apple has their show next week, I'm curious to see if they throw their hat in one camp or another. maybe a drive that can burn/play all formats but who know. I'd like to have one in a appletv

1/4/2008 8:06:03 PM

Quote :

"Microsoft's strategy worked in terms of victory as a gaming console and sony's strategy worked on the format war but didn't pan out so much in terms of the world of gaming."

seriously, there are only 3.5million PS3's in the US, and a news article just came out that Microsoft sold 4.3million Xbox 360's in just the last 3 months ALONE!

[Edited on January 4, 2008 at 8:12 PM. Reason : ,]

1/4/2008 8:09:47 PM

Apple is rumored to go Blu-Ray. I'm guessing they will include it as an option in higher end computers like the Mac Pro and perhaps the Macbook Pro.

My guess is that they will hold off on the option for the lower models until BR costs come down.

1/4/2008 8:14:19 PM

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Warner/Warner:_No_Payoff_for_Move_to_Blu-ray/1327

Warner says they weren't bribed.

1/4/2008 8:22:26 PM

Yeah... somehow I highly doubt that. Not that I particularly care, but given the timing it's a bit suspect.

1/4/2008 8:37:43 PM

not only that, but they didn't give one single reason why they chose blu-ray over exclusive HD DVD

only this:

Quote :

"Warner's sole motivation in dropping its HD DVD format support was to ensure growth of the "category" and the long-term health of the industry."

which again doesn't make any sense, considering HD DVD has sold A LOT more standalone units than blu-ray

but so be it

[Edited on January 4, 2008 at 8:46 PM. Reason : .]

1/4/2008 8:46:18 PM

sony's successful media formats are almost equal to their failed media formats now!

[Edited on January 4, 2008 at 8:50 PM. Reason : neato]

1/4/2008 8:50:42 PM

^^ From a news story quoted on the last page:

Quote :

""A two-format landscape has led to consumer confusion and indifference toward high definition, which has kept the technology from reaching mass adoption and becoming the important revenue stream that it can be for the industry," said Tsujihara. "Consumers have clearly chosen Blu-ray, and we believe that recognizing this preference is the right step in making this great home entertainment experience accessible to the widest possible audience. Warner Bros. has worked very closely with the Toshiba Corporation in promoting high definition media and we have enormous respect for their efforts. We look forward to working with them on other projects in the future.""

It's clearly about the sales numbers of actual movies.

1/4/2008 9:51:37 PM

I'd say there was a preference for Blu, but it was far from being clearly defined.

Word on the street is HD DVD Promo Group has cancelled it's Sunday show at CES. Sounds as if this Warner announcement truly blindsided them, which makes me wonder what exactly caused this announcement today, rather than later.

1/4/2008 9:54:50 PM

Warner seemed to think it was clear and that's all that really matters at this point.

1/4/2008 9:56:33 PM

Quote :

"Consumers Video gamers have clearly chosen Blu-ray, and we believe that recognizing this preference is the right step in making this great home entertainment experience accessible to the widest possible audience."

There I fixed it, they didn't even give consumers a chance

1/4/2008 11:05:50 PM

Quote :

"hopefully Warner will push back the release of Amadeus and give it a 50GB worthy encode + some lossless audio."

FYI, the soundtrack is available on SACD.

http://www.buy.com/prod/Amadeus_SACD/q/loc/109/61003850.html

1/4/2008 11:36:29 PM

So, who gets the last laugh? A person who buys

- HD-DVD player in the last year + cheap blu-ray player when it comes out
- Blue ray player in the last year

1/5/2008 1:00:09 AM

Warner seemed to think it was clear and that's all that really matters at this point.

1/5/2008 1:01:40 AM

Well fuck. Oh well, I wont let myself regret buying an HD-DVD player (Not the first time Ive wasted $200 or more on something). I was considering selling it all as soon as something was official to take advantage of someone out of the loop, but I dont think Im going to worry about it...hell, I can at least enjoy Serenity, Transformers, Zodiac, etc, in HD now since it will be awhile before those studios switch AND rerelease those movies in BD. I just hope the deals on BD players and especially the movies (all of the B1G1 sales) dont disappear...wait, who am I kidding...of course theyre going to disappear.

1/5/2008 1:20:03 AM

Quote :

"So, who gets the last laugh? A person who buys - HD-DVD player in the last year + cheap blu-ray player when it comes out - Blue ray player in the last year"

The former, so long as the HD DVD player was cheap (which encompasses pretty much everyone in this thread).

Even if this does kill HD DVD, it doesn't uncreate all the content for the format and probably allows them to get the past content they don't have at firesale prices.

Again, assuming this does kill off HD DVD, it'll be interesting to see if Sony actually goes out of their way to promote the standard and work to get into people's homes or continues the "well, we'll just rely on PS3 sales and sooner or later people will get it" type bandwagon. Say what you will about Toshiba and HD DVD, but at the end of the day they were the only company of the two that was willing to push player prices down to get them into homes.

1/5/2008 1:29:37 AM

bwahaha. i just scanned back in this thread. ^you lose fanboi

1/5/2008 2:16:33 AM

I guess all you Sony haters are really going to hate handing them your money for a Blu-Ray player.

$100 is a great deal for a hi-def movie player. Not so much for a giant paperweight.

1/5/2008 2:20:49 AM

Quote :

"bwahaha. i just scanned back in this thread. ^you lose fanboi"

I own a grand total of 3 HD DVDs, which amazingly enough, still play even after this landmark decision. It also still upscales normal DVDs, which I'm not replacing any time soon.

I preferred HD DVD because it was more reasonably priced and didn't require me to either A) make a video game console my primary high definition DVD player or B) get ripped off by buying an overpriced standalone.

Quote :

"I guess all you Sony haters are really going to hate handing them your money for a Blu-Ray player."

Only format or not, I'm still not paying $300+ for a Blu-Ray player. Regardless of what name is on the outside of it.

1/5/2008 2:48:08 AM

Man, the meltdowns on all the forums that follow this subject are classic. "I'll never buy Blu-ray!!! It's all about digital downloads now!!!". HD movie lovers my ass, more like Sony haters.

The only people who get fucked are the poor bastards who either bought themselves an HD DVD player for Christmas or got one as a gift, and for some reason or another, can't return it. Honestly, if you did the research and picked HD DVD in the last couple months or so, I don't feel sorry for you. I don't care how you rationalize it, you were either a fool or extremely biased and deserve what happened to you. The writing has been on the wall for a long time.

And HD DVD players weren't cheaper because of some altruistic motivation to bring HD movies to the masses. The prices were artificially lowered in order to keep up with Blu-ray in the war. It's pretty obvious now that the $99 fire sale was a last ditch effort (as was the Paramount buyout) to prolong or possibly win the war. I don't suppose any of you remember DVD player prices at the same point after release.

A decisive end to this war is the best thing that could have happened to HD movie fans and consumers alike. The only people who disagree are the Sony haters among us. Expect all the fence sitters like Weinstein, Lucas, and Spielberg to start announcing HD releases of their catalog titles.

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 7:39 AM. Reason : :]

1/5/2008 7:27:43 AM

^

Hopefully there will be some good releases after all of this stuff settles, but for some reason I feel like Lucas will sit on Star Wars for another few years.

ULTIMATE DELUXE SUPER COMPLETE STAR WARS EPISODES 1-6 : $399.99

1/5/2008 10:49:35 AM

BRING ON INDIANA JONES TRIOLOGY K THNX!!!!


I think they should do a remastered special edition. Where they digitally add characters in the background and change major plot points. That would rock.

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 11:31 AM. Reason : d]

1/5/2008 11:30:35 AM

If they just take out the "NOOOOOOOO" I'll be happy.

1/5/2008 12:16:03 PM

Quote :

"And HD DVD players weren't cheaper because of some altruistic motivation to bring HD movies to the masses. The prices were artificially lowered in order to keep up with Blu-ray in the war."

And now Blu-ray is going to have to do the exact same thing to DVD... except if they wouldn't do it to kill off an opponent that you claim the "writing had been on the wall" for, what makes you think they'll actually do it to try and compete with DVD?

1/5/2008 12:26:17 PM

WTB: HD DVD Player, not willing to pay more than $20 for the novelty of having one.

1/5/2008 1:25:53 PM

so why exactly does WB backing off hd dvd mean the format war is over? aren't there other supporters of it?

1/5/2008 2:43:07 PM

WB has 20% of the DVD market, what this means is that there's now a 20% shift from HD DVD to blu-ray

http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/studios.php

1/5/2008 2:50:38 PM

ah ok, simple enough then

are they ever gonna start producing movies with dual layer support? or just jack off about the possibility of it?

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 2:59 PM. Reason : .]

1/5/2008 2:55:03 PM

this is really basic math, but since WB was neutral before releasing both blu-ray & hd dvd and now it's just going blu-ray, it's really only about -10% shift for HD DVD

the killer here is that while people may actually WANT HD DVD over blu-ray the content just won't be there to support the players, thus the content forcing people to pay more for blu-ray

this really doesn't benefit the consumer at all, it will equal higher prices, less choice, and the only reason is to "reduce confusion"

give me a break, it's not like buying a HDTV isn't confusing enough for people

1/5/2008 3:01:26 PM

So what happens now with Universal and Paramount? How long until they can weasel out of HD-DVD exclusivity and jump the fence into the blu-ray camp?

1/5/2008 3:04:05 PM

from toshiba's p.r.

Quote :

"We will assess the potential impact of this announcement with the other HD DVD partner companies and evaluate potential next steps. "

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 3:11 PM. Reason : /]

1/5/2008 3:10:56 PM

Quote :

"So what happens now with Universal and Paramount? How long until they can weasel out of HD-DVD exclusivity and jump the fence into the blu-ray camp?"

they signed a 18 month exclusivity deal back in august, so about 13 months barring HD DVD just giving up or Paramount buying their way out of the contract

1/5/2008 3:24:29 PM

you're kidding yourself if you think this doesn't spell the end of HD-DVD.

1/5/2008 4:36:04 PM

Quote :

"this really doesn't benefit the consumer at all, it will equal higher prices, less choice, and the only reason is to "reduce confusion""

Like how dvds and dvd players got more expensive once people got behind it

1/5/2008 4:46:04 PM

^they got less expensive once the market was saturated and the components are cheaper to make and once it was being mass produced, just like every other electronic device ever to come out ... don't get me wrong it will come down eventually just less pressure to do it sooner. look at what sony's done with the PS3

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 5:22 PM. Reason : .]

1/5/2008 5:20:09 PM

You've contradicted yourself quite a bit since the WB announcement.

I would guess you're suffering from shock.

1/5/2008 8:19:31 PM

how so?

none of these are contradictory:
a) excited to finally have one format
b) disappointed because i think WB made the decision prematurely, not looking at what was driving the blu-ray sales
c) surprised? absolutely
d) i'm unbiased, i have no vested interest, in fact i don't even own a HDTV, but i DO own a sony TV
e) IMHO, we'll see less deals on blu-ray devices and sony will keep the price just as high knowing that the content will force people to buy the players at the higher cost...exactly what they did with the PS3. when we see 10+MILLION blu-ray dvd players on the market i would predict based on market pressure and hardware availability and manufacturing costs... the price will eventually come down, all this i stated in the last couple pages.

Quote :

"IF, and this is a big IF... IF the PS3 market for blu-ray content is enough to a) convince studios to drop all HD DVD support, or b) convinces the general public that blu-ray is the winner, THEN and ONLY THEN will it result in blu-ray becoming the winner."

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 8:38 PM. Reason : .]

1/5/2008 8:24:22 PM

New Line has gone Blu-Ray only now too

1/5/2008 8:37:41 PM

New Line = owned by WB

by separating their press release a couple days it allows them to get more play out of one decision, it's all marketing

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 8:40 PM. Reason : .]

1/5/2008 8:38:54 PM

Like what are you trying to say

That with Universal and Paramount, HD DVD has a prayer?

Who is best buy going to market? Blu Ray or HD DVD?

This is pretty much over unless the pull some magic.

1/5/2008 8:50:09 PM

I read today Warner had been in talks to go HD DVD exclusive only if Fox would also go HD DVD exclusive.

Looks like Fox backed out, so Warner took the Sony offer and ran.

Good move on Warner's part, bad news for HD DVD

1/5/2008 9:00:36 PM

i think it's over as well, i just think that people were looking too much into the sales numbers... i know that's what WB was probably paid to say, but i think it came down to payouts

with HD DVD pulling out of the press conference at CES, i'd imagine they are going to look into some drastic moves, no idea what though. i'd say it looks pretty dim future for HD DVD

AIMHO

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 11:52 PM. Reason : .]

1/5/2008 11:50:11 PM

So you don't think MS + Toshiba were ready to fork just as much cash for a payout as well? There have been reports about BOTH sides making visits to the WB offices in past few weeks...

Warner looked at both sides waving blank checks in their face, THEN made a decision based on sales trends.

Blu-Ray won because they were simply selling more discs.

[Edited on January 5, 2008 at 11:59 PM. Reason : d]

1/5/2008 11:57:43 PM

i think it's speculation either way you look at it... (hence aimho) if that's the case though, it comes down to sales pitch... but it's well known that Paramount was bought out by HD DVD, you don't think blu-ray made a counter offer (hasn't blu-ray been out selling HD DVD since the very beginning)?

[Edited on January 6, 2008 at 12:04 AM. Reason : .]

1/6/2008 12:02:23 AM

I just think it's interesting that you'd rather speculate than accept what seems like a perfectly logical + reasonable explanation.

I mean, which side would you have chosen?

1/6/2008 12:08:59 AM

^it's just my opinion

i already explained my side, i think it was too early to tell, looking at the sales and who were buying the blu-ray discs... gosh people just read what i posted for once, i feel like i just keep repeating this yet people can't grasp it

Quote :

"I mean, which side would you have chosen?"

i'm not sure if i could pick sides. i mean on one side you have a very strong standalone unit sales which will ultimately be the units people have in their homes (vs. game consoles) and on the other hand you have a very strong sales numbers when it comes to content with blu-ray. logically from a consumer standpoint i'd say possibly HD DVD, but if i were a studio where the only thing that matters is content and the price it takes to manufacture that content, the earlier you decide on one format, the more money you save. so to that i'd say blu-ray. (if i were looking at sales alone and not who's buying the discs)

http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/01/04/the-real-reason-why-warner-went-blu/

[Edited on January 6, 2008 at 12:56 AM. Reason : nm, scratch that]

1/6/2008 12:42:41 AM

Dude

You're an idiot.

I'm sorry.

There's no other way to put it.

Breaking down demographics is for politicians who campaign by focus point and end up losing the election.

Its not for corporations.

Blu Ray has consistently sold more discs then HD DVD, and thats including the year long head start HD DVD has had.

It doesn't matter if PS3 owners, the Pope, or Michael Jackson were the only ones buying the god damn discs.

What matters is that more of them were sold.

A lot more.

In fact, a fucking lot more.

And when you look at the global picture

The one saying Europe doesn't have a clue what HD DVD even is

The case is even more closed.

Stop with your crying and yammering (all hd dvd fans). Its pretty much game over.

1/6/2008 2:58:45 AM

Hahahahahahah, looks like retailers have already jumped ship.

1/6/2008 7:30:22 AM

hahaha... at least they're being honest. GG.

1/6/2008 12:25:39 PM

Sweet! Newline is Blu-ray exclusive. Lord of the Rings, here we come!

1/6/2008 12:32:59 PM