Kotaku: Format Wars

Best Buy Offers Gift Cards for HD-DVD Players

fdemarco — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:20:59 MDT

Are you one of the unfortunates stuck with a now useless HD-DVD player? Did you purchase it at Best Buy before February 23rd? If you answered yes to both of these questions, you can return that old door stop to Best Buy and get a $50 gift card in return. According to CNN it is estimated that upwards of $10 million in US Gift cards. HD-DVD owners will be found through Best Buy's Reward Zone program, service plans and online orders. The gift cards will automatically be mailed out to qualifying folks at the beginning of may. If you are not a Reward Zone member you can bring in your BB receipt or credit card info. They will also be offering an online trade-in center where customers can unload their unwanted players beginning March 21.

Those stuck with HD-DVD players getting gift cards {CNN.com - Thanks, Robert]

CES HD DVD Press Conference Canceled

fdemarco — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 10:00:00 MST

In light of yesterday's announcement that Warner Bros. will be going exclusively Blu-Ray, the HD DVD Promotion Group has canceled it's press conference for this year's CES. The news came in an email sent around to CES attendees yesterday.

"Based on the timing of the Warner Home Video announcement today, we have decided to postpone our CES 2008 press conference scheduled for Sunday, January 6th at 8:30 p.m. in the Wynn Hotel. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
We are currently discussing the potential impact of this announcement with the other HD DVD partner companies and evaluating next steps. We believe the consumer continues to benefit from HD DVD's commitment to quality and affordability - a bar that is critical for the mainstream success of any format.

We'll continue to keep you updated on new developments around HD DVD."

Yeeeeesh. Not that I think the entire format war relies on the decisions of Warner's, but it is one of the largest movie distributors and their choice will serve to start swinging things in Blu-Ray's direction. If a few more prominent companies choose this same option, we could well see an end to the format wars in the not too distant future. Man, am I glad I bought that PS3 when I had the money.

CES HD DVD Event canceled due to Warner announcement [Wesleytech.com]

360's Biggest Selling Accessory Brings Truce?

Kim Phu — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 11:40:00 MDT

The HD DVD/Blu-ray format war is getting ugly on the business side of things, but what does the average consumer really think? After taking a look at the battle scenes, CNET UK seems to think that perhaps neither format will win since both have been successful at covering different spaces in the marketing sphere. Playstation might be backing up Blu-ray big time, but it doesn't mean that HD-DVD hasn't outperformed on other systems:

There were also some surprising stats given. Microsoft was reluctant to tell us how many HD DVD drives for the Xbox 360 it has sold worldwide, but it did tell us that in the US it has shifted 155,000 of them. This is apparently the biggest-selling accessory Microsoft has ever sold for the 360.

Which is fine, but honestly, we all know it all comes down to Costco. Whatever Costco sells, people will buy. How do you think Bagel Bites got so popular? Kim Phu

HD DVD Posse: "There's Room for Both Formats" [CNet UK via Game|Life]

Discs Ain't Dead Yet, Dude

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 27 Nov 2006 00:22:24 MST

Listen to this: Sony exec says discs still have some gas left. Good! Because last we heard, company brass said we wouldn't be using them for our PS4s, but w/e. Sony UK's Ray Maguire says there are "many" years left for the format as games get bigger in size. Maguire enlightens:

What I think will happen is there will be a retail delivery model and then there'll be a supplementary business—which is downloading extra bits and pieces to keep your experience alive, keep it fresh and keep it modified and keep the game going on.

Format wars aside, I personally like discs—buying them, unwrapping them for the first time and stacking them on my shelf. Silly, sure, but I can't be alone, can I? Brian Ashcraft

Discs Ain't Dead [Games Industry]

Peter Moore Hints at the Death of Discs

lsmith — Fri, 10 Feb 2006 08:29:26 MST

You say Blu-Ray? I say HD-DVD. Peter Moore says, in a few years let's call the whole thing off. Not exactly, but the Microsoft exec did talk about the eventual laughability of disc distribution in an article at GameSpot. Moore said, "Let's be fair. Whether it's five, 10, 15, 20 years from now, the concept of driving to the store to buy a plastic disc with data on it and driving back and popping it in the drive will be ridiculous. We'll tell our grandchildren that and they'll laugh at us." Maybe the format wars aren't such a big deal after all (well in five, 10, 15 or 20 years maybe they won't be)?

Industry Icons Get Connected [GameSpot]

Xbox 360 Could Support Blu-ray

lsmith — Wed, 11 Jan 2006 13:40:55 MST

Call it one step ahead or a little bit of damage control, I don't care. But Xbox Circle reports that Peter Moore said he could see a Blu-ray external player for the Xbox 360 if Blu-ray ends up winning the "format wars." These are format wars that I don't even think should be happening, but Microsoft is already building a bunker in case things go bad. Smart on the company's part, by readying an HD-DVD drive and being prepared to ready a Blu-ray player, Microsoft is either thinking ahead or preparing to try to cut Sony off at every possible corner. This could get dirty, like catfight, squealing, mudwrestling dirty. I'm into it.

Moore Says Xbox 360 Could See Blu-ray Add-On [Xbox Circle]
Xbox 360 or PS3? The Choice Could Determine Your Next DVD

Xbox 360 or PS3? The Choice Could Determine Your Next DVD

lsmith — Mon, 09 Jan 2006 15:42:38 MST

Almost everyone who follows gaming knows that Sony's PlayStation 3 will support Blu-ray and Microsoft announced plans to release an HD-DVD drive for the Xbox 360 at last week's CES. The New York Times has an article that does more than hint that the future of the next-generation DVD format might rest in the hands of gamers.

The PlayStation 3 launch (the NYT article expects the console this spring), to me, mirrors Sony's PlayStation 2 launch, with a caveat. Are consumers really ready to upgrade to a next-generation high-definition DVD format? I don't know if I'm even remotely ready to trade in my stack of "plain, old, normal, DVDs," for Blu-ray or HD-DVD, let alone only being able to purchase some movies on each format. On that note, I disagree with the Times article that suggests that gamers could determine the winner in the format wars, simply because I don't think it's time for a war. DVD is still fine. What do you think?

Gamers Could Influence Next DVD Format [The New York Times]
Xbox 360 HD-DVD Announced

HP Plays the Middle in Blu-Ray Versus HD

lsmith — Mon, 19 Dec 2005 09:40:58 MST

Hella sites, including Games Industry report that Hewlett Packard one-time exclusive supporter of Blu-Ray has decided to also support HD-DVD as the next generation of disc format draws near. HP general manager Maureen Webber had this to say: "By joining the HD-DVD Promotions Group and continuing work with the Blu-Ray Disc Association, HP will be in a better position to assess true development costs and, ultimately, provide the best and most affordable solution for consumers."

Translation: HP will be in a good postition to make money.

Hewlett-Packard to Support HD-DVD Along With Blu-Ray [Games Industry]

Pointless Format Wars? Xbox 360 to Only Use DVD

lsmith — Tue, 01 Nov 2005 11:40:30 MST

Gamespot had it as a rumor they said was probably true, and Games Industry is reporting it as fact, but was Xbox Japan's chief Yoshihiro Maruyama right when he told Famitsu Xbox that the HD-DVD drive in the Xbox 360 wouldn't be used for gaming? More and more it's looking true. I guess this Blu-Ray versus HD-DVD stuff is more about watching movies than playing games.

No HD-DVD Games for Xbox 360? [GameSpot]
Xbox 360 Games Will Never Use HD-DVD [Games Industry]
announced decisions to support HD-DVD as their next-generation DVD format. With Sony announcing their support for Blu-Ray, and Microsoft and Intel's previous neutrality, there was a glimmer of hope that an agreement could've been reached that would put HD-DVD and Blu Ray discs beside one another.

The announcements by Microsoft and Intel dim that glimmer of hope considerably.

Microsoft, Intel Confirm Support for HD-DVD Format [Games Industry]