Slow and steady: how Blu-ray and HD DVD formats will prevail

Blu-ray and HD DVD formats slowly changing the trend in the format wars - Image 1High definition is the new trend that supporters of the HD DVD and the Blu-ray format are calling for. According to reports, the high definition format market is slowly on the rise with new titles being converted to either format and increasing sales for their respective companies.

While the odds of the format war are still stacked against the high def camps’ favor, recent polls asking whether people are willing to buy next gen players and if those people with high def players are satisfied with the quality of their videos both answered a resounding positive feedback.

Looking at some numbers, however, standard-definition upconverting DVD players still dominate the market with a 27% share on a unit basis, while high-def only has a 5% hold. It was also noted that less than half of PS3 users actually use their consoles to watch Blu-ray films.

Russ Crupnick, Vice President and Senior Industry Analyst for NPD Group, still believes that once people try going high-def, they will become the cheerleaders for the new formats. He goes on saying this:

How do we go from confusion to forecasts that say that in a few years half the market will be high-def? ItÂ’s the experiences of people with next-gen. About 90% [of those recently polled] said they were extremely satisfied with their next-gen player purchase. You donÂ’t usually see those kinds of numbers.

The HD DVD camp also advocated the interactive features and the high definition quality that its new formats will be using to draw in the market. Don Eklund, executive VP of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, also mentioned that the PS3 will be offering a firmware upgrade to boost its Blu-ray interactivity functionality. However, as of now, it’s something that people are still considering whether or not they should jump on the high-def bandwagon.

Blu-ray and HD DVD formats slowly changing the trend in the format wars - Image 1High definition is the new trend that supporters of the HD DVD and the Blu-ray format are calling for. According to reports, the high definition format market is slowly on the rise with new titles being converted to either format and increasing sales for their respective companies.

While the odds of the format war are still stacked against the high def camps’ favor, recent polls asking whether people are willing to buy next gen players and if those people with high def players are satisfied with the quality of their videos both answered a resounding positive feedback.

Looking at some numbers, however, standard-definition upconverting DVD players still dominate the market with a 27% share on a unit basis, while high-def only has a 5% hold. It was also noted that less than half of PS3 users actually use their consoles to watch Blu-ray films.

Russ Crupnick, Vice President and Senior Industry Analyst for NPD Group, still believes that once people try going high-def, they will become the cheerleaders for the new formats. He goes on saying this:

How do we go from confusion to forecasts that say that in a few years half the market will be high-def? ItÂ’s the experiences of people with next-gen. About 90% [of those recently polled] said they were extremely satisfied with their next-gen player purchase. You donÂ’t usually see those kinds of numbers.

The HD DVD camp also advocated the interactive features and the high definition quality that its new formats will be using to draw in the market. Don Eklund, executive VP of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, also mentioned that the PS3 will be offering a firmware upgrade to boost its Blu-ray interactivity functionality. However, as of now, it’s something that people are still considering whether or not they should jump on the high-def bandwagon.

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