HD DVD Camp Responds To Netflix and Best Buy Rejection
HD DVD backers seeing defeat on the horizon?
The HD DVD Promotional Group, a consortium of companies backing the format, has responded to Netflix's decision to phase out HD DVD rentals and Best Buy's decision to focus on the Sony-backed rival format, Blu-ray.
A statement† issued by the group reads:
The first sentence is, of course, entirely predictable. The second part of the statement, however, has the ring of a spurned lover making apologies for their ex-partner and grabbing at the scraps from their table. The phrase "at least" certainly suggests that HD DVD is accepting a consolation prize.
The outcome of the high-def format war is seen as crucial to the console war between the Xbox 360 and the PS3 by many thanks to Sony's inclusion of a Blu-ray drive in its machine and the 360's support of HD DVD.
For more on HD DVD's recent woes, see SPOnG's report from yesterday.
†Source: cnet
A statement† issued by the group reads:
"We have long held the belief that HD DVD is the best format for consumers based on quality and value, and with more than 1 million HD DVD players on the market, it's unfortunate to see Netflix make the decision to only stock Blu-ray titles going forward. While the Best Buy announcement says they will recommend Blu-ray, at least they will continue to carry HD DVD and offer consumers a choice at retail."
The first sentence is, of course, entirely predictable. The second part of the statement, however, has the ring of a spurned lover making apologies for their ex-partner and grabbing at the scraps from their table. The phrase "at least" certainly suggests that HD DVD is accepting a consolation prize.
The outcome of the high-def format war is seen as crucial to the console war between the Xbox 360 and the PS3 by many thanks to Sony's inclusion of a Blu-ray drive in its machine and the 360's support of HD DVD.
For more on HD DVD's recent woes, see SPOnG's report from yesterday.
†Source: cnet
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Comments
Sora 13 Feb 2008 12:07
1/5
sorry guys but thats gotta be the worst images uve ever put up for an article!
urgh!
sora
urgh!
sora
Nitpicker 13 Feb 2008 13:24
2/5
I think you meant 'phase'.
Maybe somebody needs a sub-editor?
Maybe somebody needs a sub-editor?
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realvictory 13 Feb 2008 13:59
3/5
The first sentence is, of course, entirely justified.
However, this would not be the case if Blu-ray didn't have such greater popularity.
No one format can have all the benefits, I suppose, but at least we still have a choice at the moment.
Once HD-DVDs get really cheap, that is when people will realise that they made the wrong choice by buying Blu-rays.
However, this would not be the case if Blu-ray didn't have such greater popularity.
No one format can have all the benefits, I suppose, but at least we still have a choice at the moment.
Once HD-DVDs get really cheap, that is when people will realise that they made the wrong choice by buying Blu-rays.
tyrion 13 Feb 2008 15:45
4/5
realvictory wrote:
Once HD-DVDs get really cheap, that is when people will realise that they made the wrong choice by buying Blu-rays.
We're still in the early adopter stage of HD movies on discs, lower prices and mass-market appealing tactics are more likely to slow adoption than speed it up.
Your average early adopter is most likely a hi-fi snob or a movie fanatic, they are the sort of people who will think nothing of spending a hundred quid on a speaker cable or several thousand on amplifiers, speakers and player equipment. They will already have a 720p TV at the least and will be eyeing a huge (52"+) 1080p TV.
Cheap players are, well, cheap. Early adopters are not going to buy them because they take pride in the cost of their equipment.
The usual way things work is that early adopters pay the most for the best equipment then the mass market follows when the manufacturers have got the production costs down and lowered the price of the equipment. This works because the early adopters become influencers, showing their family and friends their new technology and persuading them to buy in.
The issue here, of course, is that games players have been co-opted into the competing sides by Sony and Microsoft. Gamers buy in to their platforms of choice without waiting too long for content, so equipment selld much faster than with other entertainment platforms.
Sony's plan is a better one because every PS3 owner is a potential Blu-ray movie customer, whereas only a small percentage of 360 owners have bought the HD-DVD peripheral. This is borne out by the sales numbers of the two disc formats, Blu-ray came back strongly after the PS3 launched, especially after the European launch. It's these numbers that have swung studio support towards Blu-ray, and why the HD-DVD backers always quote "standalone player" numbers, i.e. numbers without the PS3 included.
The range of high-def movies available is not large enough to encourage the general public to adopt either format at the moment and probably won't be until end of the year at the earliest. By that time, Blu-ray will have been cemented as the format of choice off the back of the PS3 sales and the swing in support of the movie studios. So by then, cheap HD-DVD players won't save the format, they'll be end of stock clearances to clueless people.
jg3z 14 Feb 2008 06:11
5/5
yeah i like my 42 blurays and have been downing hddvd ever since i got a p3! I had a 360 with hddvd player. all i miss on it is fear and loathing in las vegas and 12 monkeys. but the attachment is only up to 720p(usb). So fudge that! I got a real machine that helps mankind press into the future not stay in walmart society!