Interviews with Digital Media Thought Leaders
Why Blu-ray Beat HD-DVD
Podcast Audio | Posted by Phil Leigh on March 4, 2008
Summary: If you are curious to know why Blu-Ray won the standards battle against HD-DVD for High Definition DVDs, this interview is for you.
Subject: Our guest today is Steve Lang who operates the MadMaxMedia.com blog. Steve believes that the decision by Sony to include a Blu-Ray player in the Play Station 3 gave Blu-Ray the edge. While Microsoft’s X-Box could double as an HD-DVD movie player, the consumer was required to purchase an added external drive.
Phil’s Take. By including Blu-Ray as an integral part of the Play Station 3, Sony’s latest generation video game is more expensive than both the X-Box 360 and Nintindo Wii, but it serves as a critical platform for establishing Blu-Ray as the leader. X-Box 360 games did not require the use of HD-DVD whereas Play Station 3 games were shipped on Blu-Ray media. As a result, the PS-3 could more easily double as a High Definition movie player than could the X-Box 360 since the Microsoft system required the consumer to purchase a supplemental HD-DVD drive.
Despite winning the standards battle, Blu-Ray may not match the rapid consumer adoption pace at which DVD players earlier permeated the market. That is because the better video quality of Blu-Ray only becomes evident when watched on large screens such as home theaters.
Additionally, many of the new HD television sets are equipped to enhance the video quality of standard DVDs thereby making the incremental quality comparison to Blu-Ray even narrower. Finally, the installed base of standard TVs will not work with Blu-Ray and the average consumer replaces his primary television only once a decade,
Categories: Podcast Audio
Tags: Blu Ray, digital media, HD DVD, Internet Media, Microsoft, Phil Leigh, Sony, Steve Lang, Video Games
Permalink | Email This |
Leave a Comment
If you would like to make a comment, please fill out the form below.
I really disagree that having a Blu-ray player in the PS3 is what gave Blu-ray the edge. The PS3 still has yet to catch up to the 360, and its sales thus far have been sub par at best. I’m not saying it wasn’t a factor, because I believe it was, but it certainly wasn’t “the edge.”
Thanks for the comment, blu ray disc player, but what do you think gave Blu-ray the edge? I am seriously interested in your opinion.