Thursday, February 21, 2008

Painting discs blu and kicking HD DVD some more

And so the Blu-Ray format wins.

Toshiba's HD DVD is down and the kicks keep coming. Now, even known partners and ardent supporters of the HD DVD format are swearing allegiance to the Blu-Ray.
Toshiba has already released an official statement stating the end of the road for the HD DVD. A day after this, Universal Pictures Digital adopted the Blu-Ray format along with various other companies and retailers.

Amazon.com announced that it will support Blu-Ray. Its statement says:
“The high-definition landscape is rapidly changing … In order to best serve our customers, Amazon is recommending Blu-Ray as the preferred digital format and will continue to carry the ‘Earth’s Largest selection’ of Blu-Ray products.”

One week prior to Toshiba’s official announcement, Netflix announced preference for the Blu-Ray format. The company says: "There is absolutely nothing wrong with having one single format, as this would only ease the customer’s choice and bring clarity to the consumer. Netflix has offered both formats, ever since the beginnings of HD DVDs in 2006, but decided it is time to move on and look forward to what this change could mean for the adoption of high-definition in general."

Since the beginning of this year, a number of retailers already decided to adopt the Blu-Ray, including Woolworths and Wal-Mart. Toshiba lost as the Sony hot item rapidly becomes a market favorite.


Nevertheless, a few companies express ‘everlasting’ support for the HD DVD. LG said it will continue to develop players compatible with this format, despite Toshiba’s Tuesday announcement, in a statement issued to Pocket-lint: “LG believes that at this present moment in time, it is necessary to provide a player which supports both formats and therefore create simplicity and convenience for the existing HD DVD consumer.”

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