Collecting some of the current Blu-ray / HD DVD format war news that came out today, I’ll start with High-Def Digest’s report (via EngadgetHD) on a recently released report by Forrester Research, that the format war is still Blu-ray’s to lose. Forrester still believes that Blu-ray can win the war, but they’re less sure of it than in the past, with the recent shifts in allegiances. Forrester feels that the Blu-ray camp needs to be more aggressive in marketing their format this holiday season – specifically that they should release a player for under $250, pump out more titles, and use more promotions. Even with that, Forrester thinks the war will continue at least another 18 months (probably not coincidentally, the length of Paramount’s exclusivity agreement with HD DVD).
Starting from the same Forrester report, CNET News.com also discusses the war. Some of the figures in the article seem to be a bit off – while a low-end standalone Blu-ray player does list for ~$500, Toshiba’s entry-level HD DVD deck lists for ~$300 – not $400 as in the article. And the yet-to-be-released Venturer unit will reportedly list for ~$200. I do agree that the Blu-ray camp really needs to offer a low-end player – at least something under $300, but if they can push it lower, all the better.
Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal Online has an overview of the format war. Not much new for those who have been keeping tabs, but a decent overview of the current situation.
