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The first two Pirates movies hit Blu-ray on May 22 to coincide with the third movie's theatrical release
House of Mouse leader says HD DVD and Blu-ray format war is a matter of perception

Disney, Fox, Lionsgate and Sony Pictures exclusively supports the Blu-ray Disc format for the delivery of high-definition movies. In a recent quarter’s end conference call with the Walt Disney Company, company president and CEO Bob Iger reiterated his company’s stance behind the Blu-ray format.

When Iger was asked if he could consider supporting HD DVD should that format prove to be more successful than Blu-ray, he replied, “We made our bed with Blu-ray because we believed more in that format for a variety of reasons; some technical in nature, some due to the fact that it simply had broader support from a variety of industries, notably the motion picture studios but also what I’ll call the consumer electronics and the tech industry.”

“What we are seeing lately is that sales of Blu-ray discs are outpacing HD discs by at least two to one,” Iger continued. “As more quality Blu-ray product comes on the market, which is going to happen, notably with Pirates on May 22, we actually believe that the difference or the advantage of Blu-ray is only going to widen.”

Iger acknowledges that both formats are still in their infancy, with HD DVD and Blu-ray both recently hitting the one million unit mark, and lays part of the blame on the consumer uncertainty generated from the apparent format war. “What we are also seeing is that the adoption of the platform right now is being held back a bit by a perception among consumers, really, that there is a format war; and that the hardware or the players are too expensive,” Iger said, adding that he expects that the price of players to drop by the Christmas season.

“We also believe that if Blu-ray continues to outpace HD DVD the retailers are ultimately going to weigh in, because they only have a limited amount of shelf space, and they are going to have to choose a format in order to manage their own shelf space. Once that happens, the advantage is going to go even more in Blu-ray’s direction,” states the Disney CEO. “The best thing that could happen is for the format war to end, which will be very pro-consumer, particularly as hardware comes down.”

Iger points out that the format war is something that doesn’t apply to all consumer markets. For example, Blu-ray Disc holds an overwhelming command in Japan. “If you look across the globe, the only place there is really a format war is in the United States,” said Iger “In other markets where next-gen DVD is starting to penetrate, Blu-ray is winning, and substantially; so much so there isn’t even a perceived format war.”

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:(
By Mithan on 5/14/2007 7:42:37 AM , Rating: 2
I get the feeling Blu-Ray is going to win this one in the end, though obviously there are a lot of plays left in the battle. Still, I can't get over the feeling that HD-DVD is just more consumer friendly and would be a better option for consumers overall, even if Blu-Ray has a few technical advantages.




RE: :(
By BZDTemp on 5/14/2007 7:59:30 AM , Rating: 1
Just for the bigger storage possibility anyone with a computer should be hoping for Blue Ray!

After all what is preferred a cheap optical medium for backup one holding 30 GB or one holding 50 GB?

As for movies I'm not really that interested. Sure I have a PS3, and a 360, but I do prefer to see movies in the Cinema even though ticket prices here in Denmark are pretty steep with almost $15 per seat in the evenings.

PS. Sony send me a Blue Ray disc with the latest 007 movie and I must say those which claim HD is a gimmick have not seen a movie in 1920*1080.


RE: :(
By phusg on 5/14/2007 10:29:37 AM , Rating: 3
quote:
After all what is preferred a cheap optical medium for backup one holding 30 GB or one holding 50 GB?

And which is preferred if the 30GB one costs 50 cents per disc and the 50B one 100 cents?


RE: :(
By GI2K on 5/14/2007 12:23:48 PM , Rating: 3
Well I think would rather pay 100 cents for a single 50GB than 100 cents for 60GB on 2 disks...

Besides get your facts straight a 25GB BD-R disks costs 11$ a 15 GB costs 10$... which one do you prefer?...


RE: :(
By JeffDM on 5/15/2007 9:38:59 AM , Rating: 2
If you don't think there is a cost to changing out discs, then you are missing a key point, that generally requires user intervention unless you buy an expensive media changer.

As such, as a hypothetical circumstance, I'd often rather a single 1x speed BRD than use two 4x HD-DVD discs because I don't want to change discs any more than I have to, and risk accidentally losing one disc in a pair as well, if both discs are required. Also, if you have 35GB to send or store, HDDVD would require one double layer and one single layer disc, or three single layer discs, whereas one single layer BRD would handle it.

As yet, there is almost no cost difference in the discs that I have seen so far, so there is practically no extra cost to the extra 10GB.


RE: :(
By FITCamaro on 5/14/2007 11:42:03 AM , Rating: 4
If you honestly think Blu-ray will be cheaper than HD-DVD in price per disc, you're delusional.

When has any Sony format ever been even as expensive as the competition. Look at their memory stick Pro Duo format. It's twice as expensive as competing formats.

I like the size of Blu-ray but I know since its from Sony, with no competition they'll charge whatever they want for it and it won't be cheap.


RE: :(
By GI2K on 5/14/07, Rating: 0
RE: :(
By SiliconAddict on 5/14/2007 9:47:35 PM , Rating: 2
Oj joy. the PS3 justification all over again. Get a clue. More expensive is more expensive. Hell I'd rather have a 30 cent coaster then a 100 cent one.


RE: :(
By Axbattler on 5/14/2007 12:49:34 PM , Rating: 1
I'd say that it -is- fair that they charge more per disc. After all you are getting more capacity. Now perhaps things will change later on, for now, per GB, you do the math:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82...

I've also compared the price in the UK. Same brand, same place, different format, the BD-R came out about 9p cheaper per GB. I am actually quite surprised considering how much I've heard about HD-DVD being cheaper than BD long before they came about.

As for the Memory Stick Pro Duo, it is pricey, especially compared to SD. But here in the UK, it's pretty much on par with the xD format which is a worse format in my opinion (the price of 1GB xD card recently dropped pretty dramatically - just a few months back they costed more than memory stick duos; for 2GB, they are more or less the same).


RE: :(
By BZDTemp on 5/14/2007 1:43:39 PM , Rating: 3
Seems to me they are cheap but even if they cost double I'd much prefer something that can hold 66% more per disc as my time is worth more than a few $.

Anyway it's seems we pretty much agree considering you write "When has any Sony format ever been even as expensive as the competition. " :-) (Sry - could not help it)

You're fears about Sony turning up the price is not really well founded as there are other storage systems for computer use. Right now it looks like Blue Ray could be a really good and cheap solution and in fact help bringing some of the alternatives down in price.

Finally it's not just Sony that is calling the shots about Blue Ray so enough with the bashing all ready.


RE: :(
By animedude on 5/16/2007 3:36:31 AM , Rating: 1
Are you on crack?

The price per disc is determined by the manufacturer and the license fee. As manufacturing technique is becoming mature, the price of Blu-ray will go down like DVD.


RE: :(
By Kurz on 5/14/07, Rating: -1
RE: :(
By zombiexl on 5/14/2007 8:45:31 AM , Rating: 5
quote:
I work at Best-buy and I make sure all my customers know which tech has the best technology. Blu-ray for the win!


If you work at best buy then you should probably back HD-DVD if you want Blu-Ray to win.

I'm only saying that becuase most people I know think most people who work at best buy are complete idiots.


RE: :(
By theapparition on 5/14/2007 9:08:56 AM , Rating: 3
quote:
Blu-ray has anti scratch coating default on all their disks.

They only have that anti-scratch coating because Blu-ray disks were extra prone to scratches. The coating gives them the same protection as HD-DVD disks and DVDs now.

quote:
I work at Best-buy and I make sure all my customers know which tech has the best technology.

You should become a little more informed.:-)

To start off with, I own both component players.
Personally, I think Blu-ray has better future technology. However, I'm not happy on how it was implemented. HD-DVD was an evolution of DVD (and supported by the DVD consortium). Was easier/cheaper to manufacture, and had the infrastructure to distribute immediately.
Initially, I was a big supporter of Blu-ray (way before it even came out) and was impressed by the disk space. But the more I researched into the specs, there were things I didn't like. The final straw for me was Blu-ray's resistance to have mandatory managed copy in their specification (don't know if this has changed).

The real test will come with the cost of players, and movie support. Unless BR can get players to match the sub 299 price of HD players soon, they will be hurting in the long run.


RE: :(
By theapparition on 5/14/2007 9:25:21 AM , Rating: 2
After researching it, Blu-ray does now include mandatory managed copy after HP threatened to leave.


RE: :(
By encryptkeeper on 5/14/2007 9:41:52 AM , Rating: 3
I work at Best-buy and I make sure all my customers know which tech has the best technology.

Ugh. What Best Buy are you from? Hate to tell you this pal, but Best Buy employees are known as being some of the LEAST informed about technology.


RE: :(
By FITCamaro on 5/14/2007 11:38:52 AM , Rating: 3
Well not all of them. I worked at Best Buy in college in the computer department and know plenty about computers. I wouldn't have done well in TVs or car stereos though because I don't know anything about them.

But yes, 95% of Best Buy employees don't know anything but the marketing crap that Best Buy tells them to sell the product.


RE: :(
By Kurz on 5/14/2007 11:50:11 AM , Rating: 2
I know... But, I guess I am the minority of people who worked there.

To tell you the truth... I knew probably more than everyone at my store. I used to work as a Geek Squad Technician.
And I was let go because frankly I put the customers first.
Because alot of times customers would come with simple problems I would fix it for free (I am talking about really simple problems like changing light levels on a laptop).
Management did not like it, I knew more about the technology than anyone else there. Even my manager... (I tested them a couple of times.)

I even ask why the hell are the LCDs not running on native resolution?! Of course they are too cheap to have more than one graphics card on the computer to output at multiple Res.

Sorry I have an Opinion... (Wonders what was so offensive about my post) I really think Blu-ray is the better tech.
It is more expensive however its going to match HD-DVD pretty soon (2 years max).

So what they had to make it anti scratch because the reading surface is so close to the optical surface. They wanted more space so they brought it closer to the surface and they put in an Anti scratch coating. When you compare the two techs they are pretty similar. Both offer an interactivity aspect (Java for Blu-ray,iHD for HDDVD). Besides the Mandatory Copying issue... There is not much difference between the two. With Bluray and HD-dvd cracked... it shouldn't be an issue.


RE: :(
By Flunk on 5/14/2007 3:29:08 PM , Rating: 2
Geek Squad technicians are known to real IT professionals as completely incompetent. They advertise A+... that's laughable, my cat could pass the A+ test.

Even if you are not as ill-informed as your average Best Buy employee there are many people who post on these boards with much better credentials so it would be in your best interest to not mention you work at Best Buy.

Also, use a spell checker.


RE: :(
By zaki on 5/14/2007 3:37:48 PM , Rating: 2
yeah, f the corporate world, i hate it when people try to rip off customers in technical support, thats the reason why i got into comps in the first place.

on the topic: well i cant say im not a blu-ray fan, if anything is going to get my vote its the top of the line, regardless of whether its cheap or not, the corporations behind blu-ray can suck it. they OUGHT to make blu-ray affordable, other wise I wouldnt give a rat's ass about how much the disc can hold.


RE: :(
By AstroCreep on 5/14/2007 5:56:04 PM , Rating: 2
quote:

I work at Best-buy and I make sure all my customers know which tech has the best technology. Blu-ray for the win!

Do you also share with them that Blu-ray has the more draconian DRM (a.k.a. "Anti-Consumer") solution? Also that Blu-ray's largest backer is Sony, who helped to propagate hidden rootkits into consumers' computers with the CDs they sold a few years ago?
...or are these a few issues that conveniently slipped your mind when you share that it's "Blu-ray for the win!"?

If you're going to tout one technology, you must also be aware of it's shortcomings, if not for yourself, for the people who trust your word.


RE: :(
By Kurz on 5/15/2007 1:25:45 AM , Rating: 2
I can't seem to find any information pertaining to the fact that Blu-ray has more DRM than HD-DVD. Besides the limit of how many copies you can make (HP's Idea).

P.S. If people want to copy more than that limit they can crack it.

Why don't you share with me the links to creditable sources, about Blu-ray having more DRM Tech than HD-DVD.

However I did search your Anti-consumer bid...
It was quoted from Bill Gates, unless there was another source.

I do remember that scandal with the rootkits.
Frankly I think they learned their lesson.
I don't hear anything about rootkits on Blu-ray.

Please just because I might seem young doesn't mean I am fool hearty. Credentials on information... don't make me laugh, anyone can search up this information if they have the time.

Whats with all you guys doing simple searches on the internet without reading and interpreting the contents.


RE: :(
By AstroCreep on 5/15/2007 6:41:12 PM , Rating: 2
It's kinda funny how you're saying "I'm not fool hearty" and am basically calling me out (on the Internet--that's a shock) without having a base knowledge of the actual specification of the format. What I'm referring to is called BD+; read about it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc.

With everything that it's capable of doing (running a 'virtual environment', checking host hardware to see if it's been 'tampered with', etc) in my mind proves to me two things:
1. It is more draconian, and
2. Sony has not learned their lesson from the Rootkit fiasco if they're willing to run a 'virtual environment' on a video player. Sure there could be some neat applications (little mini-games on a kids' video), but all it takes is one a-hole to exploit some sort of hole in the BD+ environment and potentially wreak havoc.
And yes, I know how to circumvent AACS encoding, and eventually we'll be able to do the same with BD+, but I shouldn't feel the need to do so just because it (may become) the de facto standard.


RE: :(
By jadedeath on 5/14/2007 12:02:05 PM , Rating: 1
If HD were more consumer friendly, then they would pass on the "cheaper to make" disk price onto the consumers.

They constantly flout that the disks are cheaper to make, then if they're consumer friendly they should really pass that on instead of having the disk prices being equivalent {or in the case of HD + DVD higher}.

Logan


Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By jvillaro on 5/14/2007 11:32:59 AM , Rating: 2
It's very important for Blu-Ray that Disney's basically giving it exclusive support, but I don't think it will be the war defining issue.

The porn industry is apparently going to support the HD-DVD format because they are not getting support for producing their movies en Blu-Ray and it's actually sort of Disney's "fault" (Sony has something to do with this too).

So Disney's sales figures will be a big contribution but I think the porn industry is bigger (Don't have the numbers though). I think something similar happend with the beta/vhs war.




RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By OxBow on 5/14/2007 11:56:16 AM , Rating: 3
Once again with the porn meme.

This piece of HD-DVD tripe just won't die. First of all, it's not true that Sony has an anti-porn agenda (neither does Disney). They don't produce porn, however, and don't want it to possibly cross contaminate their disks. Disney does have a no-porn allowed policy in factories pressing their disks. This is the result of an old DVD lawsuit where a snippet of a porn file found it's way into some DVD's pressed by a Sony subsidiary. Both companies were sued. In order to protect their big clients interests, Sony will not take contracts to press porn.

Sony, Disney, etc. have no opinion on the porn industry, and if a producer wants to dist. on blue-ray, they can. They just won't do it through a Sony fab plant (there are a couple non-Sony plants in operation now and more coming online later this year.) All these fab shops have far more work than they can handle, so the low-margin, low production porn contracts aren't attractive to them (pardon the pun).

An HD-DVD studio made a big deal about a year ago that they were getting business that had been "turned away" by Sony. Slopply reporting failed to report the rest of the story and that it was more of a spin job than anything.

The other reason this argument doesn't fly is that the internet has changed the porn distribution model and that most don't think that this industry will have the same effect on the format war that it did on the adoption of VHS.

As for the porn industry being a bigger market driver than Disney, I tend to doubt that. While there sure is a lot of porn around, the industry doesn't have the clout that Disney does in deciding contracts and retail distribution. Several hundred small production houses don't have the same weight as one, enormously big production house when fab shops are discussing contracts.


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By TheMold on 5/14/2007 12:22:12 PM , Rating: 2
Who buys porn DVD's? Just download it like the rest of the world. Truthfully the whole Blue Ray vs HD DVD might be a moot argument if digital downloads and streaming devices like AppleTV start to become mainstream.


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By jadedeath on 5/14/2007 12:54:44 PM , Rating: 2
I doubt they will, at least any time soon.

Think about it, how many people do you know that still have the EXACT same computer that they had 5 years ago? or even 2 years ago? or haven't had any problems with ANY piece of tech that they've owned in that time?

Downloading will only be the best way to do things IF they can stop getting viruses in 99.9% of the time, with stuff like Apple TV it isn't even High Def yet.

I {personally} love having movies on disks that I can actually play and that are protected should anything happen to my computer or DVD player.

Logan


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By jvillaro on 5/14/2007 2:04:07 PM , Rating: 2
I don't know exactly who, but there are a lot of who's in this world.

I don't know what will happen first, there will be a winner of this "war" or digital download will catch up enough to reduce th sales of disks.

I personally like to have my disks in my library and I think many people who are fans of movies and series think the same.


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By TheMold on 5/14/2007 9:06:11 PM , Rating: 2
Sorry, I should have been clearer. Was heading out the door for work.I was trying to point out that many things have changed sense the last format war Beta vs VHS. VHS won that because of porn but that isn't going to happen this time. That industry doesn't drive DVD sells like it did VHS sells. Also there are other outside factors that will have more of an impact than the porn industry.


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By Belard on 5/15/2007 6:37:36 AM , Rating: 2
Agreed!

Most porn business is the internet - its more "private" - but HI-DEF requires too much data to for download. Most porn produced do not USE HD or High quality cameras anyways.

Why BluRay is winning:
- More titles, already happening!
- More Space for more features
- Price of players ARE dropping!
($700~1200 for BluRay, but $500 models are due in 30~60days) Not including $600 PS3.
($400~$500 Toshiba players only)
Prices are TODAY (May 15 2007)

TITLE count as of today (horrible compared to DVD):
HD-DVD = 225 (avg price = $25)
BluRay = 237 (avg price = $25 - but a bit more are $30)

BluRay only titles = Disney (Has about 400 DVD titles that can be rleased to BluRAY, NOT including ABC TV shows, Miramax and other studios), SONY which owns TV shows (Rescue Me, boondocks, Mad about you etc) Movie studios which includes "Classic Studios", Columbia and Tristar...

http://www.sonypictures.com/corp/corporatefact.htm...

According to an online source (not affliated with either camp) BluRay titles sales had 70% as of JAN 07.

“Sales of Blu-ray Disc titles have taken off since the first of the year,” stated Andy Parsons, BDA Promotions Committee chairman and Pioneer Electronics USA new product development senior VP. “Blu-ray Discs have been outselling HD DVD by more than two to one since the beginning of the year and the gap is steadily widening. It's exactly what we've said all along would happen - the strong support for Blu-ray among movie studio and equipment manufacturers means that consumers have more choices when it comes to players and titles. And they're choosing Blu-ray by an ever-increasing margin.”


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By jadedeath on 5/14/2007 12:06:14 PM , Rating: 2
I call bull$#!+ on that.

Pirates 3 on Blu-Ray only come the holiday season will have a huge benefit for the Sony camp.

Come to think of it, so will Shrek 3.

Logan


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By jvillaro on 5/14/2007 1:51:14 PM , Rating: 2
I'm not saying Disney and Sony won't benefit, it will and alot, I was just pointing out that they are not the factor that will tilt the balance. It's just something that time will tell.

Maybe in some years there will be a "winner", right know I think we all are sort of losers.


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By jadedeath on 5/14/2007 11:35:22 PM , Rating: 1
I highly doubt that, given that there will be about 4 million PS3's by the time the holiday season rolls around in people's homes, and {most likely} every PS3 owner will want one of the following movies:

Spider-Man 3
Shrek 3
Pirates of the Caribbean 3

Given that, or even half that number actually go out and buy a copy of the proceeding titles, that makes about 2 million sales. Putting Blu-Ray in a commanding lead.

That is, of course, with only 3 titles, not to mention pretty much everything else coming out on Blu-Ray as well as HD-DVD.

That's something that Universal and the HD camp just don't understand, though Scent of a Woman {or any other HD-DVD title that they've got that was from 10 years ago or before} was a good movie, it's not the old movies {that most people already own on DVD} that will finish this war, it's the new ones.

The more Departeds, Spider-Mans, Shreks, Pirates and other new big Hollywood blockbusters that come out the better off Blu-Ray will be.

Logan


RE: Disney's support of Blu-Ray
By wallijonn on 5/16/2007 1:50:37 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
That's something that Universal and the HD camp just don't understand, though Scent of a Woman {or any other HD-DVD title that they've got that was from 10 years ago or before} was a good movie, it's not the old movies {that most people already own on DVD} that will finish this war, it's the new ones.


I whole heartedly agree with you. But BR has some stinkers, too. Have you seen the BR list? There are plenty of films from a dozen, two dozen, three dozen years ago. Will they be re-mastered? Who knows?

As far as old movies go, there are plenty that should be released, just as there are current movies which are plain crap and should never be released in the first place. Do we really need teen age summer movies on BR? Have you seen "Angst"? For $30 a pop I expect only the very creme of the crop to be released.


By EclipsedAurora on 5/14/2007 11:56:11 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
So Disney's sales figures will be a big contribution but I think the porn industry is bigger (Don't have the numbers though). I think something similar happend with the beta/vhs war.


But I would like to tell u a truth that Sony Pictures + Disney alone already account for over 40% of global home video moives sales. Not mentioning Fox and Liongates.


That's a shame.
By Vertigo101 on 5/14/2007 8:06:00 AM , Rating: 2
I know several HD-DVD supporters who would be all over Disney content. I think it's a weak excuse, and they should let the market decide which format they prefer, not their board-room strategist. I was hoping they'd say they were thinking about supporting HD-DVD.

"If there's only candidate, there's only one choice!"




RE: That's a shame.
By psmaniac on 5/14/07, Rating: -1
RE: That's a shame.
By zombiexl on 5/14/2007 8:48:55 AM , Rating: 5
quote:
What's really a shame is that MS tries to force it's hardware to monopolize just like it has in software monopoly and they don't see how losing they really are in this fight.


I'm pretty sure that its sony forcing their hardware. MS isnt including the HD-DVD in any version of the 360 just yet.
Also I'm pretty sure MS has no major (financial) interest in either format over the other.


RE: That's a shame.
By OrSin on 5/14/2007 9:18:39 AM , Rating: 2
MS forcing hardware? I think you must be living under a rock or sime thing. MS dont care about hardware at all.

They have the Add-on HD-DVD becuase they dont want sony to win wiht BLuer-ray because sony royality is much higher then HD-DVD. Sony killed beta with the royality crap. But this time around they alot more clot so they will be able to force Blueray down our throats. I dont hate blue or Sony, I just hate 1 Company tried to monopolizes something that will an industry standard.


RE: That's a shame.
By theapparition on 5/14/2007 9:32:39 AM , Rating: 2
Microsoft is a big backer of HD-DVD because its software interactive features are based on HDi (developed by Microsoft and Toshiba). Blu-ray is based on BD-J (java).


RE: That's a shame.
By zombiexl on 5/14/2007 9:40:24 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
Microsoft is a big backer of HD-DVD because its software interactive features are based on HDi (developed by Microsoft and Toshiba).


Although (correct me if i'm wrong, i know someone will) doesn't MS get lic fees for VC-1 used in both formats?


RE: That's a shame.
By gsellis on 5/14/2007 11:56:24 AM , Rating: 2
Just like all of the other codec owners. MS gets 25 cents a decoder chip from last record I heard. That is Blu-Ray or HD-DVD.


RE: That's a shame.
By ciparis on 5/14/2007 10:29:07 AM , Rating: 2
Bingo. That is the answer, and that is why Microsoft is trying to play the spoiler and drag this format transition out. It's already clear that it cannot win; now all they can hope for is that there is no clear winner for as long as possible. No thanks. A Sony solution? Not that interested. Sony AND Philips AND Matsushita? Yes, please.


RE: That's a shame.
By theapparition on 5/14/2007 9:28:59 AM , Rating: 3
quote:
For one thing unlike HD-DVD all Blu-ray films will NOT be region-locked.

Incorrect,
Blu-ray films will be region locked as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu_ray


RE: That's a shame.
By theapparition on 5/14/2007 9:46:37 AM , Rating: 3
I meant as well as DVD, HD-DVD's are unlocked.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HD_DVD


RE: That's a shame.
By namechamps on 5/14/2007 10:49:25 PM , Rating: 1
"And there are some other good reasons. For one thing unlike HD-DVD all Blu-ray films will NOT be region-locked. Which means you can order a film from Japan (or other distant places) and play them on a European, or American, or whatever Blu-ray player. That's one of the best reasons to prefer Blu-ray."

You got it exactly backwards.
BD has already implemented region controls. It is in every single BD player.

HD DVD has no region controls. Many people in US import HD DVD from Europe because there are different distribution deals. For example T2 is only on BD in US but it is in preorder on HD DVD in Europe.

BD is completely anti-consumer. HD DVD delivers high quality movies for less right now. The BD player's sold today don't even support BD-J so when the advanced disc come out next year guess what? You get to buy a new player.

Sad thing is BD will likely win and the consumers will lose. Disc will cost more, players will cost more and Sony will laugh all the way to the bank. Most consumers won't by HD for very long time. Average people are not going to bay $600+ for a BD player. Cheapest HD DVD player is $300 right now and Wallmart plans to sell $199 players in 2008. If BD wins you can bet you will be paying $500+ in 2010.


Of course they would
By AlexWade on 5/14/2007 7:37:12 AM , Rating: 2
Disney would sue a starving orphan if they were infringing on their copyrights. Companies need to defend copyrights, but Disney is vicious in defending theirs. So naturally, the format that has more protection is the one they are betting on. Disney is only releasing the minimum until BD+ fully arrives. However, BD+ is a red herring. It too will be cracked and Disney's lawyers will have to spring into action.

(P.S. I'm not coming down on Disney, I am just making a point.)




RE: Of course they would
By crystal clear on 5/14/2007 7:45:25 AM , Rating: 1
quote:
It too will be cracked


Maybe something of the type-

09 F9 .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. so on


RE: Of course they would
By Anonimous on 5/14/2007 7:57:21 AM , Rating: 2
They threatened to sue a Swedish comic author once too, but it didn't quite work out.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arne_Anka#The_Disney_...


RE: Of course they would
By phusg on 5/14/2007 10:33:47 AM , Rating: 2
I'm no big fan of corporate law suits but this guy started writing comics in 1983 featuring a drunken Donald Duck, I'm not surprised Disney tried sueing him!


RE: Of course they would
By defter on 5/14/2007 8:10:12 AM , Rating: 3
"the format that has more protection"

How does the BlueRay has more protection? Both formats use AACS that has been cracked.


RE: Of course they would
By Xavian on 5/14/2007 8:24:12 AM , Rating: 2
Yep...

oh and just a random sequence of letters and numbers...
09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0

It just proves the more you try to suppress information, the more people will try to release it. DRM is dead and I can only hope studios like Disney will realise it soon.


RE: Of course they would
By darkpaw on 5/14/2007 11:41:02 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
It just proves the more you try to suppress information, the more people will try to release it. DRM is dead and I can only hope studios like Disney will realise it soon.


I just wish it was dead, unfortunately it will only get more and more draconian until we need the copyright holder's permission to think about their IP. The media companies will just continue to push for more laws that give them even more say about what we can and can't do with things we pay for.


RE: Of course they would
By Dactyl on 5/14/2007 10:07:57 PM , Rating: 2
If DRM is dead, why is it all around us?

There is a way to beat widespread piracy, and that is widespread enforcement of the DMCA against private individuals. The only question is whether our government wants to do that, and the only way to prevent that is to make sure decent people get elected, and to lobby the people in office.


RE: Of course they would
By Dactyl on 5/15/2007 5:11:47 PM , Rating: 2
Yesterday: I make the above post

Today: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announces a bill involving a government crackdown on private civilians

Tomorrow: I predict Gonzales will resign. Let's see if I have a real gift, or if this was just a one-off.


HD-DVD doesn't have a chance!
By kknight on 5/14/2007 4:37:11 PM , Rating: 2
Blu-ray is better in every way then HD-DVD other then the cheaper players.

MORE disc capacity
MORE manufacturer support
MORE studio support
MORE sales
MORE movies out

in terms of PQ and audio, both are equal. the scratch-resistance disc are superior then HD-DVD. Testings have already been done, if you use a screw driver on both discs, you hardly see a scratch on BD whereas HD-DVD will scratch and not be readable in the player. Disney supporting BD only is a smart move so we can end this format war. HD-DVD is an inferior product, I own the 360 add-on and use to own Toshiba's HD-DVD player. both are crap and lack of 1080p support.




RE: HD-DVD doesn't have a chance!
By zombiexl on 5/14/2007 6:11:08 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Blu-ray is better in every way then HD-DVD other then the cheaper players.

Never underestimate the power of the frugal, cheap skates, deal hunters, or whatever you want to call them.


By LatinMessiah on 5/15/2007 1:48:23 PM , Rating: 2
Don't forget "ghetto dogs" (Ben's Bargains).


RE: HD-DVD doesn't have a chance!
By wallijonn on 5/16/2007 1:43:31 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Blu-ray is better in every way then HD-DVD other then the cheaper players.


What about HD-DVD having ethernet ports to do automatic updates? How about PIP, which runes on HD-DVD but not BR?


What?!
By Rotkiv on 5/14/2007 9:00:05 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
In other markets where next-gen DVD is starting to penetrate, Blu-ray is winning, and substantially; so much so there isn’t even a perceived format war.


I don't know how he can say that. BD may be doing better oversees but that statement certainly is not true.




RE: What?!
By jadedeath on 5/14/2007 12:08:06 PM , Rating: 2
Take a look at Japan, they're extremely techy over there and they almost exclusively support Blu-Ray.

Logan


Matters only in the short term...
By lmc82 on 5/15/2007 2:32:32 PM , Rating: 2
Whichever tech wins, will probably lose out to Holograpic storage/disc in a few years anyhow. They are already making them for corporate use, consumer use is probably awhile away, but I would say 5-10 years. So then we'll have to switch over again..... *sigh* :(




By MrPickins on 5/18/2007 12:33:21 PM , Rating: 2
With the speed technology advances, 5-10 years is hardly the "short term".


Format Wars
By wallijonn on 5/15/2007 6:07:56 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Iger points out that the format war is something that doesn’t apply to all consumer markets. For example, Blu-ray Disc holds an overwhelming command in Japan. “If you look across the globe, the only place there is really a format war is in the United States,” said Iger “In other markets where next-gen DVD is starting to penetrate, Blu-ray is winning, and substantially; so much so there isn’t even a perceived format war.”


The rest of the world also preferred Betamax over VHS. And look what happened.




RE: Format Wars
By Icehawk on 5/18/2007 10:54:16 AM , Rating: 2
Does anyone really care about seeing relatively low detailed cartoons in HD anyway? I also have one anime title in particular that on regular DVD you can clearly see how crappy the original print is - HD wouldn't bring anything to the table there.

Folks buying the bulk of the Disney stuff are likely going to go with the cheapest medium, and that is still regular DVD and likely to be for quite a while. Didn't DVD sales only eclipse VHS about a year or so ago?

Most people I know do not have HD TVs of any kind and, with the lifespans of TVs, probably won't for at least a few more years. The low cost of flat panels is the only thing that will really help drive this forward. Folks with SD TVs surely aren't going to buy a HD player of any sort.


Ugh
By thebrown13 on 5/14/2007 12:19:55 PM , Rating: 1
Putting faith in Sony to do anything is risky.

Hopefully Disney puts their movies on Xbox Live Marketplace soon, because that's all that matters to me.




RE: Ugh
By Timeless on 5/14/2007 3:02:44 PM , Rating: 2
Not really. I bought a Sony Vaio in 2002-2003(somewhere around there) and it still works great today. Now their their consoles might be a risky move, but I trust thier computers to work.


Stupid Move Disney.
By Mitch101 on 5/14/2007 10:16:17 AM , Rating: 1
Since Disney is excluding the HD-DVD field this will cause Pirates to make a profit on converting the Blue Ray movies to HD-DVD discs and selling them.

Disney should rethink this because that would just be creating a pirate opportunity.

I know several people now commited to one side or the other already (PS3 and XBOX 360 with HD-DVD) and there is no going back because of thier movie library they have already purchased.

Either the movie studios will have to support both formats, a player will have to support both formats and be cheap soon, or the pirates will take care of the conversion process for Disney and make the money instead of Disney. Then disney will cry foul and poverty because they were too stupid to see this coming.

For Disney stuff I think I am going to stick with regular DVD's as most of it is cartoons and my kids dont care about Bambi in HD quality. I already think its funny the Simpsons are broadcast in surround sound. Wow its like Im really in Springfield.




RE: Stupid Move Disney.
By jadedeath on 5/16/2007 1:30:46 AM , Rating: 1
Wow, they say that if you don't learn from history you're doomed to repeat it.

Thanks for proving that statement true.

How many pieces of technology have you seen out there that have been created only to go the way of the do-do bird regardless of how much of a "library" people have had for them? Sega Saturn? Betamax? Laser Disk?

Am I getting through to you at all? Many game systems that were out when Nintendo and Sony started battling it out stopped being produced even with selling 10 million systems worldwide. HD-DVD has sold... 1 million players?

As for Pirates, how many people do you know that even have the money to buy a HD-DVD burner for their computer?

I'm with the Disney guy, eventually people {that meaning retailers} will support one side or the other, I've seen it happen, eventually if you sell 2-1 Blu-Ray over HD the HD section will start shrinking because they're simply selling more Blu-Ray titles. That's why Walmart hasn't come out and said specifically that they're only supporting HD because they're not completely retarded. They realize that if they alienate the Blu-Ray camp they'll lose the support of Disney AND Sony and probably a few others. They REALLY don't want that to happen because those companies make them stupid amounts of money.

In closing I'm sorry that from the sounds of it that you bought HD, and that it's probably past the time that you have had to return it to get your money back, that's sad, and I'm sure Children of Men looks great in HD, but if that's the only title that you've got, you've essentially purchased a very expensive doorstop. My condolences.

Logan


By SiliconAddict on 5/14/2007 9:56:18 PM , Rating: 2
n/t




It's true!
By EclipsedAurora on 5/14/2007 11:51:47 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Iger points out that the format war is something that doesn’t apply to all consumer markets. For example, Blu-ray Disc holds an overwhelming command in Japan. “If you look across the globe, the only place there is really a format war is in the United States,” said Iger “In other markets where next-gen DVD is starting to penetrate, Blu-ray is winning, and substantially; so much so there isn’t even a perceived format war.”


In fact, HD-DVD is still nearly disappeared in Australia and New Zealand. And BluRay has dominated the Asia-Pacific market, e.g. Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, thanks to PS3's success in this areas. Even we don't mention Japan, figures from HMV in Hong Kong shows that the ratio of BluRay vs HD-DVD sales is over 10:1!




Blu-Ray
By lickerish on 5/15/2007 2:31:43 AM , Rating: 2
Well here in South Africa, blu-ray is being pushed, the players though are damn expensive,so those who can afford to, rather buy the PS3, the XBox is big here,but this market is owned by Sony.




"Nowadays, security guys break the Mac every single day. Every single day, they come out with a total exploit, your machine can be taken over totally. I dare anybody to do that once a month on the Windows machine." -- Bill Gates











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