This is why the HD format war will never end

August 22nd 2007 | Tell us what you think [ 0 comments ]

Bored beyond belief: both HD formats are fantastic, but the battle between the two is bad for everyone involved - including you and me.

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I'm so very bored of the format war between HD DVD and Blu-ray, it's starting to get extremely depressing. I'm even more fed up with it than Iwas with the Apple iPhone during launch week, and that's saying something.

Behind the scenes, there's a massive tussle going on betweenToshiba and Sony: both want their formats to become the agreed industry HDstandard, and they won't rest until they win. The problem is that neither oneis going to win anytime soon, and guess who loses out in the end? Yep, it's youand I.

The HD DVD camp recently threw $150m at Paramount in order to secure its HD DVDexclusivity for an 18 month period. The Blu-ray Disc Association itself is nostranger to such deals: both sides have signed exclusive deals with various Hollywood studios, and that's the main reason why neitherone can win this format war.

After all, who wants to spend £500 on a player which couldbecome obsolete in a year's time? In fact, scrub that. Who wants to spend £500on a player which is already half obsolete because it will only play 50% of HDmovies out there?

The look and sound of perpetual dullness

The answer is no-one. And that's why you probably don't knowa single person who has actually gone out and bought a standalone Blu-ray or HDDVD player.

If all studios just supported both formats, the race wouldbe over quickly. One format would start to pull ahead - possibly HD DVD because it's cheaper - and then a landslide victory would inevitably happen. The classic clichéd analogy is the band-aid being ripped offquickly to minimise the pain. But both camps are unwilling to do this. Theycare less about us the consumers, and are only concerned with how much moneythey stand to make if they win the war.

It's ridiculous, but that's the situation we face. And there'sno real answer other than to wait for a resolution. Very few of us are able torisk paying all that money for a player which may become the new Betamax. Andthus, we wait for bated breath for an outcome.

And talking of breath, don't hold yours. Because this isgoing to rumble on for a very long time to come, and that's bad for everyone.

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