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Walt Disney Home Entertainment's Chapek: Blu-ray Victory Only Delayed

Far from declaring a stalemate in the high-definition disc format war as Sony's CEO Howard Stringer recently did, Walt Disney Home Entertainment president Bob Chapek told TWICE during a recent Blu-ray Fest promotional event in Los Angeles that the Blu-ray camp's inevitable victory was only delayed slightly.

He said the surprise announcements of Paramount and DreamWorks this summer to exclusively back HD DVD temporarily confused the market, but Blu-ray's momentum continues unabated, and it should be revealed as the obvious victor during the coming year.

The following is a brief Q&A interview with Chapek during the studio's sendoff for the DVD and Blu-ray Disc releases of "Ratatouille".

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The Round Peg - contributor
Published: 773 days 17 hours ago | Interview | Industry News | Tech

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XGamer - 773 days 17 hours ago

1 - Yet HD-DVD will win big, notice this Christmas holiday selling price points.

HD-DVD players are at every major retailer and selling for $99.99 and up. These sales will put HD-DVD in 1st place right after the new year.

Disney will see the light and come on board by mid march at the latest.

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Vicophine - 773 days 17 hours ago

1.1 - Its time to

WAKE UP.

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Grassroots - 773 days 17 hours ago

1.2 -

"snores" zzzzzzzzzzz

It has to be difficult to actually believe such things.

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Ri0tSquad - 773 days 17 hours ago

1.3 - Does he know that

the big ps3 list fanboys post of the ps3's exclusives will sell blu ray players? Please don't let me remind of that list.

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xplosneer - 773 days 17 hours ago

1.4 - but....

Will the HDDVD players sell more than 40% of PS3's? I don't think so.

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Antiomo - 773 days 17 hours ago

1.5 - Let me put things in perspective

The worst case scenario is that blu-ray coexists with hd-dvd.

But I doubt that would even happen, blu-ray dominating outside of North America and t here are no signs that hd-dvd can come back big in these markets.

Notice that all the special deals only occur in North America...... because this is the only place to capitalize on hd-dvd, and guess what it is still losing to BD.

I know imo and MANY others shopping for electronics is not just price. I want variety in choosing my electronics, something that HD-dvd simply does not have.

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kydrice - 773 days 16 hours ago

1.6 -

The HD-DVD $99 deal was just a limited time to unload all the unwanted HD-DVD players they couldn't get rid of. Oh and though there might be more stand-alone HD-DVD players out in the wild Blu-Ray disc sales are still toppling HD-DVD sales. Wasn't Disney, Steven Spielberg and them supposed to have "seen the light" by now according to some you HD-DVD guys?

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bruiser81 - 773 days 15 hours ago

1.7 -

I was under the impression that HD-dvd was always cheaper than blu-ray so i don't think price if a factor. I don't think the public is really that educated on the difference between the two. The other day I was in bestbuy in the HD-section. I had a sales guy walk up to me and ask if i needed help, i told him i had a ps3 and might consider getting that cheap hd-player. First he told me that the cheap HD-player only went up to 1080i, then he told me i should go for one of the higher priced models because i didn't want to miss out on the best format. I asked him what made it better and he said the HD-camp had more studio support and that Sony only had paramount. I looked at him to make sure he wasn't joking and he wasn't, then another lady walked up and stated the another sales guy told her that she could play blu-ray on an HD-player. The point of my story is aside from us gamers, most people have no clue whats going on with this format war. They go by word of mouth, right now sony has more players in homes and the most support which gives them a definite edge.

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Ignorant Fanboy - 773 days 17 hours ago

2 - Whats wrong with Blu-Ray??

Why do my regular DVD's look better than my Blu-Rays??

The spiderman BR that came with my PS3 shows in a small letterbox, its real crisp, but its real small too. Only takes up half the screen vertically, but takes up the whole screen horizontally.

My DVD's upscaled on my PS3, are in full screen, and look pretty amazing, not as crisp, but better in my opinion.

I tried it on an Olevia 27" LCD with component, and a 32" Sony with HDMI and Component.

The Spiderman menu looks awesome, its in full screen, why isnt the movie?

Ive messed with all the settings, and if this is the quality of Blu-Ray, I will stick to DVD's.

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Real gamer 4 life - 773 days 17 hours ago

2.1 -

In to see a different you need a 1080p television set atleast 40"

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Yo Mama - 773 days 17 hours ago

2.2 -

Your name speaks for itself. At least the first part of it.

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Antiomo - 773 days 17 hours ago

2.3 - Sorry you are lying

That you own a ps3 or your just plain ignorant.

I have the trilogy on dvd, and I also have the trilogy on BD

There is a huge difference between the 3 in color and sharpness.

Oh and even on my 300 dollar 1.5 year old upconverting DVD player (outputing via hdmi) and it still does not come close to the BD version

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Mainman - 773 days 17 hours ago

2.4 -

Spiderman 3 is letterbox because they are showing you the FULL movie (like they would in a theater). Letterbox simply means, that the movie is wider than your display.

Widescreen movies fill up your entire screen, but doesn't show you the whole movie. You are missing some of the picture on the left and right of the screen.

Some, DVD, HD-DVD and Blu-ray titles are widescreen (letterbox), others are fullscreen. DVD's are usually released in 2 versions. The last Samurai DVD for instance is available for DVD in widescreen (letterbox) and in fullscreen.

If you want you whole screen to fill, go with fullscreen.
If you want the see the whole movie (like in the theater) go with widescreen.

Personally, I always go with widescreen (letterbox). I never go with fullscreen (unless it is the only version available, like with 'Rocky Balboa').

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Ri0tSquad - 773 days 17 hours ago

2.5 - Lmfao

Stick with dvds then!

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Witty Comment - 773 days 16 hours ago

2.6 - @Antiomo

Perhaps spending three hundred dollars on a DVD player was kind of ignorant as well, no?

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whoelse - 773 days 16 hours ago

2.7 - why so cheap

Its because they arent selling enough of them. Doesnt that tell you something...

With the increase in sales of the PS3, HD DVD is slipping away at the same speed.

If the two formats end up living together and none giving in, it probably wont last too long. Paramount have just over 1 year left on the 'HD DVD exclusive' contract.

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Close_Second - 773 days 16 hours ago

2.8 - But what everyone is not getting is that...

...Its still Spiderman if its on DVD or Blu-Ray. Its not like the movie is any better just because there are more pixels in the image.

I watched Pirates of the Caribbean 3 on DVD on my projector over the weekend and it look fantastic upscaled. Sure, Blue-Ray would mean a sharper picture but so what. Its still the same story and special effects.

Basically, DVD will do me until one of the HD formats wins and becomes affordable enough. Mind you, I only rent movies now as I don't see the point of owning them. There simply are not that many movies worth multiple repeat viewings anymore. Why buy Spiderman 3 when its only worth watching once. Same goes for Transformers and Pirates 3, etc, etc, etc.

The only movies that would sway me into a format (again when there is a clear winner) is Bladerunner, Alien, Star Wars Saga, Lord of the Rings, Schindler's List, 2001 A Space Odyssey, Shawshank Redemption, Godfather I & II, etc, etc, etc. Once ALL these movies are on the same HD format then I'll consider getting a player.

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xsteinbachx - 773 days 15 hours ago

2.9 -

how cheap are you to buy an olevia 27" ?

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beoulve - 773 days 15 hours ago

2.10 -

wow i think you need to get a new glass. I have 32" Olevia once, I tried DVD and my comcast 1080i HD. Totally different, I'm surprise you can't see the differences, something wrong with your eyes?

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Antiomo - 773 days 15 hours ago

2.11 - @Witty Comment

The dvd players is almost movie onto 2 years old. Back then hd-dvd was just new and the stand alones were way to expensive.

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ruibing - 773 days 13 hours ago

2.12 -

There must be something wrong with your setup, eyes, or mind. Even on older movies like Black Hawk Down, Blu Ray looks a lot better. If you pause the action in the middle of a firefight, you don't see artifacts like you would in DVD.

Please stop spreading FUD like this around. For the record, it would have been more believeable if you said you couldn't tell the difference between Blu Ray and HD-DVD.

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Ignorant Fanboy - 773 days 13 hours ago

2.13 - You idiots didnt read my post.

I said, the BR is more crisp, I am not arguing that.

What I dont like is the fact that it is not in full screen. Isnt that the point in getting a widescreen TV? I understand it being letterbox if my display was 4:3, but its not.

I said it was my "OPINION" that I like full screen better than some strip of screen.

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Ignorant Fanboy - 773 days 12 hours ago

2.14 - @ Mainman

Do Blu-Rays come in Full screen?

I prefer fullscreen, but havent really looked around.

These fanboys find it hard to believe that someone might prefer an overall larger picture to a more crisp smaller picture.

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Gamespot-equals-EGM - 773 days 12 hours ago

2.15 - @xsteinbachx

Olevia TV's aren't that bad. Sure they're cheap relative to other LCD's but who says a person has to spend $700+ to get a quality tv? IMO, Olevia is one of the better of the 'cheaper' brands. Not everyone wants (or can) shell out the $$$ for a Sharp, Sony or Samsung.

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xsteinbachx - 773 days 9 hours ago

2.16 - @ 2.15

mines a panasonic 32". Best rated 32" this year according to Consumer Reports.org to samsung, sharp, or Sony.

it was 799... so... wtf are you talking about..

ya you can be cheap, but not that cheap..

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Arutha - 773 days 6 hours ago

2.17 -

What you are referring to is the OAR (Original Aspect Ratio). Movies are filmed in different OAR(Most commonly 1.85:1 and 2.39:1). Depending on the OAR it will either fill up your screen or give you a letter box view. I believe the 1.85:1 will fill your screen all the way. Check this site for more details:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

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Mainman - 772 days 21 hours ago

2.18 - @ Ignorant Fanboy

Yeah, Blu-ray (as well as HD-DVD) have fullscreen titles. But most titles are widescreen though.

Look at the aspect ratio on the cover art, if it states 1.85:1 aspect ratio, that means you get a full screen.

If it is 2.35:1 or 2.40:1, then you get letterbox.

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Danja - 773 days 17 hours ago

3 -

HMMM..okay everyone knows Blu-ray will win..but for some reason they're still a few ppl who's in denial..of the inevitable outcome..

HD-DVD players have been cheaper than Blu-ray players since day one..not mention they've been out longer..Blu Ray has been beating the living crap outta HD-DVD all year long and I don't see that pattern changing..

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Close_Second - 773 days 15 hours ago

3.1 - First off...

...I don't give a f**k about either format however, Blu-Ray has only been doing well thanks to Sony and their PS3. The big unknown is how many people who are not interested in owning a games console will buy an HD player. The PS3 can not win this race alone as I doubt people will be buying 2 or 3 PS3s for their home to get Blu-Ray playback throughout the house.

It suprises me that people are so adiment that one format over the other will win when sales of both HD formats are still so pathetic when compared with DVD. To say either format is flying because they ship 100,000 units of a movie in its first week is simply laughable.

I'm personally waiting to see what's happening this time next year as there is no way I'm buying into any HD format as long as you have to buy two formats to get complete access to all movies.

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blackmagic - 773 days 15 hours ago

3.2 -

Danja

I see it changing...

Here's the Nielson numbers:

Day . . Week . . YTD
04/08 . 62/38 . 70/30
04/15 . 61/39 . 69/31
04/22 . 52/48 . 68/32
04/29 . 71/29 . 68/32
05/06 . 60/40 . 68/32
05/13 . 62/38 . 68/32
05/20 . 58/42 . 67/33
05/27 . 69/31 . 67/33
06/03 . 61/39 . 67/33
06/10 . 66/34 . 67/33
06/17 . 64/36 . 67/33
06/24 . 70/30 . 67/33
07/01 . 65/35 . 67/33
07/08 . 66/34 . 67/33
07/15 . 61/39 . 67/33
07/22 . 74/26 . 67/33
07/29 . 66/34 . 67/33
08/05 . 62/38 . 66/34
08/12 . 66/34 . 66/34
08/19 . 71/29 . 67/33
08/26 . 68/32 . 67/33
09/02 . 56/44 . 66/34
09/09 . 60/40 . 66/34
09/16 . 61/39 . 66/34
09/23 . 63/37 . 66/34
09/30 . 54/46 . 66/34
10/07 . 68/32 . 66/34
10/14 . 71/29 . 66/34
10/21 . 51/49 . 65/35
10/28 . 55/45 . 64/36
11/04 . 71/29 . 64/36

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Danja - 773 days 15 hours ago

3.3 -

Dude that pattern looks pretty consistent to me with hardly any change in it ...nice try though..

I DO BLU..!!!

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jaja1434 - 773 days 14 hours ago

3.4 -

Umm its a declining trend on BR. It's not much of one but one none the less. But may I give some advice? Don't ever dabble in the stock market if you can not see a trend here. Trust me, you'll just lose bundles of money.

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blackmagic - 773 days 12 hours ago

3.5 -

Let me write it a different way:

shortened list for convenience

.

YTD
04/08 - 2.33 to 1
04/15 - 2.23 to 1
04/22 - 2.12 to 1
05/20 - 2.03 to 1
08/05 - 1.94 to 1
10/21 - 1.86 to 1
11/04 - 1.77 to 1

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dftstyles - 773 days 17 hours ago

4 - LG.......

LG just lower the price of the HDDVD/BLU-RAY player hybrid. So I don't have to worry!

PS3 Gamertag - dftstyles

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xplosneer - 773 days 17 hours ago

4.1 - hmmm

What price is it now?

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blackmagic - 773 days 15 hours ago

4.2 -

The bh-100 is down to $600. This 1st gen player in not HDi compatible butit does play both and it shows the trend. http://www.circuitcity.com/...

The BH-200 is HDi compatible and can be had for $800.
http://www.crutchfield.com/...

How long before dual format players are under $500? Not long I think.

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hitthegspot - 773 days 15 hours ago

4.3 - Slu that...

Why would anyone buy a Blu-ray 1.0 player? Even if it's a hybrid? What a waste of money...

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blackmagic - 773 days 12 hours ago

4.4 -

The BH-200 is a profile 1.1 player.

Besides, if you won't buy a player because it's not profile 1.1 then you better not buy a profile 1.1 player either. Profile 2.0 is due out sometime in 2008. 2.0 or nothing if you care about the features of the player, right?

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5 Bladestar | 773 days 17 hours ago - User only got 1 bubble - Show

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gerth666 - 773 days 16 hours ago

5.1 -

That was well put comment. Even though i am a blu ray supporter, like paramount choosing hd dvd you dont know what will happen. It is far too early for anybody to claim victory.

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xplosneer - 773 days 16 hours ago

5.2 - Bladestar

Well put, But remember, that can happen in reverse as well.
And why is my browser backing up when I hit backspace?

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Danja - 773 days 16 hours ago

5.3 - @Bladestar

"let's see how things are going to look now that the Playstation 3 becomes irrelevant to the format war... now that blu-ray players become cheaper than the Playstation itself... and people don't buy PS3 just to play blu-ray movies..."

The PS3 will never become irrelevant in the Format War..maybe it now plays a less important role than it did a years ago..but remember that every new PS3 owner is a potential Blu Ray supporter..so PS3's will continue to compliment Blu Ray

Now movie Studios are also watching Hardware sales..but they care more about Software sales..just like how the 360 has huge software sales..so developers develop alot of games for the system it's the same thing we have here with Blu-ray it sells software...So alot of Studios will continue to back the Format

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Snukadaman - 773 days 16 hours ago

5.4 - again bladestar makes some valid points...

If blu-ray is so dominant why the BOGO sales....why give out 10 free blu-rays...both formats are giving free movies with purchase but for some reason idiots think hd-dvd is more desperate? You guys need too know about business...you give some things free or cheap like the hd-dvd players and you grow a base of users....since blu-rays cheapest is 400....but whats alarming is since blu-ray is 400 dollars some people think its superior....sucks for them if they do some research and find out both formats are almost exact.

i didnt know that ez...the deal for hd-dvd has been on for a while now..i did the hd-dvd add on deal with 2 extra movies plus 5 plus 2 more...also thats the perception I got from my uncle and cousin about blu-ray being better when my uncle said he was about too purchase a ps3 for the blu-ray player and was under the impression that it was superior.

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EZCheez - 773 days 15 hours ago

5.5 - @Snukadaman

If i'm not mistaken, your example of 10 free blu-rays with the purchase of an 80Gb PS3 was only a limited deal, and also was only a Wal-Mart deal so it's not very fair to use that for a specific example. You're right that they are both handing out movies left and right, but there isn't much of an option not to because you have to give examples of your products if you want anyone to buy more.

Also, I don't think anyone on here is calling blu-ray superior because it's costs more. At least I hope no one is that stupid. People on here that defend blu-ray do so because they have already chosen a side with the format war as soon as they bought a PS3. A lot of people considered it a bad move cost-wise for the PS3, but one year later it seems to be the major, if not only carrier for the entire format. Not necessarily a bad thing though when the format continues to outsell every month at almost a 2-1 ratio.

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eagle21 - 773 days 16 hours ago

6 - Blu Ray victory

Look at Japan and Europe. Look at 52 american weeks. The PS3's 192% american gain sure won't hurt. Blu Ray will win naturally, not being fanboyish either. I have 9 more to buy this week. I own a PS3 and I have just started high def movie buying recently.

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dftstyles - 773 days 16 hours ago

7 -

the price of the HDDVD/BLU-RAY player by LG is like $900....ahahha!

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blackmagic - 773 days 15 hours ago

7.1 -

see 4.2

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jaja1434 - 773 days 16 hours ago

8 -

I love Disney. Why would they approve the 51gig if they were so certain BR was going to win? Since all that does is as they say "prolong the war" and really is of no benefit to anyone except HDDVD.

But then they come and say BR will win. So do they just like making other companies waste their money?

They are so playing both sides against the middle right now.

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DJ - 773 days 15 hours ago

8.1 - It takes a triple-layer HD-DVD disc

to match the storage capacity of a dual-layer Blu-ray disc. A lot of companies that support HD-DVD need that space, and you'd be surprised how spread out these companies are when it comes to Disc Technology. Most Blu-ray movies use a format spearheaded by Apple Inc for example (H.264, which is now an industry standard), and Microsoft enforces usage of Windows Video 9 for basically all HD-DVD titles and their OS/Menu technology called HDi. They renamed Windows Video 9 as VC-1 (or known as H.263).

Even Toshiba, creator of HD-DVD, is responsible for helping build the Cell Processor in PS3.

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Snukadaman - 773 days 15 hours ago

8.2 - Your right huh.....why bother if blu-ray is winning?

I have too agree with you on playing both sides....they dont want too seem like they hated one format over the other.

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