“Format War”: Fact Or Fiction…?

[eric0819]

A recent article explained that companies that supported Blu-Ray are now waivering. Hewl;ett Packard was first and is releasing a $100 HD DVD add on option for their computers. Next will be movie studios that have agreed to release only on Blu-Ray for an undisclosed time period. They never agreed to never release on HD DVD, there is no contract.

[Maximus]

Originally Posted by eric0819

A recent article explained that companies that supported Blu-Ray are now waivering. Hewl;ett Packard was first and is releasing a $100 HD DVD add on option for their computers. Next will be movie studios that have agreed to release only on Blu-Ray for an undisclosed time period. They never agreed to never release on HD DVD, there is no contract.

Care to link? Thought not, I doubt the article actually exists.

This is the stupidest post I have ever seen, especially since Disney and Fox have gone on-record to say they have 'no plans to release on HD DVD' see DigitalBits.

[JTK]

Originally Posted by Maxpower1987

Care to link? Thought not, I doubt the article actually exists.

This is the stupidest post I have ever seen, especially since Disney and Fox have gone on-record to say they have 'no plans to release on HD DVD' see DigitalBits.

I agree. Looks like the mods did as well.

[theknub]

since we don't know when we was suspended, i can't tell if i called him out or if we was suspended first. either way, no more rhetoric from him.

[hyperdine]

Originally Posted by theknub

since we don't know when we was suspended, i can't tell if i called him out or if we was suspended first. either way, no more rhetoric from him.

Hats off to the mods. Nice job.

[hyperdine]

Originally Posted by eric0819

A recent article explained that companies that supported Blu-Ray are now waivering. Hewl;ett Packard was first and is releasing a $100 HD DVD add on option for their computers. Next will be movie studios that have agreed to release only on Blu-Ray for an undisclosed time period. They never agreed to never release on HD DVD, there is no contract.

Where's the link to this article? What's the source. This appears to be retread of the same rumor and speculation we've heard since June. Here's a quote from someone (Bill Hunt of thedigitalbits) who has actually spoken directly with the studios. This was as of Dec 11th.

"I've just spoken today with Eric Maehara, VP of Communications for Buena Vista Home Entertainment. He informed me that the studio is planning to announce a MAJOR Blu-ray Disc release line-up for the first half of 2007 at CES. In addition, he reiterated to me in no uncertain terms that BVHE has no plans to support HD-DVD, despite persistent online rumors to the contrary.

I've also spoken this afternoon with Steve Feldstein, Senior VP of Corporate and Marketing Communications for 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. He likewise confirmed that Fox has no plans to support HD-DVD, and that the studio will also be announcing additional Blu-ray Disc titles at CES."

Hadn't heard of the HP $100 drive. That price point seems pretty unlikely given the cost of manufacturing drives with blue laser diodes.

[dobyblue]

Originally Posted by eric0819

ANext will be movie studios that have agreed to release only on Blu-Ray for an undisclosed time period.

Dream on Trolly McTrollerson.

[Paper]

I'd say it is very dependant on 3 things:
1. Price
2. Film availability
3. How much people care about hi def TV

The average Joe won't care about or understand disk capacity, high definition modes, ACCS protection, interactive menus or the film production market. The film production market doesn't care about either format and will go with the one that sells the best.

The very fact that this topic is here shows that there is a war

[Jeff®]

http://blogs.zdnet.com/blu-ray/

A format blog for Blu-ray Disc
discussion and analysis



December 23, 2006
Santa Claus Goes Blu …!

Posted by martygordon @ 2:33 pm

We already knew Blu-ray had impressive industry support but the format got a surprising new endorsement in Hollywood this holiday season as none other than Santa Claus made the rounds on Sunset Strip promoting the availability of Playstation 3. As this photo suggests, Santa evidently favors the cross-platform capabilities and clear capacity advantage of Blu-ray Disc. All kidding aside, many experts agree that Playstation 3 will create a considerable installed base for Blu-ray Disc very quickly. Recent industry reports suggest that already in November nearly 200,000 households bought the first Playstation 3 units to hit the shelves in the U.S. Sony announced plans to ship one million Playstation 3 consoles in the U.S. by the end of the year. Since every Playstation 3 is a Blu-ray Disc player, numbers like this create a big boost for the Blu-ray Disc format. It's worth noting that in the early days of DVD, before Playstation 2 launched, analysts questioned whether DVD would ever take off. In 2000, when the Playstation 2 was introduced, worldwide DVD shipments increased by 121 percent to 13.5 million. In 2001, we saw an additional increase of shipments to 32.9 million. That same year, DVD software sales increased by more than 100% to 625 million. Granted, other factors also contributed greatly to the growth of DVD — namely the cross-industry support — but, unlike HD DVD, Blu-ray enjoys similar support across virtually the entire Consumer Electronics industry and almost every major Hollywood studio. I guess that's why Santa climbed aboard our sleigh!

[Chris Beveridge]

I'm just glad the format war is over for me. I haven't powered my HD-A1 on since late August.