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.
../..//2008/02/21/jason-kottke-interviews-steven-johnson/
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]
../..//2008/02/20/step-1-convert-hd-dvd/
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]
../..//2008/02/19/the-rumors-were-true-hddvd/
The rumors were true. HDDVD… requiescat in pace. [CNNMoney]
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.
“We’ve listened to our customers, who are showing a clear preference toward Blu-ray products and movies with their purchases,” Gary Severson, head of home entertainment for Wal-Mart’s U.S. stores, said in a statement.
../..//2008/02/13/best-buy-is-going-to/
Best Buy is going to recommend blu-ray players to its customers. [NYT]
Another nail in the coffin of the format war: top DVD rental service Netflix has announced that they will be going Blu-Ray exclusive.
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.
Warner Bros. rolled up its sleeves in the format war today and announced that it was discontinuing support for HD-DVD after May 2008.
../..//2007/12/14/the-hd-format-war-is/
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]
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.”
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.
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.
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.
“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.
Part of 
