Consumerist

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Format War

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format war

Best Buy Offers $50 Gift Cards To Those Who Purchased HD-DVD Players

Best Buy is offering $50 gift cards to people who bought HD-DVD players before Feb 23. say CNN.
The retailer said it will identify customers through its Reward Zone program, performance service plans and through online purchases and will mail out the gift cards to those individuals by May 1.
More »

2:52 PM on Wed Mar 19 2008
By Meg Marco
2,492 views, 40 comments

Latest by Shizznid: I purchased my HD-DVD player online, and went to the local Best Buy store to pick it up about an more »

XBOX HD DVD is dead on sale for $49. [Bloomberg]

6 comments

Jason Kottke interviews Steven Johnson about his suddenly obsolete HDDVD player.
I mean, the Betamax adopters at least had a few years to nag their VHS friends about the better picture quality, before the format died a slow death. But HD-DVD — they just took it out back and shot it!
[Kottke]

39 comments

Step 1) Convert HD DVD to Blu-Ray. Step 2) Give the finger to the man, baby. Step 3)Prof-... Realize that it was pretty expensive to actually do this.[Wired Wiki via Lifehacker]

23 comments

The rumors were true. HDDVD... requiescat in pace. [CNNMoney]

9 comments

format war

The Format War Is Over, HD-DVD Surrenders!

A Toshiba insider claims that the company will abandon its HD-DVD format, yielding the next-generation DVD format war to Sony's competing Blu-ray technology. So now that the war is over you should run out and buy a new Blu-ray player, right? Not so fast. More »

7:33 PM on Sun Feb 17 2008
By Carey
11,262 views, 80 comments

Latest by mikelotus: @doctor_cos: if you have an HD TV there is a clear advantage. You want to watch in HD or not? more »

format war

Walmart: Thanks For Buying All Those HD DVD Players, We're Switching To Blu-Ray

Walmart has just announced that they're going blu-ray exclusive. The store will no longer carry HD DVD movies or hardware. More »

3:38 PM on Fri Feb 15 2008
By Meg Marco
5,044 views, 59 comments

Best Buy is going to recommend blu-ray players to its customers. [NYT]

13 comments

format war

Netflix Goes Blu-Ray Exclusive

Another nail in the coffin of the format war: top DVD rental service Netflix has announced that they will be going Blu-Ray exclusive. More »

4:53 PM on Mon Feb 11 2008
By Meg Marco
4,231 views, 54 comments

format war

HD DVD Loyalists Start Petition To Save Their Format Of Choice

James, an HD DVD loyalist, calls to our attention a petition with 24,000-ish signatures asking Warner Bros. to continue to support HD DVD:
You had an article shortly after the WB exclusivity announcement on the 4th of this month, right? Well, I think this could make for a great follow-up that gives your readers the opportunity to voice their opinion, and hopefully sway the minds of the studio executives who've acted prematurely and stuffed words in the mouths of consumers everywhere.
More »

12:16 PM on Thu Jan 24 2008
By Meg Marco
3,272 views, 77 comments

Latest by axiomatic: As an owner of both formats. HD-DVD is better because the "spec" is solid. Blu-Ray is a fractured profile, and more »

format war

Warner Bros. Goes Blu-Ray Exclusive

Warner Bros. rolled up its sleeves in the format war today and announced that it was discontinuing support for HD-DVD after May 2008. More »

6:56 PM on Fri Jan 4 2008
By Meg Marco
4,154 views, 23 comments

The HD format war is in full swing. Warner may go Blu-ray only! We say: Don't choose until the market does. [Ars Technica]

17 comments

ask the consumerists

Why Don't You Weigh In On The Video Format War?

Reader James writes:

I know that you guys have already covered the "format war" to some extent in the past. As I recall your site stated that the "format war" is indeed anti-consumer, which I agree with wholeheartedly. However, I do think that it would be incredibly helpful if you guys would revisit the story, and determine for yourselves which format is the most "consumer friendly." More »

2:35 PM on Wed Sep 19 2007
By Meg Marco
3,480 views, 51 comments

Latest by n/a: Vivid has begun releasing all adult DVD titles simultaneously on Blu-ray. That means about 1 titel per week [www.homemediamagazine.com] And at [www.adultbluray.com] there more »

remember the betamax

No, Really: Consumers Want A Third Potentially Obsolete HD DVD Format To Choose From

Just when you thought the HD DVD/Blu-ray format war was starting to work itself out, here comes something called "HD VMD." Yeah, it sounds like something you might get prescribed an ointment to treat, but it's actually just another HD format. More »

6:29 PM on Mon Jun 25 2007
By Meg Marco
3,632 views, 30 comments

Latest by Morgan: @Eyebrows McGee: I'll be really depressed if I ever need to trade shiny rocks for sex. I haven't bought more »

format war

Blockbuster Sides With Sony Blu-Ray

Blockbuster has announced its decision to exclusively rent Sony Blu-Ray DVDs, much to the dismay of HD DVD owners. According to the AP, the decision comes following a test of both formats at 250 stores. Blockbuster found that consumers were choosing Blu-ray over 70% of the time. More »

11:34 AM on Mon Jun 18 2007
By Meg Marco
2,103 views, 37 comments

Latest by agent2600: Papa midnight, I was just posting what I see happening you know what the TOP seller is though? regular DVDs...haha, I think more »

format war

Format War: "Top 10" Selling Blu-Ray Disc Sells 880 Copies

Format wars are bad for consumers, but it looks like they're not too fun for the industry either. According to recent sales figures from Nielsen VideoScan, the number 10 best selling high-def disc "Babel" sold a whopping 880 copies. That's fewer people than attended our high school. More »

12:33 PM on Mon Apr 9 2007
By Meg Marco
2,070 views, 24 comments

Latest by randalf: I think the most likely outcome in the "format war" will be the large-scale production and purchase of multi-format players. more »

format war

Format War Hurts Sales

Few things irritate us more than stupid format wars. We thought they'd learned their lesson when they avoided a war with DVD, but, alas, no. This time, though, the electronics manufacturers may be paying the price. From the Denver Post:
"The fight between Blu-ray and HD-DVD, reminiscent of the 1980s battle between Betamax and VHS tape formats [is] shaping up as a business disaster for movie studios, electronics companies and retailers that had counted on a robust holiday selling season for the fancy new players - which cost $500 to $1,000 - and movies to play in them. More »

2:46 PM on Mon Nov 27 2006
By Meg Marco
109 views, 38 comments

Latest by Mr. Gunn: I think Sony's garnered enough ill-will to kill off blu-ray, studio backing or not. As far as HD-DVD, well, more »