HD-DVD feels Blu-ray sting

[BBlue]

HD-DVD feels Blu-ray sting

Darren Osborne | December 11, 2007

HD-DVD may struggle to gain ground in the Australian market this Christmas after poor sales figures and a lack of interest by consumers.
HD-DVD feels Blu-ray sting

Blu-ray outpaces HD-DVD
A report from analyst GfK Marketing Services shows Blu-ray sales in October made up 95 per cent of the high-definition DVD market, with HD-DVD capturing the remaining 5 per cent.

"This report quite clearly depicts the current state of play in the high-definition format market in Australian homes," says Sony Australia managing director Carl Rose.

However, a statement from the HD-DVD Consortium suggests that the tide may be turning, with HD-DVD experiencing a recent growth in sales.

"The results in November to date have already shown that momentum is moving significantly towards HD-DVD and has had an immediate effect on the market," the statement said.

"In the last three weeks, shares of HD-DVD have been 37 per cent, 31 per cent and 23 per cent, respectively - higher than the October number quoted in the report."

Although both formats are still in their early adopter stage in Australia, the numbers still do not look good for HD-DVD. To the end of October, 97,788 Blu-ray players (including Playstation 3) had been sold in Australia, compared with just 3820 HD-DVD players.

Earlier this week, the country's two leading movie rental chains, Video Ezy and Blockbuster, announced their support of Blu-ray, claiming HD-DVD was not taking the Australian market seriously enough.

And in another blow to the struggling format, a recent media event organised by HD-DVD backer Toshiba was postponed until January, possibly robbing the format of some well-needed exposure in the lead-up to Christmas.

AAP

http://www.australianit.news.com.au/...013037,00.html