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http://money.cnn.com/2004/11/29/technology/toshiba_dvd.reut/index.htm
Toshiba wins HD DVD support
Four film studios are expected to release movies on the new HD format in the last quarter of 2005.
November 29, 2004: 7:35 AM EST
TOKYO (Reuters) - Toshiba Corp. said Monday it had won support for the HD DVD optical disc standard from Warner Bros. Studios, Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures and New Line Cinema, advancing its cause in the battle for the next-generation DVD.
Toshiba, with NEC Corp. and Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd., is promoting a next-generation DVD technology called HD DVD, while Sony Corp. (Research) and several other giants of the electronics, computer and movie industries are backing a competing standard dubbed Blu-ray.
Support from U.S. film studios is seen as vital in this format battle, just as it was when the VHS standard prevailed over Sony's Betamax two decades ago.
"After extensive research and careful consideration ... we have determined that HD DVD has the highest quality of performance and offers key advantages in the areas of durability and reliability," Warner Bros. said in a statement.
Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema are units of Time Warner Inc. (Research), Universal Pictures is a division of General Electric Co. (Research), and Paramount Pictures is a unit of Viacom Inc. (Research).
They represent about 45 percent of Hollywood's prepackaged DVD sales in the United States, Toshiba said.
Those studios are expected to release movie titles on the HD DVD format in time for the planned launch of HD DVD players in the last quarter of 2005.
Both HD DVD and Blu-ray technologies use blue lasers, which have shorter wave length than the red lasers used in current DVD equipment, allowing discs to store data at the higher densities needed for high-definition movies and television.
At stake is pole position in the $10 billion-a-year DVD player and recorder market, and a PC drive market of similar size. The winner would be able to license its technology, meaning billions of dollars in royalty income is also up for grabs.
Toshiba, Japan's second-largest electronics conglomerate, alone expects its HD DVD-related sales to grow to ¥300 billion ($2.92 billion) by 2010 from an estimated ¥5 billion in 2005.
Battle yet to be over
"We think this carries a great impact," Toshiba Corporate Senior Vice President Yoshihide Fujii told a news conference.
"There is a strong desire in Hollywood for a single format (for next-generation DVD). Support from studios whose DVD sales account for nearly half of the market means, in our view, Hollywood has started moving towards the single format (HD DVD)."
Toshiba, however, said it was too early to declare victory over the Blu-ray camp, whose members include such heavyweights as Dell Inc. (Research), Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Philips and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., maker of Panasonic brand products.
Blu-ray has the support of Sony Pictures and the tacit backing of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. (Research), recently acquired by a Sony-led consortium. It is also counting on Twentieth Century Fox, which recently joined the Blu-ray Disc Association board.
With the same physical structure as current discs, HD DVD allows makers to use much of their existing DVD equipment, keeping fresh investment minimal and curbing manufacturing costs, Toshiba has said.
The Blu-ray firms say their format is better because a single-layer disc can hold about 25 gigabytes, enough to record up to three hours of high-definition TV, versus 20 gigabytes for HD DVDs. Blu-ray says the possibility of even higher capacities in the future would give its technology a longer life span.
Ahead of the announcement, Toshiba shares closed up 1.64 percent at ¥435, while Sony gained 1.9 percent at ¥3,760, outperforming the Tokyo stock market's electric machinery index, which was up 1.52 percent. Top of page
Toshiba wins HD DVD support
Four film studios are expected to release movies on the new HD format in the last quarter of 2005.
November 29, 2004: 7:35 AM EST
TOKYO (Reuters) - Toshiba Corp. said Monday it had won support for the HD DVD optical disc standard from Warner Bros. Studios, Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures and New Line Cinema, advancing its cause in the battle for the next-generation DVD.
Toshiba, with NEC Corp. and Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd., is promoting a next-generation DVD technology called HD DVD, while Sony Corp. (Research) and several other giants of the electronics, computer and movie industries are backing a competing standard dubbed Blu-ray.
Support from U.S. film studios is seen as vital in this format battle, just as it was when the VHS standard prevailed over Sony's Betamax two decades ago.
"After extensive research and careful consideration ... we have determined that HD DVD has the highest quality of performance and offers key advantages in the areas of durability and reliability," Warner Bros. said in a statement.
Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema are units of Time Warner Inc. (Research), Universal Pictures is a division of General Electric Co. (Research), and Paramount Pictures is a unit of Viacom Inc. (Research).
They represent about 45 percent of Hollywood's prepackaged DVD sales in the United States, Toshiba said.
Those studios are expected to release movie titles on the HD DVD format in time for the planned launch of HD DVD players in the last quarter of 2005.
Both HD DVD and Blu-ray technologies use blue lasers, which have shorter wave length than the red lasers used in current DVD equipment, allowing discs to store data at the higher densities needed for high-definition movies and television.
At stake is pole position in the $10 billion-a-year DVD player and recorder market, and a PC drive market of similar size. The winner would be able to license its technology, meaning billions of dollars in royalty income is also up for grabs.
Toshiba, Japan's second-largest electronics conglomerate, alone expects its HD DVD-related sales to grow to ¥300 billion ($2.92 billion) by 2010 from an estimated ¥5 billion in 2005.
Battle yet to be over
"We think this carries a great impact," Toshiba Corporate Senior Vice President Yoshihide Fujii told a news conference.
"There is a strong desire in Hollywood for a single format (for next-generation DVD). Support from studios whose DVD sales account for nearly half of the market means, in our view, Hollywood has started moving towards the single format (HD DVD)."
Toshiba, however, said it was too early to declare victory over the Blu-ray camp, whose members include such heavyweights as Dell Inc. (Research), Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Philips and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., maker of Panasonic brand products.
Blu-ray has the support of Sony Pictures and the tacit backing of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. (Research), recently acquired by a Sony-led consortium. It is also counting on Twentieth Century Fox, which recently joined the Blu-ray Disc Association board.
With the same physical structure as current discs, HD DVD allows makers to use much of their existing DVD equipment, keeping fresh investment minimal and curbing manufacturing costs, Toshiba has said.
The Blu-ray firms say their format is better because a single-layer disc can hold about 25 gigabytes, enough to record up to three hours of high-definition TV, versus 20 gigabytes for HD DVDs. Blu-ray says the possibility of even higher capacities in the future would give its technology a longer life span.
Ahead of the announcement, Toshiba shares closed up 1.64 percent at ¥435, while Sony gained 1.9 percent at ¥3,760, outperforming the Tokyo stock market's electric machinery index, which was up 1.52 percent. Top of page
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P), Disney hasn't said jack about shit either way, and the only advantage will be in the PS3 as I imagine DELL and HP will start shipping HD-DVD (as will Toshiba in laptops obviously) as soon as someone (toshiba) actually releases HD-DVD-ROM drives.