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High Definition Disc Format War to be over soon! |
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Written by Hayden Tennent
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Friday, 25 April 2008 20:00 |
According to trusted sources, the format between the two rival formats Blu-Ray and HD-DVD is coming to the end, with Blu-Ray the final winner. The main backer of the HD DVD format Toshiba is expected to pull out of the High Definition race after spending billions on the research and marketing of the soon to be defunct HD DVD format.
The HD DVD format has been dealt several blows recently with announcements such as that by Warner Bros that it would drop support for HD DVD in the first half of 2008. At this time the only remaining movie studio to support the HD DVD format is Universal. Common sense dictates they will also retire from the HD DVD arena. Rental firm Netflix announced that it would stop renting movies in the HD DVD format, and retail store Best Buy will be exclusively recommending Blu-ray players to customers.
It is expected that by early January that Toshiba will only support its rival Sony's Blue-Ray Disc format. Toshiba has already halted production of HD DVD Players and recorders.
HISTORY
The HD DVD format was released in 2002 after Toshiba and a number of other DVD Forum members were unwilling to back the blue-laser disc format Blu-ray which Sony and Pioneer had developed. Initially the Blue-ray format required a disc caddy which Toshiba considered would be a turn-off for consumers. HD DVD also had the advantage that it could be manufactured on modified DVD production lines.
Source: New Zealand Herald, Ars technic, Reuter, PC World, The Register
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