Panasonic: Blu-ray will win by New Year's Day
 

So I guess in just a few days, the war has been cut from 18 months down to 3!

I do back HD, but I don't see either side being a clear cut winner so soon. And whats wrong with combo players? Its the best of both.

Anyway heres the article, and if this is out of place, Mods feel free to lock, or move.

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http://www.gamespot.com/news/6180227...ewstop;title;3

CHIBA, Japan--The decisive battle between Blu-ray and HD DVD is at hand, says a prominent Panasonic exec.

Blu-ray manufacturers are going to start cutting prices and go out on a promotional binge this holiday season, Matsushita Electric Industrial's Kazuhiro Tsuga said during a briefing with reporters at Ceatec, a large tech trade show that started here Tuesday. At Matsushita, which is best known for its Panasonic brand name, Tsuga is an executive officer who oversees networking efforts, some home electronics technologies and overseas labs, and other areas.

By the end of the Christmas season or the end of the first quarter, the writing will be on the wall. The format war in earnest may last only another year, he predicted.

"The BD (Blu-ray disc) companies will try to do our best to promote Blu-ray," he said. "The studios want us to put money in to promote it."

He added: "By the end of the year, you will see good products with very good promotion."

The Blu-ray coalition is also working on ways to cut the price of slim Blu-ray drives and recorders to allow the technology to infiltrate notebooks and PCs.

And wouldn't you know it--Matsushita has new Blu-ray players on the way. The three models will handle 18 hours of full-HD programs on a dual-layer disc and will go on sale November 1 in Japan, according to Reuters.

Tsuga's no fan of combo players that conjoin Blu-ray and HD DVD features. Last year, he called the idea "stupid, stupid." He pretty much repeated the comment this year and said that Matsushita still has no plans for such a device.

He downplayed Paramount Pictures' commitment to release movies on HD DVD exclusively, saying it only lasts for 18 months, and argues that studios are going with HD DVD "because big money came" to them. (Microsoft, Toshiba, and Intel are the main backers of HD DVD.)

Well at least this opinion came from an unbiased source.
It's not like Panasonic only makes Blu-ray players and not HD-DVD players.

Well the author of this article might either be a total moron or making things up. The quote he attributes to his opinion does not even remotely say the war will be over.

Maybe someone can explain how the following quote means that:

""By the end of the year, you will see good products with very good promotion."

Not even remotely close.

This article is a load of shit..who is paying headline writers for this garbage?

Moreover, if Blu-Ray hardware manafacturers cut their prices and finalized their specs, I would consider adding a Blu Ray player to my collection. But knowing how Sony operates, I doubt it will happen.

Panasonic doesn't make any. Thus, they are "stupid, stupid."

This format war is turning everyone - even the CEOs of giant electronics manufacturers - into name-calling three year-olds.

Thats what happens when hardware prices take significant drops much earlier than some of the big CEs wanted. The funny thing is Panasonic is insulting fellow BDA companies here as well with their comments on BR/HD players.

I think the thing that is most interesting is the statement about "studios" asking them to put money into promotions. They might as well come out and say studios are upset with standalone sales.

That Onion is hilarious. Had no idea Panasonic was writing articles for them now.

Something is definitely stupid, stupid.

That headline's so terrible I can't tell whether it's written by an overzealous Blu-Ray supporter, a subversive HD DVD supporter, or an idiot.

das

Blu-ray WILL win by New Years Day because Sony paid off Santa to steal every HD-DVD player beneath a tree. The author just forgot to mention that tidbit.

How many BD players has Panasonic even sold?

Damn, Im a Panasonic fan and that was just ridiculous... Its funny, all these companies say BD will win in X months, but yet still don't do the one thing that would go real far in guaranteeing a victory (actually HD doesn't either). Lowering the fucking software cost.

Until Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer changes his nose to blue, I don't think so. :D

This is like the Iraq War. When you're losing, put out a great campaign that you're winning.

No offense against either format, but these kinds of statements sound desparate. Can't wait until HD DVD leaders post their shit. They better not. Because they'll get an email from me at least. And hopefully others will do the same, telling them to cool it, and just create some great deals without the bragging.

Price is the main reason I only have 4 HD-DVD's in my collection. I do believe the prices are too high, and thus limiting my purchases to maybe 6-8 more HD-DVD's by year end (Transformers, Anchor Man, Ocean's boxset, Blade Runner UE, Shrek 3, Viva Las Vegas).

I could care less who wins now. I just went ahead and spent the money that I would have just blown on something else to complete my High Definition setup. Bring on any great movie in high definition and I'll get it. I'm not out to solely support neither Sony nor Microsoft. I simply support high definition and I will continue to do so.

I'll send my HD DVD player to Tonymontana13131 if Blu-ray wins by News Year.

You people should learn what these are: ""

What statement??

Das is correct, the summation of the comments by the Panasonic official is so ridiculously scripted that unless one absolutely, positively, has no idea how business is run only then one could believe such nonsense was made public. Winning the war...???

The only notable bit of info is that the BDA are planning a joined promotion where a number of players will be introduced at a substantially lower price:

..the rest is just a wannabe journalist exercising in editorial infertility.

Ciao,
Pro-B

If BD continues to have issues with BD+, and potentially Profile 1.1 and 2.0, then it is doomed to be a niche market format.

Right now, BD+ is causing major headaches with stand alone players.

http://www.dvdtown.com/news/did-blu-...t-with-bd/4782


The only player seemingly unaffected is the PS3.

So, is BD doomed to be a PS3 niche format, like UMD? If they keep going down this road, that's EXACTLY what will happen.

I seriously don't understand why people buy anything other than a PS3 to play Blu-Rays. Some say that they don't want the gaming capabilities in their house. Well then put the controllers away. The best value is buying the 60 gb unit so that your set can always be updated. I have yet to have a problem with any of my Blu-Rays and yes I own a PS3 (two of them in fact).

My point is that if the PS3 becomes the only "widely compatible" player, the general public won't embrace it.

Well, we'll see the truth in three months won't we? I know the article is full of crap, but still, i'm not gonna say anything about it, because if it's true, i don't wanna sound like an ass. Hey, only three months... Halloween, Thanksgiving (Black Friday), Christmas... hell, it's gonna be fast.

I think that is the reason. Many people don't want anything to do with a gaming machine, period. They don't want a "multi-tasking" machine. They want a unit that does one thing, play movies. Unfortunately for them, the PS3 is still the best option for BD playback. It handles every disc without a hitch. I, too, prefer to use my movie playback with a standalone unit, but I continue to wait until they make a BD player that not only matches the speed and compatibility of the PS3, but one that will play everything on a current and future BD disc. I'll be waiting a few months. Though I wouldn't mind testing out that new Sharp BD player that should be had for under $400 around the holidays.

Plenty of incorrect information above! There are two brands of players that currently have experienced problems with the new Fox discs: LG and Samsung. Furthermore, it is not a BD+ issue but a Java one which should be resolved via a firmware update.

Pro-B

Either way, it's pretty terrible to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on a player, shell out $30 or so for a disc, and not be able to play it easily or at all.

(Goes for both sides, though; the HD DVD combo issues have been similarly frustrating.)

So when can the folks who spent $500+ on their players get this update?

As Adam said - regardless of the reason, it's the response that matters.