I know you all have probably forgotten about it, but just thought I'd let you know that a new High-Def Revolution column will be coming shortly.

There's a newletter that you write?

OK, well the column is up, but I would recommend using this link for now:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/hd/index.html

The version linked on the site's front page was a preliminary draft missing a couple of changes that I made a few days ago, unfortunately. I'm trying to get that fixed.

OK, here's the finalized draft and permanent link:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/hd/high_defin...war_1_y_1.html

No offense, but your article seems pretty heavily slanted toward HD-DVD. No mention of content, which is, I think, the biggest determining factor right now. I think the real trojan horse for BR is the exclusive studio support they have, especially from Disney/Buena Vista. HD-DVD only has Universal, and I don't think they can carry HD-DVD by themselves.

Also, it boggles my mind that you think the format war is not a bad thing. Do you really think sales aren't hurt by having 2 different formats, with exclusive content for each? The was isn't really doing that much to lower prices either. I think if there was one format, the prices would still drop quickly, because the market demands it now. DVD took off like it did because prices dropped quickly and there was no competition (I don't consider DivX competition).

That's just my opinion though. I'm curious what other people think.

Bolded for emphasis. Can you honestly say that Blu Ray's current release list is better than HD DVD's? What about announced titles through 2007? Outside of bloated blockbusters coming from BVE and Sony, what is the BDA actually releasing this year? I wish Fox would get off its ass already and start pushing out high quality catalog titles.

^

What he said. IMO, content only favors BD theoretically at this point. With Fox putting out basically nothing... and Disney not putting out much that people would consider "Disney"... and even Sony being fairly stingy with releases, I'm not sure I'd hold up content as something positive for BD. Especially with some of Warner's most desireable titles (V, Batman, Matrix) being unavailable on BD at this time.

Frankly, Universal is the only studio that I think is doing this right. They are absolutely cranking out titles with a great variety.

But content at this point is basically a 'tie'.

One important thing is not discussed in the article that may impact the format war. It is probably not really known yet since it is on the verge of happening. That is home movies and event video (wedding) industry. More and more video editing programs and dvd burning software are coming out that can burn to blue ray discs but not hd-dvd. (not that I've seen anyway). Burners for computers are already down to 500 dollars. And the new AVCHD camcorders easily burn (or record already) to Blu-Ray.

I'm able to use my Canon HV-10 HDV camcorder and a copy of Ulead DVD Movie Factory to make high-def discs from my home movies that I can play on my HD DVD player.

Both formats have more than enough good content already available to keep a person busy.

As mentioned by others, Blu-ray's studio support is still a theoretical advantage at this point. If those exclusive studios aren't releasing anything worthwhile (or much of anything at all, like Fox), what good are they?

High-Def sales were never going to skyrocket the way that DVD sales did, because 1) HDTVs still don't have enough market penetration, and 2) many uneducated consumers think that DVD is already High Definition and don't know the difference.

If it weren't for the format war, right now all we'd have are $1,500 players and a miserable selection of poor-quality software (*cough*Fifth Element*cough*), with little incentive for anyone to lower prices or improve quality.

That being said, there is a point where the war no longer fosters innovation/improvements, and simply becomes a drag on both formats and the consumer. If we haven't reached that point already, we're getting damn close.

That's good to hear. I kept seeing only blu-ray burning stuff.

Hey, I'm very interested in the new AVCHD format. How do you like your Canon? I keep waiting for Panasonic to come out with the update to the SD-1 to make it full 1920x1080. I did check out (at least the viewfinders) the SD-1, and (even though it's not AVCHD, but a mp2 format) the JVC hd7 in the store and I was much more impressed with the JVC's picture quality (and frankly, the camera itself with the focus ring and all). So glad to see the industry moving towards tapeless technologies.

I haven't been able to compare it with the newer AVC camcorders, but in the right light, it comes dangerously close to what I'm used to seeing on channels like HDNet.

Let's not forget that Universal also severely dropped the ball on releases in Q1, just like Fox from MArch to present.

They're finally getting back into things with a healthy amount of catalog titles, but they still haven't put out anything considered a major blockbuster this year.

Point taken, although I see a difference between having an intentionally light schedule (due to Q1 always being soft for video sales) and canceling all of your announced titles.

Absolutely. I'm floored by the number (and quality... and variety) of things they've announced.

Well, that depends on your definition. It may not mean much to the younglings out there, but Universal did release The Sting in January. And that is (adjusted for inflation) the biggest box office hit yet released on any format. And Smokey and the Bandit (coming next week) is also in the all-time top-100.

If you're looking for more recent fare, The Mummy Returns and Bruce Almighty (coming in a few weeks) both made well over $200 million.

The Mummy Returns? That's already out.

I know... the "coming soon" comment was in reference to Bruce Almighty. Sorry, that was probably worded poorly.

I have to disagree here. The first couple weeks in January might be soft, but some of the heaviest release dates for DVD in the past 5-6 years have been the first Tuesday in February. There was no reason for Uni (or WB and Paramoutn for that matter) to be a virtual ghost in February and most of March. Fox's move was bullshit too, I agree there.

My definition in the scope of this topic would be movies that will sell players. I don't doubt the success of movies like the ones you mentioned. To be honest, I'm not even sure movies like Back to the Future, Jaws, E.T., Jurassic Park, etc., are enough to sell players.

IMO, it's going to be big titles from WB and Paramount that sell the HD-DVD players. The Matrix + $100 rebates in the same month is a great combination to do this. Eventually Harry Potter releases will do this. If they could get Dreamworks to put out some of their stuff on HD-DVD, like Shrek, that could sell players.

Don't get me wrong, I am very grateful to get titles like Eternal Sunshine, Being John Malkovich, Children of Men, Frighteners, etc., but these will not sell players to the average Best Buy-type consumer.

And that's what makes Fox's current actions even more frustrating. They have quite a few properties that would awesome to have in high-def, but they continue to piddle around with next to no releases and a ridiculous pricing scheme. Again, I'm happy to get stuff like Entrapment, Rising Sun, etc. but these will not sell players either.

You're definitely right -- I'm not sure what "titles" sell players any more. Certainly not The Sting. And maybe not BttF, Jaws, or JP either. I think it's either going to be a ton of big hits from the past 1-2 years (300, Harry Potter, etc.) or an overall large catalog that will eventually appeal to folks.

It's hard for me to judge because I look at some of the stuff that gets released (Doom, Little Man, Stealth) and just can't personally picture sitting through it once, let alone owning it.

And, for me, Dune is a title that sells me a player. I already had one at the time, but if I was HD DVD-free at the time of release, I would have bought a player just for that one title, given how great the PQ is.

So I may not be the best person to judge.

If anyone is interested, here is my account of Disney's Monday night Pirates Blu-ray event:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/hd/disneys_pi...e_caribbe.html

As some of you may or may not have noticed, Josh has graciously chosen to pass the torch of the HD column over to me for the time being, and my first column as the official editor of HD Talk (as it is now called) is ready for your perusal: http://www.dvdtalk.com/hd/clash_of_t..._hd_style.html

Let me know what you think! Anything you guys would like to see in future installments, let me know and I'll what I can do to incorporate your ideas.

Maybe you could add an overview of all announced upcoming releases.

Absolutely. I will put in an upcoming releases list in all future editions.

This should go well with all of the format arguing we've had here in the past few days:

http://www.dvdtalk.com/hd/switzerlan...ld_war_hd.html