Blu-ray’s recent lead in percentage of discs sold has HD DVD against the ropes. But HD DVD, who owes Universal for at least 35% of their sales, has a slew of great titles coming out in the next 3 months. Will HD DVD ever go away? No. Will Blu-ray Disc ever go away? No. How about a truce?
There are two ways we can make life easier for folks who just want to watch movies in Hi Def. After all, they don’t want to have to buy two different format players. Neither do they want to buy a $1200 dual format player.
The first suggestion, HD DVD gives up their name to Blu-ray Disc. Sound crazy? Not really. Not if there is some sort of monetary agreement that makes all parties happy. I mean really, you have Born on the Fourth of July, 40 Year old Virgin, and Lost in Translation coming out on HD DVD in June. Why wouldn’t you want to make that available to PS3 & Blu-ray Disc owners?
Second suggestion. Have Blu-ray Disc merge into HD DVD. Call it “The new HD DVD“, ala AT&T and Cingular’s recent merger. After all, who knows what a Blu-ray Disc is anyway? Toshiba had the favorable brand from the start, so why not capitalize on it?
The reality? Will either company give up their format? No way. Will studios continue to release titles in both formats until the war favors HD DVD because of it’s name recognition and lower priced players? You got it. Blu-ray Disc will go the way of the Laser Disc. It will be regarded as the choice High Definition format for the age, but another format that went the way of the Betamax.
