Consoles could decide HD disc war

[Joker]

This article was published in the November issue of Home Entertainment Magazine .Thought some of you might enjoy it.


" There is no doubt that Paramount's recent abandonment or Blu-ray in
favor or HD DVD exclusivity-allegedly due to a $50 million payoff
from the HD DVD camp-has rekindled a format war that seemed to be
winding down . However , we believe the deciding battles in the war are
more likely to be fought amoung video game console makers than with
movie studios.

If you are unconvinced that video game consloes may very well de-
cide the Blu-ray / HD DVD conflict winner , consider this :The HD DVD
camp sold 150,000 stand-alone players worldwide between March 2006
and June 2007.Yet Microsoft alone sold 155,000 HD DVD add-on drives
for the Xbox 360 in the United States between its introduction last No-
vember and June.

The impact of gaming consoles on the HD disc war is even more
dramatic in the Blu-ray camp.According to industry estimates,approximately
150,000 stand-alone Blu-ray players had been sold as of this writing.
Butupwards of 6 million additional Blu-ray players in the form of Playstation
3 consoles were in consumer hands worldwide.

You don't have to be a math wizard to appreciate the significance of
those numbers : There are a lot more Blu-ray players in homes than HD
DVD players-but only because of PS3 sales. Even if sony can't sustain
the twofold PS3 sales surge it got after a recent price cut , Blu-ray-capable
playersare still poised to dramatically outsell HD DVD players thanks to
theformer's integration into gaming console .

At this point, only three things could make us optimistic about HD DVD
and its future: An Xbox 360 with a built in HD DVD and a lower price;
a super cheap ($100 maximum) HD DVD player; or 20th Century Fox and
Disney ending their Blu-ray exclusivity . (Because if you can only get
The Lion KIng on Blu-ray , the fat lady has already sung.) Barring one of
those things happening , HD DVD is fighting a losing battle, and Blu-ray's
not so secret weapon is a gaming console. "