Things seem to be piling up against HD DVD. A couple of things today.
Starz Home Entertainment, formerly known as Anchor Bay Entertainment, announced that they’re going with Blu-ray Disc. SHE has a great catalogue of titles, including classics like Heathers, Evil Dead, Evil Dead II and Highlander (OK, and real classics like The Dam Busters), the Hellboy animated films, a number of TV shows (Xena, 3rd Rock from the Sun, etc.), etc. They’re also the parent company of Manga Entertainment, an anime distributor and distribute several of the classic Hammer Films.
Starz Home Entertainment President Bill Clark announced during an executive session with MGM VP of Marketing Julia Simmons that his company will release the first season of the company’s “Masters of Horror†collection on Blu-ray in the fourth quarter of this year. Other Starz catalogue titles also are in line for a Blu-ray release. The news came the same day that Blockbuster announced that Blu-ray would be the only high-definition disc available in some of its stores.
“If Blu-ray wins [the format war against HD DVD], all catalogue would go [Blu-ray], we’d hope,†Clark said.
Via AnimeOnDVD, via Blu-ray.com, via Home Media Magazine.
And then, more on the rumor side, Gizmodo heard from a tipster who claims to work at a retailer. The tipster reports that, after Blockbuster’s announcement that they won’t be carrying HD DVD, just BD, in most of their stores, the retailer has seen a rash of HD DVD player order cancellations. Also that HD DVD player sales were already low and BD players have been the sellers. Of course, this is an anonymous tipster from an unnamed retailer – supply your own salt.
It seems like the hits just keep coming for HD DVD, hopefully it’ll go down for the count soon and we can be done with this war.
