News and Reviews....
The Battle Lines Are Formed ... December 2004
The Battle Lines are Drawn For Hi-Def Format War. The long awaited battle for next generation high-definition disc appears more likely than ever in the wake of an announcement made December 3, 2004 by the key five suppliers supporting the HD-DVD format. The HD-DVD format enjoys the majority of studio support, at least for now. The other, Blue Ray Disc (BD), has the majority of consumer electronics hardware manufacturers in its corner. Comments from both sides indicate a distinct possibility that a year from now there will be two high-definition disc formats on the market, a scenario Hollywood vociferously opposes.
The five suppliers that came out in favor of HD-DVD include the home entertainment divisions of three of the six major studios: Paramount Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Entertainment (USHE) and Warner Home Video. Also in the HD-DVD camp are New Line Home Entertainment and HBO Home Video which are parts of the Warner family. They said they all intend to release titles in the HD-DVD format late next year. Toshiba Corporation, the format's principal developer, along with NEC Corporation, said it will have players on the market at that time.
SONY Pictures Home Entertainment, mean while, is the sole studio supporter of the Blue-Ray, a format spawned by parent SONY. The studio has committed to releasing titles in the BD format by next year, as BD Drives and players are expected to reach the market in late 2005. Sony is acquiring MGM, which would join the BD camp. But even with MGM, that's not nearly as much studio support as that of HD-DVD. What BD does have is a support group called the Blu-Ray Disc Association (BDA), with more than 70 members mostly consumer electronics companies. This has all the elements of the Beta-Max / VCR format wars of the 1980's.
Recently Fox joined the BDA but insists this does not imply it will issue titles in BD format. The Walt Disney Company has not confirmed support for either. Hollywood has been calling for a compromise to avoid what could be a mortally destructive two-format launch for the next generation of packages media.
HD-DVD has a lesser impact on current DVD manufacturing processes which is one of its strengths. In five minutes, a typical DVD replicating line can be readied to produce HD-DVD. UPDATE: See "Blue Ray Takes ALL" March 2008
For other reading on the issue see:
Blue Laser DVD Feb 2002
Blue vs. DMD July 2004
DVD - Blue Out - Red In March 2002
Next DVD December 2002
Not all DVDs Created Equal January 2002
