DataPlay
Optical disc format
DataPlay is an optical disc system developed by DataPlay Inc. and released to the consumer market in 2002. Using tiny (32mm-diameter) disks enclosed in a protective cartridge, it stored 250MB per side and was intended primarily for portable music playback. However, it could also store other types of data using pre-recorded disks and user-recorded disks (and disks that combined pre-recorded content with a writable area). It supported multisession recording. DataPlay Inc. was founded in 1998 by Steve Volk. The company's namesake optical disc won the CES Best of Show award in 2001.
DataPlay also included an elaborate digital rights management system designed to allow consumers to "unlock" extra pre-recorded content on the disk at any time, through the internet, following the initial purchase. It was based on the Secure Digital Music Initiative's DRM system.
“DataPlay” enters the record as optical disc format. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what DataPlay, Optical and disc can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“DataPlay” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, DataPlay, Optical and disc provides the most credible route into that argument.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 30, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1172184. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2002, 1998 and 2001.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “DataPlay”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow DataPlay primary sources, DataPlay archive and DataPlay research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “DataPlay”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “DataPlay” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.