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CES NEWS: Will Paramount drop HD DVD too?

Andy Clough 09 January 2008 21:20

Are we really about to see the end of the format war between HD DVD and Blu-ray, asks Andy Clough?

Following the decision by Warner Bros to drop HD DVD in favour of Blu-ray, there is growing speculation that Paramount may be the next major Hollywood studio to switch to Blu-ray.

Currently Paramount and Universal are the last two major studios still supporting HD DVD, but reports in today's UK media are fuelling speculation that Paramount may be considering switching its support from HD DVD to Blu-ray.

A Paramount spokeswoman told today's Guardian newspaper that the company's "current plan" still involved HD DVD, but as the HD DVD group cancelled its press conference at CES in Las Vegas earlier this week, it appears the HD DVD camp has been thrown into disarray by the Warner Bros decision.

One things for sure: whenever the consumer electronics industry develops two rival formats, confusion reigns and consumers (quite understandably) are afraid to buy.

We nearly had two formats when DVD was born, with Sony/Philips backing the rival MMCD (Multimedia CD) format and others DVD.

Fortunately the bosses of the Hollywood studios banged heads together and common sense prevailed. DVD went on to become one of the most successful format launches of all time.

Anyone remember MiniDisc and Digital Compact Cassette? I do. Neither still exists. And let's be frank, neither DVD-Audio nor SACD have exactly set the music world alight.

I've no axe to grind here, and no particular desire to see HD DVD fail, but I do think having one high-definition video format rather than two will be better for everyone.

Consumers will be able to buy with confidence, the studios will only have to release films on one HD format (with all the cost savings that implies) and hardware manufacturers will have the confidence to bring a wider range of products to market.

Come on Paramount, make a decision and put us out of our misery. We're all waiting.

Technorati Tags: Blu-ray, HD DVD

Comments

Mr_Orange January 9, 2008 22:50

Nice bit of prose Mr C. It's quite unbelievable really, that the studios failed to exercise their weight with the HD video format in the same way they did with DVD.

I for one, knew nothing of MMCD!!

nads January 10, 2008 02:55

We keep hearing this and that from the BR camp, but WHEN are the HD DVD camp going to say anything?

when they have all gone?

simon_soton January 10, 2008 13:32

If only Paramount had gone Blu-ray in the first place instead of HD DVD when they decided to stop being neutral then this whole business could have been wrapped up by now! Instead they went for the format that already had the least amount of studio support and abandoned the one with the most. Really wish they would get a move on and make some sort of proper announcement though.

DLeslie January 10, 2008 15:48

I have to agree 100% - Paramount (nor Microsoft) is doing anyone any favours including themselves by clinging on with the proverbial fingernails. I think they should have a good chat with Onkyo and see if there's still 'warm and fuzzy' feelings with the format's sole mid-hi-end manufacturer who has had the carpet pulled out from underneath them by Toshiba's bizarre pricing strategy.

There's nothing wrong with HD DVD apart from one very important detail: It will not win this format war. Take the Toshiba boys out for a stiff drink and tell them that it's just business. The consumers pay your salary - not Toshiba.

Cofnchtr January 10, 2008 17:43

Hi,

I hope this is the end of the 'war'.

Whenever there's 2 formats like this, it should all be sorted behind the scenes BEFORE it involves consumers. Manufacturers know which is better from a business point of view (production costs, profit margins etc) so bang heads first and then promote it to the hilt. We (consumers) have been left confused and wary, not for the first time (I had MiniDisc & LaserDisc) and situations like this only slows the 'uptake' of the new format. The business end need to look at what they've actually lost in this venture by backing two formats instead of trying to sort everything out for the good of the consumer market.

Cofnchtr.

Andrew Everard January 10, 2008 20:33

I wish I understood most of DLeslie's post - it appears to refer to behind the scenes goings-on of which he/she has solid knowledge, but which elude me.

Gorge January 11, 2008 14:04

Well BluRay give us a decent 5* player founder £500 then, and not just a PS3! One that can keep up with the EP35 in price, features and quality!

deanjono22 January 11, 2008 22:26

I agree with George, why are Sony for one, not giving us a sub £500 all singing and dancing stand alone player instead off pushing the PS3 on all of us. Now the desicions have been made in favour of Blue Ray lets see a unit of Toshs` Ep35 specs.......

Lambchop January 14, 2008 00:05

Sony would like to provide cheaper & better players, with the latest BD specs. The other CEs would not be happy about this, so Sony has to go about it very carefully. Have you noticed how the PS3 has recieved upgrades after another player with the upgrade feature is released. Unlike Toshiba, Sony gains nothing through monopolising the hardware market. The BDA is more than just Sony!!! BD hardware is a much bigger animal than HD DVD.

PS. Can't wait for Paramount to go BLU!

Alsone January 15, 2008 00:28

I've been saying for a while that the price and the format war were the biggest obstacles to turning the HD format around.

The manufacturers of both HD formats have started to respond on the price front in the last 6 months and I think there have been some positive gains in consumer sales / support as a result. However the format war appears to still be the stumbling block.

I agree with others here, that the manufacturers should have decided which was the best quality format (not most profitable) behind the scenes and then agreed to launch the one format. It would have taken off far quicker in my opinion without the uncertainty of a beta vs vhs war.

Maybe the real lesson to be learnt here is the possible value of the manufacturers getting together and forming a joint industry R&D partnership committee that invloves sharing the funding costs of new formats out amongst themselves evenly. That way no one is left severely out of pocket when a particular format is chosen over another, which the same committee could decide, and the costs of the development of all the prototype versions could then be shared evenly by all the manufacturers and the costs recovered in the market place.

Sams Son January 16, 2008 16:54

They really need to sort this issue out!

I'm getting alittle sick of all this side switching from one camp to the next nonsense.

Sams Son January 16, 2008 16:55

They really need to sort this issue out!

I'm getting alittle sick of all this side switching from one camp to the next nonsense.

hbes February 1, 2008 09:07

Don't buy and the industry is forced to use common sense.

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About Andy Clough

Andy Clough studied English and French at Leeds University and has been a journalist for 20 years. Andy was editor of What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision for five years, before launching Home Cinema magazine and editing the Ultimate Guide series. Andy is now Editor of whathifi.com