Toshiba to stop making HD DVD and end format war

mikeslemonade - 685 days 1 hour ago

And... it turns out this format war is shorter than the VHS vs Betamax war.

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-EvoAnubis- - 685 days 1 hour ago

I'm just happy they knew when to quit.

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HowarthsNJ - 685 days ago

If you watched television news footage in the 80's and 90's you were watching Betamax. Some local TV news cameras are STILL betamax.

Sony made huge profits from that format. It was the preferred format over VHS for most of latin america.

Just so you know :-)

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pigninja - 684 days 23 hours ago

Yeah I remember beta max dying. Then going to work with my brother(he worked at BET at the time). And they had betamax tapes basically for all the television production...

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Mu5afir - 684 days 22 hours ago

I think a lot of the Asian countries used BetaMax and still use it today.

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solidt12 - 684 days 20 hours ago

I studied Pro Audio and Video in the late 90's and all the classes and studios were using Beta Max. That was my first time and only time ever seeing a Beta recorder/player.

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DrPirate - 684 days 18 hours ago

You feel bad for Toshiba?

Can you imagine how disastrous it would have been if Blu-Ray was declared dead?

It probably would have shut down their whole entertainment division and the PS3 would FLOP, I'm talking sub 5k sales a month or something.

This would have been a disaster to their first and second party developers, who also would have either had to shut down, and close.

All the money any development studio spent on the PS3 would have gone to waste. Think Square-Enix developing the White Engine having to reinvest to make it work on the 360, and thus, they would have had to forfeit millions of sales in Japan.

Blu-Ray being dominant was essential to Sony's strategy, it was necessary for Toshiba to lose.

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fusionboxer - 684 days 17 hours ago

This small tidbit is in some way or another a positive for the playstation 3 and consumers in general.

Although many consumers won't now rush out to buy a ps3 it's now a great option for those looking for high def audio and video options for their home.

This leads me to believe that Microsoft could have played this a little better as well to put a short bump on the road in ps3's sales. If they would have had Toshiba drag this campaign out a little bit longer whether or not we all knew it was dead the ps3 wouldn't be given the option to come out and say "Our ps3 has the only high def format" to in turn give Sony a potentially huge boost in sales.

But it's possible there might be some bad blood between Toshiba and Microsoft because Toshiba decided to come out with this announcement right after NPD recorded that the ps3 sold more then the 360 (hardware wise) for the first month in the arms race meaning more positive news for those still on the fence.

But no matter how you look at it, this is sad news in general that any format is dying. It's great for us the consumers, but I hate to see companies totally fail and fall out. It happens a lot around my city when small businesses open up and have to shut down and close and it's heartbreaking when you remember how enthusiastic they were prior to the shutdown.

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AdamBombastic - 684 days 17 hours ago

As I far as I know, Kutaragi was removed in a manner that, in Japanese culture, would have brought him shame. Wasn't he the scapegoat for the delays and cost overruns? Well if blu-ray had not been incorporated in the PS3, things may be very different and blu-ray might not have prevailed. I think either HD-DVD would have won due to lower cost or neither would have. I think Sony owes alot to Kutaragi for being so adamant about including blu-ray in the PS3. It looks like the PS3 is becoming the beast of a multimedia machine that Sony and him had hoped it would be. I think that will become even more apparent in the years to come.

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darkshiz - 685 days 1 hour ago

I don't know why people disagree with you.
Your post didn't post anything negative so I'll agree.

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gaffyh - 685 days 1 hour ago

I didn't disagree with you, but Toshiba did nothing wrong in this format war. It was Microsoft's fault, the only way they were going to compete with Blu-Ray, which was included in a Next-Gen console, was to incorporate HD-DVD in a Next-gen console (i.e. Xbox 360). If HD-DVD was included in the 360 from the start, we would have had equal (or more in favour of HD-DVD) backing.

MS didn't trust Toshiba enough...

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TheExecutive - 685 days 1 hour ago

well for the past 9 weeks the ps3 has had a higher attach rate so...

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Eamon - 685 days 1 hour ago

TheExecutive: First "3 weeks" doesn't prove anything against a whole year. Secondly, that isn't true. Its just the PS3 has been selling more than the 360 for 3 weeks (I think according to past articles).

Anyway, now its clear for consumers what to get. I want more old movies in Hi-Def now!

Edit: TheExecutive, did you just edit your comment. Anyway, 9 weekes huh. Do you mean game attactchment or sales?

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SeNiLe911 - 685 days 1 hour ago

I don't see how it’s M$ fault. Coming out a year before Sony, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray were still to new at the time, just like HDMI was, so they didn't add it. Sure if they added an HD-DVD drive to the Xbox 360, this format war might have had a different outcome but the attach rate might not have been as good since the price for a 360 with HD-DVD would have been astronomical. They would have flopped since their still new to the game. For Sony, they have a huge user base and been around for years, they took a chance and it worked out for them but it was rocky to say the least but will be reaping the benefits from here on out.

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Sarick - 685 days ago

If MS added HD-DVD people would've been complaining about the $ of the 360 just like the PS3.

This imho would have caused lowerd sales of the 360. MS wanted to strip as many features as they could to promote a lower price point. It allowed them to stay close to the sweet spot while making back some of the lost revenue from add-ons.

MS's nickle and dime tactic was the reason the hd-dvd player wasn't included in the 360. Looks like they cheated themselves.

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gambare - 685 days ago

and there is nothing wrong with it, only time will say what will happen with the future of the PS3 and the BD format, anything will be good for the consumers now. I expect cheaper recorders and blank BD to backup my info.

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TheExecutive - 684 days 22 hours ago

no i didnt edit my post. 9 weeks= attach rates.

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zane_7849 - 684 days 19 hours ago

I do think it is a bit of both Toshiba and Microsofts fault. Toshiba failed to secure studios (besides the too late Paramount deal), and fought the battle as a price war. The early adopters in this case seemed to be eyeing the longevity of the format over the current price- and that played into Sonys hand.

Microsoft (if they were ever really committed to HD-DVD) should not have rushed the 360 to market. They could have put in Hdmi, and HD-DVD and really had an answer to all the niceties that Sony packed in at launch. Not only that but they could have actually pieced together a system that runs consistently, all the hardware problems have kept me personally away from 360. I had one to early on to play Oblivion, and tried out couple of other games but didn't see much that excited me and started hearing more and more horror stories about the system and sold it. There are a handful of exclusive games I would like to try out now but for the moment my second system is going to be a Wii (PS3 is my first) because I don't trust that Microsoft has fixed the problem. I see too many dead 360's at work to justify a purchase.

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eagle21 - 684 days 17 hours ago

At least photoshop some flowers around it next time..lol

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Neo-Delta - 685 days 1 hour ago

I'm with you on that one. It's about time though, people who have yet to buy a hi-def player were too confused as to which format to buy. That would have really caused a lot of damage for growth within the hi-def disc market itself. It's really going to be tough to beat DVD now. If anything can do it though...it's Blu-Ray.

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shaggyjb - 685 days ago

Hi, we would all be very happy about your success except for the fact that we don't give a damn about you. Thanks for sharing though.

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Eamon - 685 days ago

lol shaggyjb, I agree.

It's also funny how people are proud of giving money to mega giant businesses. You are making them richer while you are losing money.

I buy consoles for entertainment. Not to support the company, dumbass.

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Sev1512 - 684 days 22 hours ago

Why cant I express my happiness?
Why cant I enjoy this victory?

I am not losing money at all. I have made profit off of my stock purchase, and its basically paid for all of the Blu-Ray movies I have bought so far.

@ Eamon, I can see why you arent happy, and are jealous. I guess you dont consider having a Halo avatar supporting your console choice.

While you guys may not care. I certainly do. You dont rain on people parade. That is just selfish and ignorant.

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AdamBombastic - 684 days 3 hours ago

Blu-Ray is not a company doofus. You can't buy stock in Blu-Ray. So you own stock in every company that comprises the Blu-Ray consortium?

http://www.blu-raydisc.com/...

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Rims - 685 days ago

You can have plastic surgery to become Blu-ray.

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gta_cb - 685 days ago

lol!

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Bathyj - 685 days ago

We can rebuild you. We have the technology. We can make you better, stronger, faster. More popular with consumers and movie studios.

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DrPirate - 684 days 21 hours ago

:(

don't die... we'll miss your brand of humour.

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Bathyj - 685 days ago

Dude, Rick Astley was temporary.

HDDVD dying is forever.

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psnDevistator356 - 684 days 17 hours ago

You should of seen the success of sony along time ago. Hey I still like toshiba I have this awesome 50 inch. plasma from you guys.

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tk - 684 days 22 hours ago

Well... Rob was right all along if you look at the careful selection of his statements:
_____________________________ ________
"I think the fat lady just sang," said Rob Enderle, principal analyst with Enderle Group in San Jose. "This gives Blu-ray a decisive lead. The question now is whether it is too little too late."

Enderle said consumers might have moved on to digital downloads to get movies rather than wait to buy them on next-generation DVDs. The next big chance to sell high-definition movie players won't be until next Christmas, he said. "By then, it may all be moot."
_____________________________ ________

So now Rob agrees that HD-DVD has lost... but hey - all is not lost... since digital downloads will kill it this and next holiday season...

This guy is a real clown. He is one of the reasons why I don't take what "analysts" say seriously. This muppet is like a MS marketing company thinly disguised as an "analyst".

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Percy - 684 days 19 hours ago

Most of america lies in areas that do not even recieve high speed internet i live in one of the top 5 populated cities in wisconsin and the fastest we can get is a 10 meg connection and the price of that is not very fesible. If something could be done to get internet comparable to other countries connection speeds than maybe then we could have digital distribution but until a large group of people can buy the products its not gonna happen.

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BrianC6234 - 684 days 18 hours ago

Toshiba really screwed up big Kaz. They should have made a deal with you to have one format. Too pidheaded though. Now they can try making up for it by putting the Cell in everything.

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BrianC6234 - 684 days 18 hours ago

"another war is just about to begin.
thats the blu-ray vs digital download.
over time blu ray will fall. but now im talking 5 years down the line.
watch the disagrees, but it is true. DD will win in the end. mark my words;)"

What a tool. No way will digital downloads win. That's a way for cheapskates to watch movies. People who care about picture and sound quality won't put up with that crap. That's why Blu-ray won this war and why digital downloads will never win. Most consumers won't put up with having to download movies. It's fine for your little 3% of the population but it ends there.

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she00win99 - 684 days 15 hours ago

you said 10 meg is the fastest internet connection you have, in our country it's only 3 meg, so digital downloads for hi def videos is only a fantasy for us....

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gamesblow - 685 days 1 hour ago

Easily... I say June to July is when you're going to see HD-dvd terribly eradicated from store shelves. You'll know Blu-ray is the successor to DVD. That doesn't mean the DVd is going away anytime soon... VHS stuck around nearly 5 years after the release of the 1st dvd.

Blu-ray will see huge drops in price and by Christmas time I predict 199.99 blu-ray players are seen on store shelves regularly. 250.00 max.

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J@D - 684 days 22 hours ago

Hilarious but sad.

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ambientFLIER - 684 days 20 hours ago

They will keep watching many movies that were already released on HD-DVD. Anyway, aren't there a little too many joke accounts to get a rise out of others on here?

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BrianC6234 - 684 days 18 hours ago

I'd say those idiots are screwed. Bwahaha. But maybe they can buy a Blu-ray add-on from Microsoft for $250.

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spandexxking - 684 days 15 hours ago

i know exactly what you mean, its getting quite sad now

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she00win99 - 684 days 15 hours ago

i hope not, if they do that, the next ps3 pride drop will 10 years after...

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eagle21 - 684 days 20 hours ago

Well, don't mess with the over 140 brands that make up the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA), but we know who's boss hog...LOL..Congrats Sony, the BDA, and all the supporters (little ole' me) since day one!!!

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ambientFLIER - 684 days 20 hours ago

Yeah, that sucks that all the current movies will suddenly stop working!!!

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Amp - 684 days 8 hours ago

lol- your the best comic relief on site-bubbles

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