The popularity of Blu-ray went ballistic during 2008, with sales and rentals of Blu-ray content discs almost tripling in the US and quadrupling in the UK.
US sales notch up $750 million
Laughing in the face of an overall downturn in the U.S. home entertainment market, the entire Blu-ray Disc market in the U.S. totted up to a hefty $750 million last year, up from $270 million in 2007.
Toshiba haven’t given up trying to needle Sony and the rest of the Blu-ray companies.
Their latest idea is XDE.
Punters are failing to feel the love for the shiny new high tech Blu-ray format, with many happy to stick with their trusty old DVD players, according to a recent survey.
In a survey of 1,000 consumers, ABI Research found that over half had “other priorities” to shelling out for a Blu-ray player, although just under a quarter said that they were likely to buy one sometime next year.
As you no doubt now know and as everyone and their favourite carrot have been predicting, Toshiba has officially dropped out of the Next Gen disc format wars.
After a long battle with its rival Blu-Ray, Toshiba has admitted that it is considering throwing in the towel and getting the hell outta of the high-definition DVD business.
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It may not be over until the fat lady sings, but there’s a large woman standing on the stage and the band are already rocking to the Blu-ray theme tune.
Despite desperate price cuts by Toshiba on its HD DVD players in the U.S., research firm Gartner are going all Seven Of Nine and describing their resistance as futile, predicting Blu-ray’s dominance to be complete by the end of 2008 in the consumer market.
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In the all-important Japanese market, the next-generation DVD Blu Ray format is not just kicking sand in the face of its rival HD-DVD platform – it’s taking it around the back of the bike sheds and giving a right pummeling.
Much like the famous VHS vs Betamax video cassette format wars of the late 1970s, both DVD formats are hitting the shops at the same time, although this time Sony’s Blu Ray is quickly emerging as the knockout winner.
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Rumours are circulating that HD-DVD could be losing the support of another studio.
Yesterday, we covered Warner Brothers showing their cards and deciding to support Blu-ray in favour of HD-DVD, despite comments from Toshiba that there may be some legal contracts in place with Warners.
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Hollywood studio big boys Warner Bros have dealt Toshiba and the HD DVD gang a mighty kick in the lasers by declaring that their high-definition DVD titles will soon be released exclusively in the rival Blu-ray disc format.
Microsoft wants both Next Gen HD DVD formats to fail, is the allegation that looks to be made by Michael Bay, the US film director & producer of many well known films such as Transformers; Armageddon; The Rock; Pearl Harbour and Bad Boys.
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