What’s Behind Warner’s Blu-ray Switch

Snowdog said:
A dual format player solves nothing, when it wears out after the war is over then you likely can't by another dual format player and half your collection goes unplayable.

Dual format disks would be an way around it if they actually got to market.
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Nah, coz it's ripped to the hard drive and can be later burned to another format if needed. I personally won't be using physical media unless I have to.

I believe there is enough saturation on both sides to warrant dual format players to be around a while. Every trip to the store shows both formats use equal amounts of shelf space. I buy the cheaper format of the movie (if available) I'm looking for since quality is identical in both scenarios. (unless somebody can provide a link that proves different??) fyi - most of my collection is HD-DUD

And the whole blow-ray profiling definitely smacks of Sony. I figured they had something up their sleeves to warrant us re-buy the players. a la their UMD format. :mad:

And what gives with no disc changers?? Why single disc only?? This technology has been around forever, surely it wouldn't be that hard to implement. Or is this another method to warrant us buy another player? I could care less, but I know a few people who haven't bought a hi-def player because of the lack of the changer.
 
http://thedigitalbits.com/#com

And just to remind you, anyone who says Blow-Ray or refers to the BDA and Sony interchangeably is an idiot. Steve's really wearing his biases on his sleeve these days, but at least he admits it and is consistent :)
 
stoney_titan said:
For one, It's a HUGE issue in the tech world and this is the news section on a hardware forum. :p

And secondly, there are more Blue-ray activist here then HD-DVD so you should probably get yours eyes checked. :)
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Agreed. Huge issue. I just get sick of shit being posted as fact when it has no merit.

Orinthical said:
Find one post where I appear to deserve this HD-DVD fanboi title you so quickly accuse me of being. You won't find it. Everything I have said about the format war, which isn't much actually, is based upon business and personal experience. But as for you and the Blu-Ray camp, you all seem to be mighty touchy and all too quick to insult. Please, get a GenMay subscription if you want to behave that way as it's not welcome here, especially not in the front-page news area.
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True, I quoted you because I guess you were the lucky dog. Not really trying to label "you" as a fanboy. You may not even be a HD person, no idea. Just using your statement as an example of all the HD people crying foul with Warner yet said nothing when they did the exact same thing with Paramount.
 
ShagnWagn said:
I believe there is enough saturation on both sides to warrant dual format players to be around a while. Every trip to the store shows both formats use equal amounts of shelf space. .
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I don't know what stores you're shopping at, but Target definitely has twice as much space for Blu-Ray as they do for HD-DVD, and it's been that way for awhile.

I think Toys R Us also has more Blu Ray then HD-DVD.

I can't speak for Best Buy / Circuit City, but I know every Wal-Mart here has an endcap facing out of electronics prominitely featuring Blu Ray, while the HD-DVD's are buried in the back of the DVD section somewhere.
 
Roufuss said:
I don't know what stores you're shopping at, but Target definitely has twice as much space for Blu-Ray as they do for HD-DVD, and it's been that way for awhile.

I think Toys R Us also has more Blu Ray then HD-DVD.

I can't speak for Best Buy / Circuit City, but I know every Wal-Mart here has an endcap facing out of electronics prominitely featuring Blu Ray, while the HD-DVD's are buried in the back of the DVD section somewhere.
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I was talking about BB/CC, lol. Although I rarely buy anything there - just go to window shop.

You brought up another point though. Blu-ray is front shelf at Walmart, and big name stores like BB/CC and NFM, etc etc, only have blu-ray players running to demo content. Why no HD-DVD players? I haven't heard any official reason why. Usually companies have to pay (pay off/advertise) to get front row viewing. Ex: The companies who want their items next to the cash register paid extra to put them there.

I also haven't heard of any movies in both formats that look better on hd-dvd or blu-ray or vice versa. I know blu-ray discs supposedly have extra space but is this being wasted since movies aren't using it? I've had a few people tell me no movies are even being released on dual layer blu-ray. This would mean hd-dvd has more space - 15gbx2 vs 25gbx1. Anybody have links that explain this? If they are in fact equal for movie detail, then I see no reason to go with the blu-ray camp since the costs are higher for the players (and arguably the discs although it trades off sometimes).
 
The advertising space has always been like that. The Blu-ray team payed Best Buy and Circuit City for prime advertisement space on their endcaps and in their aisles. I made a thread on it a few months back with pictures I took in the stores and everything. :p HD DVD never really made an impact in advertisement and product placement. To this date I haven't seen HD DVD in any stores on display anywhere near to the magnitude of how Blu-ray displays their products, and I've only seen one HD DVD commercial on TV. It is unfortunate, but again, money talks and advertisement space & product placement costs loads of money. HD DVD really never took the initiative to do what the politics of business demand, thus leading to what we see is the downfall of HD DVD.
 
kent said:
I own:

XBOX 360 HD DVD player (HDMI Elite) -> 1080p 42" Philips Ambilight
2 or 3 titles short of 50 HD DVDs, including several imports of US BluRay only movies


I love HD DVD because:

- Cheap
- Region free
- Existing infrastructure (burn 20 min of HD on a DVDR playable in HD format in HD DVD player!)


Things I don't like:

- Spending a lot of money
- DRM
- Rootkits
- Sony
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qft, except the first part about the expensive stuff cause I'm poor. :D
 
Do you seriously believe that Sony has done NOTHING wrong and everyone hates them because of the launch price? Haha where have you been the past year or so? Sony has made quite many decisions that have lost public support. For awhile there every week was a more bad press regarding Sony. I am not going to sit here and list all of them because I'd be here for longer then I care to be but its common knowledge Sony has done alot more to lose fans then the 1 thing you mentioned. That sounds like a blind fanboy comment. I am not a fanboy of either HD format but I had to point out what you said because it was honestly laughable.


Roufuss said:
WinMan_x2000 said:
I just cant beleive all the HD DVD fanboys on this site.QUOTE]

It's not HD DVD fanboys, it's anti-sony people. Ever since the PS3's price point was announced, it seems 90% of every forum goer has had this ridiculous grudge against Sony and wants to see them fail. It doesn't matter HD DVD was paying people off, it just matters that the evil Sony is doing it.

People don't want to see Blu Ray succeed mostly because it's Sony succeeding. Yes, they will counter with "unfinished product" but if the tables were turned, and this was HD-DVD doing this, it would suddenly be ok.

Remember when Microsoft decided to make HDMI standard in all 360's, and too bad for you early adopters who might want HDMI and can't get it without a new system? There was hardly any outcry over that. If Sony did something like that, you better believe the internet would be ablaze over it. Now because Profile 1.1 is out, and some people may not get to use a feature that really isn't all that important in the long run, it's a huge deal!

Early adopters ALWAYS get the shaft... I got my 360 a month ago, and I got better parts inside of it, HDMI, and two games for $350, where you used to only get a system with old shitty parts for $400! Technology advances, it's not like Profile 1.1 movies simply won't play on old players.

I don't know... I guess I'm just not so anti Sony and enjoy their products. I just want someone to win, and if Sony paid someone to make it happen, good, so we can have one universal HD format.
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http://www.homemediamagazine.com/news/html/breaking_article.cfm?sec_id=2&&article_ID=11894

As i stated in other threads that there would be a huge change in sales this week. This weeks Nielsen are indicating a 85% BD software sales, and HDDVD only accounting for 15% in sales this past week. Still waiting on the "official" release of the news, but HMMs pre-news leaks are rarely if ever wrong on the numbers.



That is a huge drop from the typical 75/25 70/30 ratios we had been seeing up to the Time Warner move.
 
4saken said:
http://www.homemediamagazine.com/news/html/breaking_article.cfm?sec_id=2&&article_ID=11894

As i stated in other threads that there would be a huge change in sales this week. This weeks Nielsen are indicating a 85% BD software sales, and HDDVD only accounting for 15% in sales this past week. Still waiting on the "official" release of the news, but HMMs pre-news leaks are rarely if ever wrong on the numbers.



That is a huge drop from the typical 75/25 70/30 ratios we had been seeing up to the Time Warner move.
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thanks for the link

"And the top HD DVD seller, The Kingdom, sold just 10% as many copies as the top Blu-ray Disc release, 3:10 to Yuma"

Hmm, never heard of "The Kingdom", although the second I walked into the store "3:10 to Yuma" was plastered all over my face. No wonder why it sold more, that appeals to the mindless shopping herds. Although I didn't buy a copy because of that, especially at $30.

I don't see a fair comparison between the formats when we are talking about a different movie. Have any numbers of sales between the same movie in both formats?
 
ShagnWagn said:
thanks for the link

"And the top HD DVD seller, The Kingdom, sold just 10% as many copies as the top Blu-ray Disc release, 3:10 to Yuma"

Hmm, never heard of "The Kingdom", although the second I walked into the store "3:10 to Yuma" was plastered all over my face. No wonder why it sold more, that appeals to the mindless shopping herds. Although I didn't buy a copy because of that, especially at $30.

I don't see a fair comparison between the formats when we are talking about a different movie. Have any numbers of sales between the same movie in both formats?
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http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.phtml/10549/11573/300-dvd-blu-ray-hddvd-sales.phtml

300 on Blu-Ray outsold HDDVD versions 2.5 to 1. Movies released on both formats in the past have always had 2:1 ratio sales in favor of Blu-Ray since the PS3 release.

Warner movies are really the only ones you can compare between formats, and thats not even possible after May. The Kingdom was a big release on HDDVD, anti-terrorist movie based in Saudi Arabia. HDDVD just hasnt had any new blockbuster titles coming out over the past few months. Thats why the Kingdom is still #1.
 
4saken said:
http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.phtml/10549/11573/300-dvd-blu-ray-hddvd-sales.phtml

300 on Blu-Ray outsold HDDVD versions 2.5 to 1. Movies released on both formats in the past have always had 2:1 ratio sales in favor of Blu-Ray since the PS3 release.

Warner movies are really the only ones you can compare between formats, and thats not even possible after May. The Kingdom was a big release on HDDVD, anti-terrorist movie based in Saudi Arabia. HDDVD just hasnt had any new blockbuster titles coming out over the past few months. Thats why the Kingdom is still #1.
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thanks again. Although that was over 3 months ago, I was hoping for news within the last month. I'll keep checking. Interested if the huge price slashes on the HD-DUD players made any difference. I have yet to find a blow-ray title I like enough to buy though. :(
 
You fucked up my ban. Proof you're not only an asshole, but you're incompetent as well.
BTW: Your ban message, calling me a "blew ray shrill" really did show that everything that was said about you subverting the "news" this site shits out onto its front page is true.

So here we go, ban me, round two. Better luck this time, faggot.
 
Oh yeah, and that whole 'erase every post I made' thing...how very Xerxes of you, loser.
 
Two factors that I think we are missing;

1) Stand alone HD-DVD drives are already 1/3 the cost of their BD competetors and I forsee $79 units before the end of the year. That alone will drive demand for HD-DVD.

2) BD is the dominant HD format for the rest of the world, HD-DVD has VERY little penetration outside of the US.
 
TheBluePill said:
Two factors that I think we are missing;

1) Stand alone HD-DVD drives are already 1/3 the cost of their BD competetors and I forsee $79 units before the end of the year. That alone will drive demand for HD-DVD.

2) BD is the dominant HD format for the rest of the world, HD-DVD has VERY little penetration outside of the US.
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Here is some anti-demand. HDDVD being returned en masse to retailers. Keep dreaming guys.

http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/techbeat/archives/2008/01/ces_dispatch--t.html
 
4saken said:
Here is some anti-demand. HDDVD being returned en masse to retailers. Keep dreaming guys.

http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/techbeat/archives/2008/01/ces_dispatch--t.html
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Nice Article and good read. A bit slanted though, as I dont feel that the Returns would have been that many.

What I do see is this.. Many consumers are HAPPY with the SD DVD price point. Many older movies are $5-$7, New releases are typically $13-$15 on the first week and only $20 for the next several months, dropping to $13 again. Pre-Played Movies go for a paltry $7 each for newer releases too.

No matter if BD or HD Wins out totally, the current price is going to have to drop for Wide addoption or the Network Based HD formats are going to start to take a huge bite out of sales. (Like CDs, Full albums are what, $9.99 on itunes, but still $16 in stores??)
 
TheBluePill said:
Nice Article and good read. A bit slanted though, as I dont feel that the Returns would have been that many.

What I do see is this.. Many consumers are HAPPY with the SD DVD price point. Many older movies are $5-$7, New releases are typically $13-$15 on the first week and only $20 for the next several months, dropping to $13 again. Pre-Played Movies go for a paltry $7 each for newer releases too.

No matter if BD or HD Wins out totally, the current price is going to have to drop for Wide addoption or the Network Based HD formats are going to start to take a huge bite out of sales. (Like CDs, Full albums are what, $9.99 on itunes, but still $16 in stores??)
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NOW would be a golden oportunity for some place like Netflix or even Napster to make an entry in the HD Download front and offer unlimited downloads, ala Napster-to-Go for one monthly fee.
 
TheBluePill said:
NOW would be a golden oportunity for some place like Netflix or even Napster to make an entry in the HD Download front and offer unlimited downloads, ala Napster-to-Go for one monthly fee.
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Agreed. I don't care about on-demand hd movie download. Just let me cache it to my hard drive then and it'll download overnight. I dunno if Ballbuster or Nutflix have the bandwidth for that many people though.
 
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