savageamusement
08-30-2006, 09:23 AM
Which new DVD format will you purchase for your future trading needs
Blue Ray
HD-DVD
Dual Layer
A new high-definition DVD format aimed at replacing current DVDs got a huge boost Monday when NBC Universal and three other heavyweight Hollywood studios endorsed electronics giant Toshiba's new HD DVD.
The new discs — due out next fall — promise superior picture and audio quality and greater storage capacity, enabling longer movies to be stored on a single disc.
The commitment to release movies in HD DVD by Paramount, NBC Universal, Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema is a blow for Sony's competing Blu-ray DVD format.
Blu-ray has the commitment of many computer and consumer electronics manufacturers, including Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Samsung, but no studio beyond Sony's Columbia TriStar Group. Sony is in the process of acquiring MGM.
Walt Disney and 20th Century Fox haven't committed to either format.
For now, Toshiba's HD DVD gets "first-mover advantage," says independent analyst Richard Doherty of The Envisioneering Group. "The DVD player isn't worth much without movies to play on them."
Movies are the big ticket for DVD sales. Consumers spent $16.3 billion on pre-recorded DVDs in 2003 and $16.7 billion this year through October, trade magazine DVD Exclusive says.
Because of its higher resolution, the new DVD format is aimed at the early adopter crowd — those with snazzy plasma and high-definition TVs.
But don't throw away that DVD collection. Current DVDs play on both existing and new DVD models. It could take years — and lots of well-heeled consumers — for the new format to take off.
While plenty of new DVD players cost less than $100, Blu-ray models sell in Asia for $2,000 and up. Toshiba says its unit will retail for $995. The HD DVD movies will be priced "at a premium," too, says Jim Cardwell, president of Warner Home Video. "The video is better. The interactivity is better. The audio is better. That should be worth a little more."
Cardwell, along with counterparts at Universal and Paramount, say the deals with HD DVD are non-exclusive. The studios say they remain open to working with Sony.
But, concedes Universal Home Video President Craig Kornblau: "We'd like to see only one format."
Maureen Weber, spokeswoman for the Blu-ray Disc Association, wasn't waving a white flag Monday. "It takes more than just a disc to create a format." She says her team has the advantage because the Blu-ray format is supported by computer and consumer electronics manufacturers.
Blue Ray
HD-DVD
Dual Layer
A new high-definition DVD format aimed at replacing current DVDs got a huge boost Monday when NBC Universal and three other heavyweight Hollywood studios endorsed electronics giant Toshiba's new HD DVD.
The new discs — due out next fall — promise superior picture and audio quality and greater storage capacity, enabling longer movies to be stored on a single disc.
The commitment to release movies in HD DVD by Paramount, NBC Universal, Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema is a blow for Sony's competing Blu-ray DVD format.
Blu-ray has the commitment of many computer and consumer electronics manufacturers, including Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Samsung, but no studio beyond Sony's Columbia TriStar Group. Sony is in the process of acquiring MGM.
Walt Disney and 20th Century Fox haven't committed to either format.
For now, Toshiba's HD DVD gets "first-mover advantage," says independent analyst Richard Doherty of The Envisioneering Group. "The DVD player isn't worth much without movies to play on them."
Movies are the big ticket for DVD sales. Consumers spent $16.3 billion on pre-recorded DVDs in 2003 and $16.7 billion this year through October, trade magazine DVD Exclusive says.
Because of its higher resolution, the new DVD format is aimed at the early adopter crowd — those with snazzy plasma and high-definition TVs.
But don't throw away that DVD collection. Current DVDs play on both existing and new DVD models. It could take years — and lots of well-heeled consumers — for the new format to take off.
While plenty of new DVD players cost less than $100, Blu-ray models sell in Asia for $2,000 and up. Toshiba says its unit will retail for $995. The HD DVD movies will be priced "at a premium," too, says Jim Cardwell, president of Warner Home Video. "The video is better. The interactivity is better. The audio is better. That should be worth a little more."
Cardwell, along with counterparts at Universal and Paramount, say the deals with HD DVD are non-exclusive. The studios say they remain open to working with Sony.
But, concedes Universal Home Video President Craig Kornblau: "We'd like to see only one format."
Maureen Weber, spokeswoman for the Blu-ray Disc Association, wasn't waving a white flag Monday. "It takes more than just a disc to create a format." She says her team has the advantage because the Blu-ray format is supported by computer and consumer electronics manufacturers.