Turning the tide: Warner Bros. going Blu-ray exclusive?

The new word circulating around about the format war is that Warner Bros. will soon be going Blu-ray exclusive. This after VP Dan Silverberg commented that with the arrival of affordable hardware, it’s time for the studio to re-evaluate the “notion of staying in two formats.” Later on he says that “We can definitely talk Blu-Ray. We are committed to the format.” If they do decide to go Blu-ray exclusive we should expect some major shifts in the format war similar to when Paramount and Dreamworks went HD DVD exclusive. Read more in the full article. Thanks to Oracle for the tip!

The new word circulating around about the format war is that Warner Bros. will soon be going Blu-ray exclusive, which would probably turn the tide of the war.

The rumor comes after VP Dan Silverberg commented in a Hollywood promo event that:

When both formats launched and hardware prices were high, we made a decision to support both formats and let the consumer decide.

But now that hardware pricing is affordable for both Blu-ray and HD DVD, it appears consumers no longer want to decide – so the notion of staying in two formats for the duration is something we are re-evaluating now that we are in the fourth quarter.

He later goes on to note that Blu-ray sales have been leading in the race over the last nine months, beating HD DVD sales 2 to 1. He then adds that “We can definitely talk Blu-Ray. […] We are committed to the format.”

An unnamed executive believes that Warner is just waiting for one of the format camps to “make a commitment to getting this format into as many hands as possible.” So far Blu-ray may have the advantage according to Adams Media Research.

If they do decide to go Blu-ray exclusive we should expect some major shifts in the format war similar to when Paramount and Dreamworks went HD DVD exclusive. The studios decided to shift because of HD DVD’s cheaper price tag.

To counter, Andy Parsons from the Blu-ray camp comments: “We think Warner will respond to the fact that our greater number of titles gives us a greater likelihood of being the single standard.” Another executive expresses confidence that Blu-ray hardware will be even cheaper in the future.

According to their numbers, by the end of this year 578,000 US households will own HD DVD players while only 370,000 will have Blu-ray players. 300,000 HD DVD players are in circulation as an add-on for the Xbox 360. However, Sony‘s trump card is the 2.3 million PlayStation 3s sold through November.

Will Warner’s choice finally end the format war? Updates as we get them. Thanks to Oracle for the tip!

Via Businessweek