were keen to stress the opportunities offered by the coexistence of packaged and digital media. Recent moves to include 'digital copy' (also known as 'second session') electronic movie files on DVDs were welcomed as introducing traditional DVD buyers to an easy – and, crucially, legal - way to access digital content. The continuing fragmentation of the digital marketplace remains a barrier to progress, although the increasing willingness of the Hollywood studios to experiment with different business models is a positive development.

The number of ways of distributing digital content continues to proliferate; Matt Jeffery of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe told delegates that the online PlayStation Store, accessible through the PS3, will soon offer another platform for digital movies in Europe, whilst Microsoft's Robin Truchy, Director of Xbox Live Europe outlined that platform's expansion from games into on demand music and movies. Meanwhile Christophe Geoffroy, International Non-food Director for the Carrefour Group, used his keynote speech to announce that the world's second largest retailer plans to introduce movie downloads in key European markets later this year. Simon Calver, CEO of LoveFilm International sounded a warning note as he reminded delegates that "free is the price point people want to pay online" and stressed that in the intensely competitive digital delivery space heavyweight consumer brands will have a substantial advantage.

Although digital is a hot topic for discussion, Screen Digest forecasts that it will account for just four per cent of movie spending in the US and Europe by 2012. This balance was reflected by the continuing plea from speakers not to lose sight of the vital packaged media business. And whilst the industry is clearly excited about the potential of Blu-ray, speaker after speaker stressed the need not to neglect the huge business that is standard DVD. Both Matt Brown of Sony and Carrefour's Geoffroy urged the industry to bring the excitement back into promoting DVD – and not to simply fall back on aggressive price promotions. Meanwhile a panel of European retailers agreed that DVD can still drive revenues if marketed properly.

But perhaps the greatest buzz over the two days was generated by a session examining the contention that 3D represents the 'next logical step' in home entertainment after high definition.

Visual effects pioneer Tim Sassoon of Sassoon Film Design reinforced the vital importance of packaged media to the film business by telling the assembled video executives that "3D cinema cannot exist without 3D home entertainment!" Although 3D is currently reinvigorating box office takings, a secondary, in-home market for 3D titles is essential to securing a continuous flow of product. Alan Bell, Chief Technology Officer at Paramount, although enthusiastic about the potential of in-home 3D programming argued convincingly that the first step must be to establish industry standards. Delegates had a chance to view some eye-opening 3D content on the big screen (during a presentation by 3Dlized's Philippe Gérard) and on a standard HDTV set in the foyer courtesy of Trioviz, whose co-founder Christophe Brossier was also on the panel. Asked to estimate how long it would take for 3D systems to achieve 10 per cent penetration of TV households, Sassoon was the only one prepared to hazard a guess: "Five years for systems using glasses; 10 years for systems without glasses… and 20 years for full holographic systems."

Ultimately, the panel agreed, the supply of content – rather than technology – is the barrier to growth for investment in the medium. So far, animation is leading the move to 3D, since the incremental production costs are substantially lower than for live-action film. Both Disney (and subsidiary Pixar) and DreamWorks Animation have committed to producing all animated features in 3D from 2009 and other studios are also getting involved. But all speakers agreed that a steady stream of premium content, across all genres, is needed if 3D is to evolve into a mainstream home entertainment option.

While the programme for PEVE Digital Entertainment 2008 was broader than at any previous PEVE conference, and attracted a correspondingly larger and more high profile audience than ever before, some aspects of this unique event, such as the unparalleled networking opportunities, remained unchanged. Many delegates commented on the stunning venue - the Maison Internationale at Paris's Cité Universitaire Internationale was built in 1936 as a replica of the Château at Fontainbleu. Meanwhile, another much-loved PEVE tradition was upheld on the evening of the first full day of the conference, when the PEVE Gala Dinner was celebrated in true style, thanks to long-term sponsors Cinram, at the elegant Pavillon Dauphine in Paris's historic Bois de Boulogne.