Forrester: Format war is Blu-ray's to lose

[Iron Man]

In its third annual report on the state of the next-gen format war, Forrester Research reiterated its long-held belief that Blu-ray will ultimately prevail over HD DVD, though more guardedly than in years past.

The market research firm has issued two previous reports on the high-format war, both predicting that Blu-ray would emerge victorious in its fight with HD DVD for next-gen supremacy.

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This year, on the heels of Paramount's announcement that it would support HD DVD exclusively, Forrester now says that although Blu-ray remains in a better position than its rival, the format's backers will need to change strategy or risk losing their edge.

Specifically, Forrester analyst J.P. Gownder says that if Blu-ray fails to offer a viable hardware model at the $250 price point by Christmas 2007 and doesn't employ more aggressive promotional tactics to counter HD DVD's recent momentum, it could open itself to a possible upset defeat at the hands of HD DVD.

Gownder goes on to say that Blu-ray's failure to land a knock-out blow over the past year means that the format war will continue for at least 18 more months.

Established in 1983, independent research firm Forrester analyzes technology change and its impact on business, consumers, and society.

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