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Posted on 02.16.08 by David @ 9:29 am
According to internal sources, Toshiba is conceding victory to Sony in the high definition DVD format war. Details are sketchy, but Toshiba is expected to pull the plug on HD-DVD production and to surrender the Sudetenland. I’m sure Charlie will have more soon. ::: Toshiba to Give Up on HD DVD, End Format War: Source Added by Charlie….. Yes, it’s true!!! The HD-DVD camp is in free fall right now. This week alone, Netflix, Best Buy and yesterday Walmart all announced that they were going to phase out HD-DVD altogether and offer only Blu-ray products in their store. And Thursday Hollywood Reporter ran a story that they had sources informing them that Toshiba — one of the primary initial backers of the format — was thinking about pulling out, though it also said that no decisions had been made as of yet. This is all continued fall out from the recent decision by Warner Bros. to back Blu-ray exclusively. I was expecting that Paramount and Universal (the only remaining major studios who are releasing exclusively in HD-DVD) to go format neutral over the summer and begin to release in both high-def formats, but with all this recent commotion, I would be very surprised if we don’t hear that they are switching to Blu-ray immediately, possibly this coming week. Regardless, the war is over, HD-DVD is the new antique. Update Sunday…. And the news continues to roll in. Several major news agencies, including this story at Reuters, are reporting that Toshiba is planning to stop production of all HD-DVD equipment. Expect an official announcement from Toshiba on this very early this week. This only accelerates the HD-DVD collapse, and it’s looking increasingly likely that Paramount and Universal will announce plans to switch to the Blu-ray format this week. So, for those of us who currently own an HD-DVD player, any creative suggestions as to what we should do with them now? Anyone in the market for a large paperweight? Filed under: General and Movie News and Movie News: High-Definition DVD Comments: None |
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Posted on 01.04.08 by Charlie @ 5:19 pm
Late last year, HD-DVD appeared to be losing the format battle but shored up the competition by signing Paramount to an exclusive deal with HD-DVD, after which the consensus was that the format war was back to a stalemate. But, for whatever reason, possibly because of the inclusion of a Blu-ray player in the PS3 video game console, Blu-ray titles have been significantly out-selling HD-DVDs by a margin that has averaged 60% or higher for Blu-Ray (to HD-DVD’s 40% or lower market share). Considered together with today’s startling announcement, it’s safe to assume that the stalemate is off, and Blu-ray is on track to win the format war once again. As recently as December 13th, rumors swirled that Warner would make the switch, and Warner exec. Jim Noonan denied it (click here to read that story). But today it’s official. Wow. Wouldn’t it be nice if this format war would come to an end…. I have copied the official press release below: Filed under: Movie News and Studios: Warner Bros. and Movie News: High-Definition DVD Comments: None |
BREAKING NEWS: It just crossed the wires that Warner will be exclusively releasing titles on Blu-ray going forward, a huge blow to the rival HD-DVD camp! To date, Warner was the only major studio electing to release titles in both HD-DVD and Blu-ray formats.|
Posted on 05.22.07 by Charlie @ 10:23 am
The Matrix Trilogy, Pirates of the Caribbean 1 & 2, Apocalypto, Letters From Iwo Jima, Flags of Our Fathers and The Good German  If this year determines who will win the high-definition sprint to dominate the future of home video, then today the starting gun went off to launch that race. The competitors are well known: on the one hand, we have Universal and their format HD-DVD — last year’s champion in sales, but an underdog today. The other competitor is of course Sony and their rival format Blu Ray, which has taken a significant lead by capturing 68% of this year’s high-definition sales courtesy of the embedded Blu Ray player in the Playstation 3. For years now, many have predicted this format war would be about content, and indeed we’ve seen in the past year that even individual titles, if they are popular enough, can swing the debate. Blu Ray’s release of the recent James Bond entry Casino Royale was so popular it became the first high definition disc to crack the top 10 of all home video releases, normally all regular dvds. Blu Ray was, of course, quick to announce the surge in sales. Both sides hope to do the same thing today, as rival heavyweight titles go head to head. For HD-DVD, today marks the release of the Matrix Trilogy in high definition. With two separate sets (a “Complete” Matrix Trilogy vs. an “Ultimate” Matrix set), it is arguably the most asked-for of all high definition titles and is sure to light a fire under sales of HD-DVD (it will not be available on Blu Ray for months to come). What’s the difference between the two sets? Money isn’t a big factor — when considering sale prices from major online retailers, the difference between the sets is only about $10. But the Ultimate set includes dvd-quality (and so NOT high definition) extras that are identical to those found on the Ultimate 10-disc Matrix dvd set released last year. Only the trilogy itself is high-definition (a big disappointment for fans hoping to get Animatrix in HD). And because the extras are the same as the dvd mega-set, if you have that set already, there is really no reason to get the extras all over again with this release. Regardless of which set you prefer, however, this set will prompt a huge spike in HD-DVD sales. But Blu Ray isn’t going to stand by and let HD-DVD steal their thunder (Click Here To Read More…) Filed under: Movie News and DVD News and Contributors: Charlie and Studios: Sony Pictures and Studios: Universal Pictures and Movie News: High-Definition DVD and DVD News: This Week in DVD Comments: None |
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