Blu-ray and Sony – Does the Consumer Win?

It is clear that blu-ray is ahead and winning aganist hd dvd and it will pull out the inner itsall because of its industry support every major studio exept universal is backing blu-ray, every IT company exept microsoft is backing blu-ray and every major consumer electonics company is backing lu-ray exept toshiba so it is only a matter of time then we willmore and more company exclusively backing blu-ray ad it will pull out the winner and hd dvd willjust fad into memory

Let me start off by saying that I own players in both blu-ray and hd-dvd formats, so I am neutral in my stance. It seems that most of the hd-dvd titles that I have are either mastered better than their blu-ray counterparts or the blu-ray format has less tolerance for error than hd-dvd due to it's thinner beam (and great storage capacity per layer). However this is a moot point being that most HD movies will fit on either format with DD+ or DTS-HD tracks.

On a static image they are both sharp and comparable, however once you get a dynamic moving image blu-ray falls apart. One of DVD's reference disks "The Fifth Element" looks no better on blu-ray than on it's Superbit counterpart.

Sony has shot itself in the foot before (beta vs VHS), and though in that case beta was a superior quality to it's counterpart, here there seems to be either an equal or slightly poorer product. Is it in the software? Whatever it is it doesn't bode well for blu-ray. Sorry to say Sony has a track record where they could mess up a wet dream. I've owned several Sony products, from digital cameras to their front CRT, LCD and now SXRD projectors, and they're great. But they suffer from shooting themselves in the foot when they try to introduce pure proprietary products that aren't the friendliest in the world, (remember their first Net Walkmen? Didn't play mp3's just their proprietary format), same thing with the Diskman format (DAT and mini-disks). They improve on existing products but when it comes to going against the grain they've a miserable track record.

HD-DVD had the advantage of easy conversion of existing DVD lines to HD-DVD with minimal cost. The competition here though is GOOD! Why? because it's bring lower prices to the consumer much quicker than DVD's did. I'm paying about $15 for HD-DVD and blu-ray titles now, which is much lower than the anticipated $35 for blu-ray and $29 for HD-DVD's if the formats weren't competing. My sincere opinion is that blu-ray will find a niche in computer storage due to it's greater storage capacity, (like beta did in professional betacams). However due to it's superior quality and price HD-DVD will probably eventually win out, but by that time holographic storage media will displace both for even greater resolution and 3-D home theater imaging.

blue ray is the best because it takes movies beyond high definition True to the original master Film Source.  The future is Blue Ray and Hd is 2nd in quality as it only offers HD not even as close to the master print. Dont believe me buy a blue ray disc read instructions test out your self same movie on blue ray and hd but dont forget your 1080p hd TV to test with.

what a noob Blu-ray is outselling HD-dvd 9:2

6) HD-DVD does not (yet) have region restrictions while BluRay does. No big deal for the US, but thats a huge factor in Europe. They HATE region restrictions even worse than DRM.

For me the main reason I hope that HD -DVD will be a winner. Living in Germany I hate it to be unable to buy directly the mostly better DVD versions from the US.


As many early buyers are film fanatics its a huge factor in Europe. Still the PSP3 is ´perhapes still the winning card even if Sony does all right now to screw its launch in Germany (Delays, forces bundles of PSP + PSP3 down the consumer throat, taking out the emotion chip for a "better " software solution)

20 gigs means Blu-Ray wins for me.

DRM doesn't bother me in the least as i plan to own at least as many blu-ray movies as i do DVD. The additional space on the Sony product means better audio, better video, and more featurettes.

How much more? Nearly 4 standard DVD's more than HD-DVD. Thats plenty of space to get me 7 channels of distinct surround sound.

Thats all.

DRM doesn't matter if you own the disc. But it sure matters to all the people that want to "make back-ups"

Saying "I'm not biased" then arguing a completely biased view doesn't change anything.  "Sony buys Columbia and Tristar."  Oh yea?  Why don't we look at what Microsoft has bought?  I will support the lesser of two evils, and Blu-Ray is the way to go.  Blu-Ray > this reporter.

WoW sony a money hungry company out to dominate the masses and control how you spend and what you buy that sound like every company since time
Ohh well there goes $600

Hey FrenchProducer ... How do you really feel about the video?

Why don't you give us the URL to your video production and show us how it's done. I'm sure you'll give us a mind numbing, politically correct ramble that is just so ... perfect I'll want to pinch your cheeks :)

Tintin, your "facts" are mostly not:

> 1) Sony have said they will not replicate porn on BluRay. As they are one of the biggest replication services, that forces most of the porn guys onto HD-DVD

The major studios won't work with replicators who also deal with porn (whether Blu-ray or HD DVD).  Sony is only one of eight Blu-ray replicators.  There are other options, as is proven by Vivid's upcoming release of "Debbie Does Dallas Again" on Blu-ray.  There's no way the porn industry is going to ignore the millions of mostly 18-35 yr old PS3 owners.

> 2) Correction: You cannot make a single disk with BluRay on one side and DVD or HD-DVD on the other. Thats because both HD-DVD and DVD disks require a license from the DVD forum which will not allow use of BluRay.

Then you better go inform Warner who are well on their way to producing the combo Blu-ray/HD DVD TotalHD.  As long as the disc passes the HD DVD spec requirements the DVD Forum won't stop it.

> 4) BluRay disks are currently slightly larger, but the advantage is being lost because the movies are mostly coded in MPEG2 rather than the more advanced codecs that Warner and others are using on HD-DVD.

Since when is 66% "slightly"?  10% is slightly.  Maybe 20% is slightly.  66% is significantly.  And most recent titles are encoded in AVC or VC-1.  Don't confuse the fact that studios *can* use MPEG-2 due to the higher disc capacity with *must*.  The higher capacity simply provides more flexibility to the studios.

> 5) Both iHD and BD-J seem to have early interoperability problems. iHD is probably simpler to resolve though, because its a fairly basic markup language whereas BD-J has over 11,000 Java APIs to get right.

If HDi interoperability is easier to resolve it's because there is only one manufacturer making HD DVD players, not because the platform is any less complex.

> 7) HD-DVD always allows managed backup of the movie to hard drive. BluRay lets the studios turn this off.

Managed copy is a function of AACS which both formats use.  There will be no difference in how it's handled on the two formats.

> 8) BluRay has more Studios (big Hollywood ones anyway, Bollywood, Fat East and European studios might be a different story), but HD-DVD has a similar or greater number of Movies. I think consumers care more about the latter.

Have you looked at the release calendars lately?  Blu-ray has so many more titles coming out than HD DVD it's not even a contest.

I think it is funny that you state "Honestly, I'm not taking sides in the "format war". "  Hahahaha, are you serious.  Have you watched the lame video you produced?  It's all about how bad Sony is.  Granted you don't endorse HD-DVD, but you don't knock it's downfalls or comment on Microsofts efforts to rule the world.  They are just a guilty as Sony in trying to gain the market advantage.  Do some digging and you will see there is no reason to knock Sony for it's efforts to win the war.  If your anti Sony, that's fine. Just don't try convincing others that your not and then produce crappy videos that are one sided.  Oh and I am not calling your video crappy because I am a Sony fan, it just really sucked!  Wake up and be honest!

Some facts to bear in mind:
1) Sony have said they will not replicate porn on BluRay. As they are one of the biggest replication services, that forces most of the porn guys onto HD-DVD, for which there are many replicators (because HD-DVD is a small upgrade to conventional DVD plants). Whatever you think about porn, a lot of people will make buying decisions based on it.
2) Correction: You cannot make a single disk with BluRay on one side and DVD or HD-DVD on the other. Thats because both HD-DVD and DVD disks require a license from the DVD forum which will not allow use of BluRay. Dual HD-DVD and DVD are OK though.
3) DRM is basically the same for both BluRay and HD-DVD. Its AACS, though BluRay has some extensions that probably wont work.
4) BluRay disks are currently slightly larger, but the advantage is being lost because the movies are mostly coded in MPEG2 rather than the more advanced codecs that Warner and others are using on HD-DVD.
5) Both iHD and BD-J seem to have early interoperability problems. iHD is probably simpler to resolve though, because its a fairly basic markup language whereas BD-J has over 11,000 Java APIs to get right.
6) HD-DVD does not (yet) have region restrictions while BluRay does. No big deal for the US, but thats a huge factor in Europe. They HATE region restrictions even worse than DRM.
7) HD-DVD always allows managed backup of the movie to hard drive. BluRay lets the studios turn this off.
8) BluRay has more Studios (big Hollywood ones anyway, Bollywood, Fat East and European studios might be a different story), but HD-DVD has a similar or greater number of Movies. I think consumers care more about the latter.

I beleive what Wayde said is pretty much true about Sony...in my 55 years of being a early adopter I have noticed Sony in the last 10-15 years has gone down the tubes...they could care less about us consumers...they just want you $$$ and will  screw us with lesser quality HD. Also Talkstr8 is being paid through BD in one form or other...So I would take what he said with a pinch of salt. I own both formats and want them both to succeed...if HD DVD dies...Sony will screw us big time with less than quality HD and AQ and higher prices for content. Open up your minds and Think about it.

been an early adopter forever and ended up with salvage priced bone yard. if you can cool your heels long enough the reward will be a better,cheaper and clrear winner...PATIENCE PAYS !

Ray wrote: --Ray can't spell - check the context - prove should be proof. I'm not taking your advice if you can't at least write and I certainly don't want to read through what you wrote. Period.--

Ray also wrote: --Talkstr8t is write about proprietary. What are ya guys....ignant (ignorant)? Look at the logic behind it. Apple obviously is going to allow that to happen. GO READ! --

Ray can't spell either! LOL! 'Write' should be 'right'. Oh the irony. I'm not reading what you write, right..?

Early adopter said "I will no longer buy ANYTHING from this company, and you should not either.  Wake up, you DRM IPOD idiot generation."

Agree with all your points except for the "DRM IPod idiots".  I have an Ipod and am not at all bothered by its DRM.  That's ecause I don't buy anything off iTunes - I rip my CDs instead.  When iTunes sells normal mp3s, w.o. drm, I will buy from them.  Non-standardized DRM-ed stuff is basically crippleware.

There is no reason why owning an iPod implies acceptance of DRM and I would argue that Apple has had more success in wrestling concessions out of the idiotic music industry than almost any other big CE company.

Question though:  what HD sources do you use, if not blu-ray/hd-dvd?  Broadcast?  OTA?

Jim, they both support the same video codecs (MPEG-2, VC-1, AVC) and resolutions (up to 1920x1080).  Neither will support uncompressed video, that requires far too much bandwidth for anything but a hard drive and consumes way too much storage to be feasible.  While both formats support the same codecs, Blu-ray can support up to 48Mbps of A/V bandwidth while HD DVD is limited to 30Mbps, so Blu-ray has more headroom for using higher bitrates where needed during encoding, although in practice both are capable of very, very good picture quality (often indistinguishable from the master if carefully encoded).

Bob, if in fact I do work for a Blu-ray supporting company what disclosure is appropriate?  It's not as if I'm representing myself as impartial, and the facts I posted are still facts, not opinion.

Well, watching that video was a total waste of time.   The thing I want to know about the two competing formats is what resolution does each support?  Does anyone actually know the real technical specs for each format?  Can either Blu-Ray of HD-Dvd deliver a true 1080 x 1920i uncompressed image?  Is video compression used?  How much?  I've been following this issue in industry trades for several years and I've yet to see a side by side comparision of the image quality each format can deliver.

Talkstr8t didn't see fit to acknowledge that he works for Sun and has a vested
interest in Blu-ray's success. Tisk Tisk.

actually that is a very good argument, i mean,
what is better?

a 20 gig HDD or a 200 gig HDD? both are the same physical size too..
ofcourse the 200 gig HDD is better, maybe a tad more expensive but still better

anybody saying something else must be retarded IMO

Jon, sorry but that's the dumbest tech discussion i've ever seen. Where did you find that link and why would you link to it? The author at that site doesnt even get into any real detail of the competing formats aside from disc size. I guess the key takeaway from that little chart is that blu-ray has more space than hd-dvd? I guess bigger hard drives are better than smaller ones? That's some weak sauce for a compelling argument why you think blu-ray is better.

Once again, jon is that why you think blu-ray is better? because of the more storage and more supporters theory? Well face facts! If blu-ray using more data can hold more hd content and more hours, then y do they still look like crap? i don't see there 25gb working for hd?! Hd-dvd can easily, use there double layer (30gb) and that will be enough for hd content. Every blu-ray fanboy always uses the same excuse which is "blu-ray has more storage" oh wow! Well at least hd dvd with 15gb can deliver! And that's exactly why i support hd dvd now.

I had HD more that 4 years ago.  I was watching HD while most of you didn't know what it stood for.  I can record it, save it, play it back when I want, serve it off of a multi-terabyte server.  You don't need Blu-Ray or Microsoft and their crippled new operating system.  REAL HD people, the early adopters and influencers almost universally abhor SONY and what they now stand for.  Remember that at one time, there was this great company called SONY, the SONY that was on the side of consumers, the Sony of the Supreme Court decision in the SONY BetaMax case.  I will no longer buy ANYTHING from this company, and you should not either.  Wake up, you DRM IPOD idiot generation.  If you want to experience what HD can be, don't buy this snake-oil from Blu-Ray or HD-DVD

I agree. But I'm still looking for my anti-seizure meds. Somebody get the editor a Valium.

I HAVE A SOLUTION TO ALL THIS CRAP THAT YOU ARE ALL TALKING ABOUT- AND EVERYONE CAN LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER....

THEY (SCIENTIFIC PEOPLE) HAVE CREATED DUAL-LAYER DISCS WHICH ARE BLURAY ON ONE LAYER AND HD-DVD ON THE OTHER. SO. BUY THE PLAYER THAT YOU WANT- FOR WHATEVER REASON, AND ENJOY YOUR FILMS, CHICK FLICKS, PORN, WHATEVER, NO MATTER WHAT FORMAT.

I READ THIS IN A NEWSPAPER ARTICLE BY THE WAY.

BOTH Blu-ray and HD-DVD have DRM restrictions.

BOTH require HD content to be transmitted by HDMI using HDCP encryption.

BOTH are supporting Hollywood and not the consumer.

If I had to pick one, I would say Blu-ray is better. This is why: http://www.ex-po-nent.com/2007/02/03/blu-ray-is-better/

Hey, um anus, i mean janus, Oh wow i made a mistake "Proof" there you have it, now go and enjoy your lame ass "Blu-rry" haha nice one BluraySucks, it's the truth afterall, just take a look at fifth element, such a great movie, but on standard cable it looks ten times better as the blu-ray version. Hey anus you actually think that disney and all those studios, will stick to blu-ray forever? just watch shitface they will all end up supporting both formats after Sony is done sucking there dicks! You think they're stupid or something they want the $$ baby! For right now there blu-gay exclusives but they know themselves that supporting one format is not the right move. Even if they would never support hd dvd, no problem at all, once true hd comes out movies will be for both formats. So you can know, i was also a blu-ray fan, enjoying the blu-ray fanwagon, but when i saw Hd dvd i was ready to jump of not caring if i killed myself. Hd dvd is truly the better format, i seriously don't know how ppl can say blu-ray is high-def after seeing The Fifth Element on it!?!

Talkstr8t frequents different message boards promoting blu-rry but for all his crying that this article is bias he's neglecting to mention how he works for Sun Microsystems, the BDA and blu-rry. How bad is that that people that work for this format have to spend all day promoting it themselves online?

Wayde, why are you saying in the video and again here that there is a conflict of interest for a company to own both the content and distribution? Time Warner owns Warner Bros movie studio and about half the cable systems in the country that you see those movies on, as well as HBO, which carries the same Warner movies.
There is only a conflict of interest if there is price-fixing as a result of their ownership. There is not in any of these cases.
Further, Sony is not the only ones making Blu-ray and they are certainly not the only ones making content or handling distribution. They have competitors for content and distribution, meaning they have to make good, quality movies that consumers are willing to pay for, and they have to sell their products at competitive prices because they are not the only ones in the game.

Oh and to add to my last post, DRM and security limit technological progress by putting in restrictions.

Seriously, for me, I will never buy either format. DVDs hooked up to a nice TV, with the right sound system, and the right video connections, is even better than the theatres. Capacity?! No one cares! Get a portable hard drive then!! If someone offered me a free Blu-ray player or HD-DVD player, I would actually not take it, even for  free. I wouldn't even want it to sell, because I outright do not support this method of controlling consumers wallets. And to top it off, DVDs have only been out for a short amount of time as it is, compared to the amount of time in between VHS and DVD.

As a consumer, do yourself a favour: don't give into the crappy closed proprietary systems companies have been shelling out lately. I see a change in attitude lately, especially in Europe with the stand against DRM. It's our time to change the way we live our entertainment life.

Hey Talkstr8t, less "in the know" details might make for a better attempt convincing the board you aren't on proprietary-Sony's payroll.

Back up your words with links.  Sony = Proprietary, and as of last year I have completely washed my hands of them.  What made me do so? When I went to plug a subwoofer into my Sony dvd/tuner system and it wouldn't work thanks to their helpful PROPRIETARY speaker jacks shaped like a zig-zad with a chunk of plastic at the end.  When you get that domineering over what I PAID YOU FOR, so much so that I can't even enjoy the sounds without buying more equipment from you then you get nothing more from me.  I even go so far as to steer people away from their products when I'm in a store.  Very liberating seeing Sony lose a sale, you should try it!

Sony's hybrid status as a semi-electronics/semi-media company and their tendency to be quite proprietary makes me distrust them, on principle.  Far more than I distrust M$.  I will buy blu-ray only when there is no chance that hd-dvd will fly.  Unfortunately I will probably only buy hd-dvd if I am relatively comfortable that it will win.

Some of their misdeeds:  rootkits, ATRAC rather than mp3, their dumb disk format for the PSP with soon-to-be-obsolete movies, Sony memory sticks rather than normal flash cards.  They just take us for suckers, is all.

From the little I know, the whole blu-ray DRM stuff stinks too, though I am sure y'all know more about it than I do.

Basically, I dislike them and will go out of my way to avoid their products.  I am glad the PS3 is not doing well.  That may change if they change their attitude, but don't hold your breath.

longtime reader...

MSFT has done a real job on you... I find it amazing that they have convinced you to buy into the format with one hardware vendor (Toshiba), one software vendor (Microsoft) and one exclusive studio (Universal). I can't imagine where you see the competitive forces in this market if HD-DVD were to win.

I would certainly much prefer to see Panasonic, Sony, Samsung, Philips, Dell and Apple competing within a standard that they jointly developed than hope that when Microsoft wins that they will majically continue to innovate and differenciate in absolute contradiction to all known Microsoft history. Just think about the innovations in Internet Explorer between the destruction of Netscape and the growth of Firefox...

Please learn from history and understand that when MSFT dominates a market, innovation is non-existant.  

It would be closer to being understandable were you not in support of the hardware standard that has both the lower capacity per layer and the lower bandwidth spec for video (regardless of CODEC) and finally the lowest likelyhood of ever being adopted as a writable disc. And they have achieved this by dangling 'managed copy' a feature that will be implimented only at the will of the studios and under the AACS license that will equally govern the feature in both standards.

Yet again the company that will succeed in sucking the innovation out of the gizmos you write about will be Microsoft and you are here defending them and echoing their empty talking points.

I hope they gave you a nice laptop for your effort...
http://www.linux-watch.com/news/NS4598924090.html

Wow talkstr8t, do you honestly believe the stuff you're writing? If BD-J is so great then why do Blu-Ray titles suck for interactivity? Why does it take so long to author a Blu-Ray version of a movie already on HD-DVD? Why do Blu-Ray movies have less features than their HD-DVD counterparts? Why is the BD standard not even final? Why are there 3 floating, non-finalized standards? Why are the BD-players that people bought in December already obsolete? Why cant they support BD Live when it becomes available? Blu-Ray is DRM infested junk that looks to strongly police the consumer.

HD-DVD is a better value for the consumer in every single possible way. Do you have some vested interest in Blu-Ray? It's just a poorly thought out piece of technology that isn't even finished yet. Who in their right mind would buy any Blu-Ray tech?

Huh? He's so smug in the video and yet and so misinformed and misguided.
Why should Sony bother to innovate? Sony doesn't care about consumers? Who do you think buys their products -- dogs and cats? How about Sony will continue to innovate because if consumers don't like their movies, they won't pay to see them ("Marie Antoinette"). If consumers don't like their hardware products, they won't buy them (PSP). If consumers don't like  Blu-ray, they won't buy it.
That's why they will have to continue to innovate.
Talkstr8t got all the other stuff right that the video guy (Wayde?) is so way off about -- "most studios release on both formats" (only two do), etc.
Hip-looking and fun approach to video blog; just work on the content more next time.

The reason why Blu-ray doesn't support iHD is because its proprietary to Microsoft and requires royalty payments (this is why the LG dual-format player doesn't support iHD because of licensing fees).

Blu-ray uses plain old JAVA to replace iHD.

1. Ray can't spell - check the context - prove should be proof. I'm not taking your advice if you can't at least write and I certainly don't want to read through what you wrote. Period.
2. Talkstr8t is write about proprietary. What are ya guys....ignant (ignorant)? Look at the logic behind it. Apple obviously is going to allow that to happen. GO READ!
3. Wayde is a fuming clown. By supporting the studio the consumer is supported. Its the nature of the relationship of ecnomies. The studios have a unified format to work off. Obviously we should have given it to Microsoft so that we could be bound by further integration into the OS they have out now. Fricken think about that.
4. Capacity is not transprent to the consumer or mass markets. It is displayed by the visual quality displayed. By having a larger capacity additional features can be added without having to create another player that they consumer would have to purchase. By having a longer lifespan consumers get the benefit of extended use (lifespan) from a single product. What do you like upgrading your PC everytime a new version of Windows comes out so that it runs optimally?
5. Some of you cats are Microsoft shills or something. What do you get paid to post or what?
6. The video...wow...nothing but high tech propoganda to me. Luckily I know better. Shoot...go to Best Buy or another store and see what is being sold. Betcha' 8 out of 10 have more displays for BD than HDDVD.
7. Like apples? How do ya like dem apples? - Good Will Hunting
8. BD wins out...
9. XBox 360 add on has little effect as does Zune.
10. In the end half of these people who complain willget a BD player for the following reasons:
a. Disney = BluRay = Happy Kids
b. Porn = also on Blu Ray = Happy adults
c. 8 count em 8 major studios = more content = Happy movie fans like me.
d. Apple support = Mac friendly = Happy Mac people
e. Dell support = PC friendly = Happy PC people, game developers, and music execs.
f. Need I say more?

i respect sony as an innovative electronics hardware company. But I fear the ramifications of a conflict of interest when they're controlling so many ends of the entertainment picture.

TiVo is willing to push the boundaries of acceptable use of it's PVR system. It's very existence was enough to attract litigation from content providers. Now it integrates with PCs with its TiVo 2Go feature. TiVo does what it can make consumers happy and is willing to risk pissing off content providers.

That's the way it should be! Somewhere in that tug of war between content providers and consumer hardware standards we get innovative ideas and interesting technology.

Sony will bother to innovate because they face competition from online distribution forces  and new idea.

Innovation results in new hardware that results in new electronic devices that result in new sales.

For all that is said about Sony they are very innovative. People may not like everything at Sony makes but they are trying new stuff. If they didn't they would get nor more consideration than RCA or emerson.

Wow, after having watched the video I can't believe how biased this is.  Blu-ray has "slightly more" studio support and "most" studios support both formats?!?  Two of eight studios support both.  25% is hardly most.  Four of eight exclusively support Blu-ray (three of whom are larger than the one studio supporting HD-DVD).  18 of 20 of last year's top-selling DVD's come from studios supporting Blu-ray; 4 of 20 come from studios support HD DVD.  That's not "slightly more", that's "vastly more".

"Why doesn't Blu-ray support iHD?"  How about because it is a Microsoft-designed standard which is in use nowhere else and was primarily created to ensure that HD DVD didn't standardize on Java?  Meanwhile Blu-ray has a more flexible interactivity layer, BD-J, which is based on the same Java platform which broadcast and cable operators worldwide have standardized on, meaning Blu-ray interactivity can be offered through cable video-on-demand and broadcast interactivity (interactive "24", etc.) can be packaged up on Blu-ray disc.

I have a hard time believing there isn't a PR agenda behind this video....

huh? people are still buying things on disc? What is this 2006?

You're right.  The mass market doesn't care about larger capacity or DRM.  These concepts are transparent to them.  Blu-Ray/HD-DVD offer the consumer a way to show off their HDTV to the neighbors, and allow for a better living room experience.  The quality jump is as amazing as from VHS to DVD (unless you have -10 vision, or a CRT TV).

So who really cares about Sony shoving DRM in our faces?  Not enough to make a difference.  Just look at the multi-billion success of DRM-infected iTunes.  Sony is playing its cards right by appealing to the studios and showcasing its DRM-superior media.  In the end, Sony will win the majority and they won't have to give a damn about the consumer or their needs.

How is Blu-ray proprietary?  With the exception of Toshiba, every major CE vendor backs it.  With the exception of Universal, every major studio backs it.  With the exception of Microsoft, every major IT company backs it.  Sony, Panasonic, Pioneer, Philips, Sharp, Mitsubishi, Disney, Fox, Columbia, MGM, Sun, Hitachi, and Dell have chosen to exclusively back Blu-ray.  Toshiba, Universal, and Microsoft have chosen to exclusively back HD DVD.  You tell me which one is "proprietary".

Sony's only goal with Blu-Ray is simply to leverage a proprietary format onto the world.  They've tried it so many times with limited to non existent success.  I honestly don't think either Blu-Ray or HD-DVD will catch on with the broad market the way VHS and DVD did.  The new formats aren't a giant leap in technology above what DVD is offering.  DVD caught on because it offered a much better experience then a VHS tape.    All they've done with these new formats is make a larger capacity disk and add tighter DRM.  The mass market doesn't really care about either of these things.

I think this is prove that hd dvd is more worth buying which it is. And blu-ray is more for storage matters than hd movie viewing.