Community/SoapBox

This is how HD-DVD can win the format war with very little effort. After going over the HD-DVD spec; I found that the 51 gig triple layer (TL) feature is the ultimate way HD-DVD can become the defacto standard for Hi-Definition movies. HD-DVD can kill off Blu-Ray with in 3 month with just one press conference.  If Universal and or Paramount release a statement that they will stop producing SD DVDs and go with the Hybrid TL Disc (both versions on the same side of the disc) for all future release; this will be game over for Blu-Ray. Legally Blu-Ray can not make a Hybrid disc so they would have zero come back to this move. With a Hybrid disc this is what can happen. With one low box office movie the new disc would out sell both formats put together since the war began. The DVD layer when played could tell consumers that they could access the better quality version of the movie by purchasing a HD-DVD player from their local retailer. A transition from DVD to HD would be much easier if you put HD in the hands of as many people as possible with as little effort as possible. The Hybrid disc gives studios a way to capture the market by doing the same thing they have been doing since the DVD format started over ten years ago. They would also save money on shelf space with retailers since you only have to put out one disc. This would be the death blow to yet another failed format from Sony who never seems to look at the big picture when they try to go against the grain.  I own a Hybrid movie from overseas and it works in both my DVD and HD-DVD players without a glitch. I don’t have to flip the disc like a combo disc which allows for cover art on the disc just like standard dvds. If Universal and Paramount were to to this, all the other studios would have to follow because they would not want to be left out of a huge installed base.  If HD-DVD fails; I will never buy Blu-Ray and I have stopped buying DVDs because of the quality, so cable tv will have to be my HD hub for movies. HD-DVD is much more consumer friendly and a well thought out format not created in hast like Blu-Ray.

I agree with Clinton, why did the studios not come out with a Hybrid disk right off the bat? Or wait the 6 months it would have taken to finalize one? It would have made the choice so much easier for the move houses, and businesses like Nexflix and Blockbuster. They would not have to double up on shelf space, or complicated systems to keep track of regular or HD disks. I made a similar comment elsewhere, but this makes a lot of sense. Thanks for posting this Clinton, I was aware of the hybrid disks, but did not realize our cousins in Europe are already using them.. Why do Americans have to always deal with crummy ideas from corporations just so they can “win” some battle, and we end up with some half backed format that never takes off. Meanwhile, across the pond, they are enjoying some new gadget, or system that just works. Whatever happened to multi-channel audio? Again, Sony tried something (SACD) and it didn’t work.

Thanks Marcus for comments......I just wish Cindy Davis who wrote the article will contact her contacts in the industry and press them on the Hybrid disc. In the mean time you can pick one up here http://www.oldies.com/product-view/36451M.html

How exactly do consumers vote?  Was there ballot going around that I didn’t see?  They vote by how they spend their dollars, and just like political candidates, the companies involved spend money to try and win their vote.  In this case, it was pretty clear that consumers were voting blu-ray more than HD DVD.

Now, you can lament that the election wasn’t called a 6 months from now (not that it would have mattered), but you can’t very well say that it wasn’t consumer choice.  Just like a political candidate can win by getting the endorsement of a large union, blu-ray could win by getting the support of a major studio.

If anything, this has been the very consumer-choice driven.  Sorry they didn’t choose the way you wanted, but only an idiot couldn’t see the vote tally was clearly in favor of blu-ray.

Like Politics, HDDVD should have had negative attacks ads on TV. Describe that most of the BD players out that will not be able to play new features because the BD standard is not done. Something like “you want interactive features like PiP, not so with BD. You have to wait for 1.1 which will not be available 11/07. You want internet activity, not with BD 2.0 which will not be available until some unknown time in the future. If fact, if you buy a BD standalone player today will never be able to do that, but you can get this all with HD right now.”

That would have affected alot of purchases of BD. It did mine.

HD DVD also need to bring out a DVR that can burn to HD/DVD. They have that in Japan, but not anywhere else (US, Europe, etc.). I had to build a PC to do that, but I rather have a dedicated unit.

I just don’t see how the extras that HD-DVD offers are advantageous.  Who needs PIP on a HD player?!?  I just don’t get it… More features doesn’t always equal better, especially when it is silly stuff 99.9% of the population will never use.  I never use PIP on my cable box, let alone on a video playback device…

Jeff, no not all view the extras, but a lot more than you think do. You might never have yourself - else you might not feel the way you do. But for those of us who appreciate all aspects of movies - not just the face of it, the commentary (for me) and other aspects are quite interesting. I agree downloads will win out eventually, and I just hope they will offer the extras (if not PIP live stuff) as extra downloads.

There’s no point to this article. She’s not saying one is worse or better than the other, or that one should have won. She’s simply stating that she’s disappointed that HD-DVD backers didn’t make an appearance at CES. So, “don’t blame the press” for leaning one way or another. Oh, and yet, “don’t blame the people behind the marketing of any product because they are people too.”

“people behind” = her advertisers.

Ergo, no substance to his “Article.” It’s a blog by any other name.

How will consumers be able to decide if they can only buy the movies they want in BluRay?

Steveo, I was referring to features Blu-Ray doesn’t have yet.  Blu-Ray has commentaries and other extras. 

Someone was complaining about no PIP on Blu-Ray.  To me the idea of PIP on a video format is patently ridiculous.  The consumer market must not have thought it very important either, or else everyone would have bought HD-DVD so they could use PIP and kick Blu-Ray to the curb. 

Apparently Blu-Ray will have it (PIP) at some point.  I find the whole idea laughable on either format.

I just hope I can finally get The Matrix Trilogy on Blu-Ray now, and hopefully The Lord of the Rings trilogy in the near future… I started out using both formats but quickly switched exclusively to Blu-Ray.  I didn’t feel like supporting two formats, and the one with the most raw storage space was a better choice IMO as someone who does a lot of computer backup storage (Blu-Ray will always be capable of more storage space layer(s) vs. layer(s) against HD-DVD).  Like most people, I just want to watch movies, with an occasional alternate ending or deleted scene thrown into the mix. 

This whole format war never should have happened, BOTH companies were idiotic for not coming to some kind of compromise before hand IMO.  All the people that egged the battle on are just as guilty of helping this whole mess along as far as I am concerned. :(