Bring Out Yer HD DVDead
By June, Wal-Mart will only be carrying Blu-ray movies and hardware machines and, of course, standard-def movies, DVD players, and up-convert players.”
–Susan Chronister of Wal-Mart sticks a fork in HD DVD.
HD DVD may soon join Betamax in the consumer electronics industry’s Museum of Failed Formats. Though publicly HD DVD champion Toshiba professes its commitment to the next generation DVD standard, privately it’s plotting its demise. Sources close to the company tell the Hollywood Reporter that the continued marginalization of HD DVD by movie studios and big box retailers like Wal-Mart has driven Toshiba to concede defeat in the DVD format war. The company plans to pull the plug on HD DVD in a matter of weeks. “An announcement is coming soon,” said one source close to the HD DVD camp.
But not soon enough for some, who are finally seeing their predictions of an HD DVD rout borne out. “Blu-ray’s better, and I told everyone,” said film director Michael Bay. “I was very vocal about it. I knew HD [DVD] was not going to make it. Am I thrilled? It really wasn’t my fight, but remember what I said in the press? I was kind of saying HD [DVD]’s going to lose… No one believed me.”
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Sony to Toshiba: “See you next Thursday.”
Posted by Eric Welch at February 15th, 2008 at 8:15 am