The high-definition disc format wars took a turn just before CES when Warner Bros. announced that they were abandoning the HD DVD format in favor of Blu-ray at the end of May 2008, leaving just Paramount and Universal in HD DVD’s camp and each of the have had their own defection rumors floating around.
Research firm Gartner believes that the war will end in 2008 and that Blu-ray will be the winner.
What about recent price cuts by Toshiba on HD DVD hardware?
“Gartner believes that Toshiba’s price-cutting may prolong HD DVD’s life a little, but the limited line-up of film titles will inflict fatal damage on the format,” says Hiroyuki Shimizu, Principal Research Analyst in Japan.
With the odds really stacking up against HD DVD its hard to disagree with their conclusion.
The only thing that can stop Blu-ray is Blu-ray itself. If the Blu-ray group fractures or consumers revolt due to future compatibility issues, HD DVD might have a chance.
[Via Engadget]
Filed under: entertainment, tech | Tagged: blu, blu-ray, dvd, format, gartner, hd, hd-dvd, tech
