And the Winner is.....Blu Ray!

[yiozik]

High-Definition Format War Ends as Toshiba Concedes

The war is over. The nearly three-year conflict between the two competing high-definition DVD formats, Blu-ray and HD DVD, concluded Tuesday with Toshiba's announcement that it is dropping its HD DVD format.

Tokyo-based Toshiba said that after "a thorough review of its overall strategy," it has decided it will "no longer develop, manufacture and market HD DVD players and recorders." Shipments of players and recorders to retail channels will be reduced, with a goal of stopping them completely by the end of March.

The company will, however, continue to provide support and after-sales service for Toshiba HD products for an unspecified amount of time. It also said it will continue to assess if market demand exists for HD DVD drives in notebooks.

Not 'A Big Surprise'

President and CEO Atsutoshi Nishida said Toshiba had "assessed the long-term impact of continuing the next-generation format war" and decided that "a swift decision will best help the market develop."

He added that the opportunity for high-definition content remains, and the company said it will continue to develop other technologies that can drive high-def use. These include high-capacity NAND flash memory, small-form-factor hard drives, next-generation CPUs, and wireless and encryption technologies.

The announcement "wasn't a big surprise," said Gartner analyst Van Baker, given the "serious case of piling on" recently against the HD DVD format. The "real killer," he said, was Wal-Mart's decision Friday to back Blu-ray exclusively. On the same day, a report in the Hollywood Reporter quoted "reliable industry sources" as saying that Toshiba would abandon the format within a few weeks.

From Bad to Worse

Other news last week went from bad to worse for the HD DVD camp. Major retailer Best Buy said it was "addressing consumer confusion" and would be "prominently showcasing Blu-ray" as its preferred format, beginning in March.

Online movie renter NetFlix also said the industry had "picked a winner" in Blu-ray, and it would stock that high-definition format exclusively. Previously, NetFlix had backed both formats. NetFlix said its decision was based on four of the six major film studios backing Blu-ray.

Many industry observers had predicted the end was near when Warner Bros. announced in January that it would sell high-def movies only in Blu-ray, joining Disney, Fox, Lionsgate and Blu-ray's main backer, Sony. Officially, Universal, Paramount, DreamWorks Animation and Microsoft still back HD DVD.

Some industry observers have noted that Blu-ray's defeat of HD DVD does not mean that format will triumph, since consumers might also choose inexpensive upscaling, regular DVD players or online delivery of high-definition content.

But JupiterResearch analyst Bobby Tulsiani said "we're still pretty far away in the U.S." from enough high-speed bandwidth for online delivery to pose a challenge. The other not-yet-solved factor, he noted, is delivering online content to the TV screen, not just to a computer.

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[yiozik]

Universal to publish Blu-ray discs
NEW YORK - Universal Studios, one of the two major studios that was putting out HD DVDs, will focus its attention on the rival Blu-ray movie disc format.

The news follows the announcement Tuesday by Toshiba, creator of the HD DVD, that it would stop making players for the discs.

Universal Studios and Paramount were the two major Hollywood studios that supported HD DVD, while Sony Pictures, Walt Disney Co. and News Corp.'s Twentieth Century Fox are in the Blu-ray camp.

In a statement Tuesday, Universal did not say how long it would keep putting out HD DVDs or what it would do with its inventory. Toshiba said about 1 million HD DVD players were sold worldwide.

[yiozik]

Microsoft stays mum on Blu-ray Disc support

San Francisco - Microsoft shrugged off HD DVD's demise on Tuesday, declining to say if or when it would support Blu-ray Disc for the Xbox.

Microsoft steadfastly backed HD DVD, selling an external drive for the Xbox for $129.99. That offer was still on the U.S. Xbox Web site as of Tuesday, despite the news that Toshiba will scuttle the format. Toshiba had been the lead electronics manufacturer in a coalition of companies pushing that format but content producers have thrown their support to Blu-ray.

Microsoft's decision to make the HD DVD drive external rather than within the console "was quite a strategic move on their part," said Paul O'Donovan, principal analyst with Gartner.

However, it's inevitable that future Xbox versions, as well as other gaming systems aimed at tighter integration with entertainment systems, will incorporate Blu-ray Disc drives, said O'Donovan. The Xbox currently has a standard DVD drive.

Sony gained momentum for its Blu-ray player by putting it in its PlayStation 3 console, according to research company IDC.

The PS3's "dual roles as a gaming console and a next-generation DVD player have made it an important part of the format war," according to the report.

Prior to Toshiba's announcement, Microsoft downplayed the rumors of HD DVD's death, contending buyers are more interested in gaming functions.

"We do not believe the recent reports about HD DVD will have any material impact on the Xbox 360 platform or our position in the marketplace," the company said in a statement. "It is premature to speculate but we do know from market data that HD movie playback is not a primary purchase driver for consumers buying video game consoles."

Microsoft, which started selling the external drive for $199 in late 2006, has dropped the price twice, to $179 last August finally to its current price, which varies by region.

O'Donovan agreed the company likely won't face declining sales of its Xbox gaming console. But Microsoft's greater problem may be getting rid of the external HD DVD drives in its inventory.

HD DVD is "dead and gone" now, O'Donovan said.

[Prokomenos]

I also know that Walmart a large shopping center will only sell blue ray. I wonder if it has something to do with one being cheaper than the other to purchase and sell for more to the public? I

Is blu ray better than HD? I have never seen anything in blu ray.

[yiozik]

In some ways it is but in others it is not. For one all early models had inferior picture of what the electronics are capable of producing in part due to Sony’s copy protection and rights management software. One of the problems of both HD DVD and Blu Ray is that they are software based solutions. There are a number of Korean manufacturers that produce hardware based solutions capable of keeping a native 1080i/p content and doing 30/60 fps at 25Mbps. Devices such as Q-Play’s QBoxx HD-H264 and QBoxxHD Mini are Linux based, can be purchased for $599 and are professional grade players with huge swappable hard drives and can be configured as a NSD on any wired or wireless network.

Both HD DVD and Blu Ray look good on fixed display technologies but there are yet very few hardware solutions for consumers to show their content through those players. What has created a more interesting twist to this format war is that IPTV devices such as Apple TV, and many others, although not completely there yet, are truly expanding their research and product line to what the future really is which is hard-drive computer based on networked devices that attach to your AV gear!

[Napalm]

I vote for NEITHER ONE.

Just play your movies DIRECTLY from your computer to the screen. A couple of my friends keep a computer beside their HDTV and play direct WITHOUT any DVD player.

[yiozik]

Blu-ray Disc faces fight against downloads

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San Francisco - Blu-ray Disc may have beaten out HD DVD as the high-definition optical disc format to replace DVDs, but it now faces a new test against Internet downloads, market researchers Gartner and iSuppli said.

The two high-definition disc formats had battled for the past few years until Toshiba last week handed victory to Blu-ray Disc by announcing an end to its support of HD DVD. The company's decision came after a major Hollywood film studio and several retailers, including Wal-Mart, said they would back Blu-ray Disc exclusively.

But the victory for Blu-ray Disc may be short-lived if consumers choose to download high definition content from the Internet, market researchers say.

"After years of a standards war, the major question for Sony and the Blu-ray camp is whether a physical format for high-definition still has any relevance to consumers in this era of Internet-delivered movies and video on demand," said David Carnevale, vice president of multimedia content and services at iSuppli, in a report.

Online movie download services from iTunes, Amazon, and others have gained traction in recent years and increased their movie, TV and other video content offerings. The Internet gives consumers a choice of building a library of HD movies bought over the Internet instead of buying a Blu-ray Disc player and building a new library of movies-on-disc, said Carnevale.

"Physical media distribution could become a thing of the past," he said.

Blu-ray Disc could be further harmed unless prices come down quickly and more manufacturers start making players, according to Gartner. The market researcher said that most manufacturers will probably hold off on announcing new Blu-ray Disc equipment until the first quarter of 2009. In addition, consumers may also put off buying Blu-ray Disc players because DVD players that up-convert existing DVDs is already seen by some as a good alternative to making a big investment in high-definition discs.

"Most manufacturers are still trying to persuade consumers that high-definition optical discs are worth investing in, as many consumers and industry pundits see video-on-demand services and Internet downloads as viable alternatives," said Paul O'Donovan and Hiroyuki Shimizu in a report.

[yiozik]

Sony to introduce new Blu-ray players

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NEW YORK - Sony Corp.'s first Blu-ray disc player that can download bonus materials like trailers and games from the Internet will debut this summer, the company announced Tuesday.

It will be the first new player from Sony, the inventor of Blu-ray, since the format beat out the other technology that vied to become the high-definition replacement for the DVD.

Toshiba Corp. announced last week that it would stop making players for the HD DVD, the disc it invented, mainly because Warner Bros. Entertainment said it would drop the format to focus on Blu-ray discs.

The BDP-S350 player Sony plans to introduce this summer for "about $400" will be the company's first to feature an Ethernet port, allowing it to connect to a home broadband connection. However, it won't be able to access Internet content when it ships — a software upgrade will be available later to enable that feature, known as BD-Live.

A second player, the BDP-S550, will be available this fall for "about $500" and will be BD-Live-capable when it ships.

Both players can show picture-in-picture content and will be the first Sony Blu-ray players to do so, apart from the PlayStation 3 game console, which gained this feature via software update last year.

The picture-in-picture feature, called Bonus View, can be used to show director or actor commentary in a small window while the movie plays.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., the parent of the Panasonic brand, introduced a Bonus View player late last year and has announced it will ship a BD-Live player this spring.

In these respects, Blu-ray players are playing catch-up to HD DVD players, which have had Internet- and picture-in-picture capabilities since they first came out in 2006.

[yiozik]

Just in case you got one .... Circuit City extends HD DVD return time

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RICHMOND, Va. - Circuit City Stores Inc. is getting on the Blu-ray digital video format bandwagon by tripling the period in which customers who purchased a rival HD DVD player can return them.

The nation's No. 2 electronics retailer has instructed its stores to "take care of our customers" and accept returns of HD DVD players within 90 days of purchase, spokesman Jim Babb said.

Several industry moves in recent weeks — including the announcement by creator Toshiba Corp. that it has stopped making HD DVD players and discs — have handed the format a clear defeat in the battle for primacy in the next generation of movie-disc technology.

"The recent resolution of the next generation of video disc formats is an important and singular development in the marketplace," Babb said in an e-mail statement.

When Toshiba dropped out of the fight, it conceded to Sony's Blu-ray format, which delivers crisp, clear pictures and sound on high-definition TVs.

The biggest battle between two video formats since Betamax lost out to VHS in the 1980s was resolved after multiple movie studios, including Sony Pictures, Walt Disney Co. Warner Bros. Entertainment and News Corp.'s Twentieth Century Fox, pledged to support the Blu-ray format.

In the long run, consumers are expected to benefit because they no longer have to agonize over which technology to choose for high-definition movies. But Toshiba's defeat leaves 1 million customers worldwide with dead-end hardware.

Circuit City, which has a usual 30-day return policy, is allowing customers who purchased HD DVD players to return them for store credit. The policy doesn't apply to HD DVD movie discs.

The Richmond company noted that while some people may want to return the players, others are buying them on clearance because they still play high-quality HD DVDs and improve the playback of standard DVDs.

[yiozik]

New features coming for Blu-ray DVD format

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The high-definition-video war may be over now that Toshiba has conceded defeat for its ailing HD DVD format, but those interested in buying a high-def Blu-ray player still might want to wait for new features coming in the fall.
Sure, existing Blu-ray machines can play the nearly 500 Blu-ray discs available. They can deliver gorgeous, top-of-the-line 1080p resolution on compatible high-def televisions. But the next crop of Blu-ray players will be compliant with the upcoming Profile 2.0 standard, which adds Internet connectivity to the machines via a feature called BD-Live.

"Imagine being able to download high-definition trailers to current theatrical releases right to your TV, or selecting additional language tracks or other online bonus materials," says Josh Martin, a senior analyst at consulting firm Yankee Group.

Depending on the disc, BD-Live will also let people chat in real time during films, type in their mobile phone numbers for free movie-related ring tones, play online multiplayer games or upload custom-made audio commentary.

Sony (SNE) has announced two upcoming Blu-ray machines with Profile 2.0 support: the BDP-S350, available this summer for $399, which can be updated to the latest profile over the Internet when it's available; and the BDP-S550 ($499), which will ship with Profile 2.0 in the fall.

"Technology always evolves, and new features are added to platforms continually, whether it's a Blu-ray machine or other consumer electronics products," says Chris Fawcett, vice president of home video at Sony Electronics.

The new Sony players will include extras such as built-in or expandable memory and multiple audio technologies, including Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio or DTS-HD Master Audio decoding, depending on the model.

The Sony PlayStation 3 ($399) video game system, which also has Blu-ray playback functionality, offers a future-proof solution. Sony says the Internet-connected console can download an update for the Profile 2.0 standard.

For now, the most up-to-date Blu-ray players offer picture-in-picture functionality, also known as BonusView. That allows simultaneous video and audio streams so that you could, for instance, have a small window with video commentary while watching the feature film. Unlike regular DVD players, Blu-ray machines also let viewers turn on some bonus features, such as director commentary, with one button on the remote, as opposed to leaving the film to visit the disc's main menu.

Not for everyone

Many people who decide to wait to buy a BD-Live-capable Blu-ray machine probably won't even use that feature, notes Martin. "These upcoming players aren't for everyone, especially for those who just want to watch the movie," he says.

The BD-Live players connect to the Internet via an ethernet plug in the back of the unit. But "not everyone has a broadband connection in their family room," notes Sandra Benedetto, spokeswoman for the Blu-ray Disc Association trade group.

Will BD-Live-enhanced discs work with current-generation Blu-ray players? Generally, yes, Benedetto says. "The BD-Live feature just won't be available."

The death of HD DVD will not mean automatic victory for Blu-ray, says Michael Gartenberg, vice president and research director at JupiterResearch, the New York-based IT research firm. "With high-quality and cheap 'upscaling' DVD players at one end and HD downloads more common, the Blu-ray folks will need to work hard to win the hearts, minds and wallets of consumers to adopt."

All kinds of features

Consumers who purchase the newer Blu-ray machines should keep in mind that the Blu-ray discs themselves must also support advanced features such as BD-Live and BonusView.

Lionsgate's horror sequel Saw IV is heralded as the first BD-Live-ready Blu-ray disc. It contains an interactive feature called MoLog (short for movie blog), where viewers can share their own audio or video content or join an online discussion using an onscreen keyboard. While the disc came out in January, the online BD-Live features will have to wait until the Profile 2.0 standard is here.

Fox's Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem, available on Blu-ray April 15, will include a BonusView picture-in-picture reference guide called Weyland-Yutani Archives, letting viewers hack into the movie-based corporation's secret computer to read about "all things Alien and Predator," says Fox. The franchise's first BD-Live content won't be available until later this year when Fox reissues the original Alien vs. Predator on Blu-ray with a multiplayer online game called Alien vs. Predator vs. You, demonstrated at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Disney's first BD-Live title will be a Blu-ray Platinum Edition of Sleeping Beauty, scheduled for October release.