Today, HD-DVD got both a blow to the head and chest by Netflix and Best Buy.
First with the one-two punch, Netflix announced that after carrying both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray since 2006, they are expecting to phase out HD-DVD titles by the end of the year.
“The prolonged period of competition between the two formats has prevented clear communication to the consumer regarding the richness of the high-def experience versus standard definition,” stated Ted Sarandos, Netflix chief content officer. “We're now at the point where the industry can pursue the migration to a single format, bring clarity to the consumer and accelerate the adoption of high def. Going forward, we expect that all of the studios will publish in the Blu-ray format and that the price points of high-def DVD players will come down significantly. These factors could well lead to another decade of disc-based movie watching as the consumer's preferred means.”
Hours later, Best Buy President/COO Brian Dunn finished the combo punch by stating, “Best Buy will recommend Blu-ray as the preferred format. Our decision to shine a spotlight on Blu-ray Disc players and other Blu-ray products is a strong signal to our customers that we believe Blu-ray is the right format choice for them.”
While we at DVS are disappointed that HD-DVD isn’t able to get a foothold in the market, we are pleased that the market is moving towards a single HD format. DVS has been authoring both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray since the end of 2006.
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