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!Player || List Price || Street Price || Notes
!Player || List Price || Street Price || Notes
|-
|-
| Pioneer Blu-ray Drive || [[US$]]259 [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827129015] || [[US$]]239.99|| A DVD writer and Blu-ray reader with SATA Interface. Review: [http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Reviews/Specific.aspx?ArticleId=20773]
| Pioneer Blu-ray Drive || [[US$]]259 || [[US$]]239.99[http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827129015] £105[http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CD-048-PO] || A DVD writer and Blu-ray reader with SATA Interface. Review: [http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Reviews/Specific.aspx?ArticleId=20773]
|-
|-
| [[Sony PlayStation 3]] (40&nbsp;GB) || [[US$]]399<ref name="PS3price">{{cite web|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/10-18-2007/0004684726&EDATE=|title=Sony Computer Entertainment America Announces New 40GB Playstation 3 Configuration|accessdate=2007-10-29|date=[[2007-10-18]]|format=HTML|work=Sony|publisher=PR Newswire|language=English}}</ref> || -|| JP¥39,980 [http://www.psu.com/Japan-gets-PS3-price-cut-and-40GB-SKU-News--a0001495-p0.php] £299[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7030164.stm].
| [[Sony PlayStation 3]] (40&nbsp;GB) || [[US$]]399<ref name="PS3price">{{cite web|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/10-18-2007/0004684726&EDATE=|title=Sony Computer Entertainment America Announces New 40GB Playstation 3 Configuration|accessdate=2007-10-29|date=[[2007-10-18]]|format=HTML|work=Sony|publisher=PR Newswire|language=English}}</ref> || -|| JP¥39,980 [http://www.psu.com/Japan-gets-PS3-price-cut-and-40GB-SKU-News--a0001495-p0.php] £299[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7030164.stm].
Line 155: Line 155:
| Panasonic DMP-BD10A || $899 || $599 [http://www.valueelectronics.com/AVSTC.htm] || Review: [http://reviews.cnet.com/video-players-and-recorders/panasonic-dmp-bd10a/4505-6463_7-32455487.html]
| Panasonic DMP-BD10A || $899 || $599 [http://www.valueelectronics.com/AVSTC.htm] || Review: [http://reviews.cnet.com/video-players-and-recorders/panasonic-dmp-bd10a/4505-6463_7-32455487.html]
|-
|-
| Panasonic DMP-BD10AK || $599 || $470 [http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000S6MD6K/] || Producer support: [http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/vModelDetail?storeId=15001&catalogId=13401&itemId=131058&catGroupId=47054&modelNo=DMP-BD10AK] (five free movies are included in the box "while supplies last")
| Panasonic DMP-BD10AK || $599 || $470 [http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000S6MD6K/] || Producer support: [http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/vModelDetail?storeId=15001&catalogId=13401&itemId=131058&catGroupId=47054&modelNo=DMP-BD10AK] (five free movies are included in the box "while supplies last") Review: [http://www.evalguide.com/panasonic-dmp-bd10ak-1080p-blu-ray-disc-dvd-player/]
|-
|-
| Pioneer BDP-HD1 || $1499 || - || Review: [http://reviews.cnet.com/video-players-and-recorders/pioneer-bdp-hd1/4505-6463_7-31637888.html]
| Pioneer BDP-HD1 || $1499 || - || Review: [http://reviews.cnet.com/video-players-and-recorders/pioneer-bdp-hd1/4505-6463_7-31637888.html]

Revision as of 20:42, 12 November 2007

In 2006, the release of two next-generation optical disc formats attempted to improve upon and eventually replace the DVD standard. The two formats, HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc, are currently in a format war. This article compares their respective technologies, business alliances, hardware support, and sales.

Technical Details

Template:HighDefMediaComparison

Capacity/Codecs

Blu-ray has a higher maximum disc capacity than HD DVD (50 GB vs. 30 GB for a single sided disc). In September 2007 the DVD Forum approved preliminary specification the triple-layer 51GB HD DVD (ROM only) disc. It is still unknown if the triple layer HD DVD will work in current players. Toshiba has confirmed that testing still needs to be done. An example of how capacity is put to use is King Kong: the film is over three hours long, has reference-quality video, near-reference quality audio, includes a picture-in-picture bonus track, and fits everything on a single 30Gb HD DVD disc[1].

The first 50 GB dual-layer Blu-ray Disc release was the movie Click, on October 10 2006, several months after the Blu-ray Disc format was released. By comparison, the majority of HD DVD titles were released on 30Gb discs from day one (The Last Samurai, for example[2]). As of September 2007 40% of Blu-ray titles use the 50 GB disc and 60% use the 25 GB disc[3] while most HD DVD movies are in the 30 GB dual layer format.[4]

The choice of video compression technology (codec) complicates any comparison of the formats. Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD both support the same three video compression standards: MPEG-2, VC-1 and AVC, each of which exhibits different bitrate/noise-ratio curves, visual impairments/artifacts, and encoder maturity. Initial Blu-ray Disc titles often used MPEG-2 video, which requires the highest average bitrate. and thus the most space, to match the picture quality of the other two video codecs. As of 2007, more and more titles have been authored with the newer compression standards: AVC and VC-1. HD DVD titles have used VC-1 and AVC almost exclusively since the format's introduction. Warner, which releases movies in both formats, often uses the same encode (with VC-1 codec) for both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD, with identical results. In contrast, Paramount, before they went HD DVD exclusive, created separate encodings, VC-1 for HD DVD and usually MPEG-2 for Blu-ray.

There are also some differences in the audio compression standards (codec) that are employed on on the two formats. Most titles released on the Blu-ray format include Dolby Digital tracks for each language in the region, and many also include a Linear PCM track for the primary language. On the other hand most titles released on the HD DVD format include Dolby Digital Plus tracks for each language in the region, and some also include a Dolby TrueHD track for the primary language.

Interactivity

Both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD have two main options for interactivity (on-screen menus, bonus features, etc.), one of which is relatively basic whilst the other is more advanced.

Blu-ray's basic mode known as HDMV or BDMV ("High Definition Movie Mode" or "Blu-ray Disc Movie Mode"), whilst HD DVD's is known as Standard Content. Both offer modest upgrades from standard DVD, such as the use of more buttons on-screen, a larger colour palette, and expanded (but still very limited) programming environment. BDMV is more powerful than Standard Content, and has been used on many Blu-ray disc titles, whereas Standard Content has been used sparingly on high-profile HD DVD. Like the disc formats themselves, HD DVD's Standard Content is a small delta on standard DVD's subpicture technology, whilst Blu-ray's BDMV is completely new. This makes transitioning from standard DVD to Standard Content HD DVD relatively simple -- for example, Apple's DVD Studio Pro has supported authoring Standard Content since version 4.0.3.

For more advanced interactivity, Blu-ray disc supports BD-J, whilst HD DVD supports Advanced Content. Virtually all HD DVD discs have been released with Advanced Content interactivity, whereas support for BD-J has been somewhat spotty due in part to compatibility and performance issues[5].

Disc construction

Blu-ray Discs contain their data relatively close to the surface (less than 0.1 mm) which combined with the smaller spot size presents a problem when the surface is scratched as data would be destroyed. To overcome this, TDK, Sony, and Panasonic each have developed a proprietary scratch resistant surface coating. TDK trademarked theirs as Durabis, which has withstood direct abrasion by steel wool and marring with markers in tests.[6] At this point only TDK recordable Blu-ray discs and DVD-R discs use the Durabis coating.[citation needed]

HD DVD uses traditional material and has the same scratch and surface characteristics of a regular DVD. The data is at the same depth (0.6 mm) as DVD as to minimize damage from scratching. Furthermore similar to DVD the construction of the HD DVD disc allows for a second side of either HD DVD or DVD.

A study performed by Home Media Magazine (August 5 2007) concluded that HD DVD discs and Blu-ray discs are essentially equal in production cost. Quotes from several disc manufacturers for 25,000 units of HD DVDs and Blu-rays revealed a price differential of only 5-10 cents. (Lowest price: 90 cents versus 100 cents. Highest price: $1.45 versus $1.50.) [7] Another study performed by Wesley Tech (February 9, 2007) arrived at a similar conclusion. Quotes for 10,000 discs show that a 15 gigabyte HD DVD costs $11,500 total, and 25 gigabyte Blu-ray or a 30 gigabyte HD DVD costs $13,000 total. [8] For larger quantities of 100,000 units, the 25 gigabyte Blu-ray was less expensive than the 30 gigabyte HD DVD ($1.49 versus $1.55). [9]

Security features

The primary means of copyright enforcement on both formats is the Advanced Access Content System (AACS). Use of AACS is optional for HD DVD, but mandatory for Blu-ray, which can add thousands of dollars to production costs.[10] Other copyright-enforcement strategies include:

Blu-ray Disc HD DVD
  • HDCP encrypted digital output
  • ROM-Mark watermarking technology (physical layer)
  • BD dynamic crypto (BD+)
  • HDCP encrypted digital output

Major movie studio support

The North American film industry is split in its support for HD DVD and Blu-ray, with only the Time Warner subsidiaries supporting both. HD DVD is officially supported by three of the Big Six film studios, while Blu-ray is officially supported by four.[11][12] Before the formats were released, only three of the Big Six companies (Sony, Fox, and Disney) supported Blu-ray. In October 2005, Warner Bros. and Paramount declared they would support Blu-ray in addition to their already-pledged support for HD DVD, giving Blu-ray support from five of the major studios.[13] In August 2007, after publishing in both formats for a year, Paramount (also representing DreamWorks) stopped supporting Blu-ray to focus exclusively on HD DVD, leaving only four companies supporting Blu-ray Disc. At the same time, DreamWorks Animation (who until that time had not released any high definition discs) announced it would release exclusively on HD DVD. Paramount and DreamWorks based their decision to stop supporting Blu-ray for a minimum of 18 months, on HD DVD's lower manufacturing costs and proven interactive technology as well as $150 million dollars in incentives from HD DVD.[14] Blu-ray supporter Disney co-designed the HD DVD interactivity layer with Microsoft.

As of October 31 2007, 332 titles are on release in the United States on Blu-ray and 328 on HD DVD.[15]

As of November 8 2007 in Japan, 195 Blu-ray titles have been released while HD DVD has 143.[16]

The table below shows which major film studios support each format in the United States.

Blu-ray Disc HD DVD

Sony Pictures

Buena Vista

20th Century Fox

Time Warner

Lionsgate

NBC Universal

Viacom

DreamWorks Animation SKG

Time Warner

Weinstein Co.

1 Sony owns a 20% stake in MGM. The rest of the share is held by members of consortium in which Sony is a member, the biggest share is owned by Providence Equity Partners (29%)

² Although Warner Bros. is officially backing both formats, its support thus far has been unequal. Warner has released over 20 more titles for HD DVD than for Blu-ray, including high profile titles like The Matrix Trilogy and Batman Begins, though some titles like these are still proposed for Blu-ray, which includes Troy: Director's Cut[17] (released) and The Polar Express (already has an official release date).[18]

³Because of the lack of region coding in HD DVD, some New Line Cinema titles, the first being Hairspray, will have their HD DVD release delayed while the movie is in the first few weeks of its release in theaters around the world, while Blu-ray version will be released day-and-date with DVD version.[19][20][21] Catalog titles will be released day-and-date for both formats.

Hybrid discs

At the January 8 2007 Consumer Electronics Show, Warner Bros. introduced a hybrid technology, Total HD, that would reportedly support both formats on a single disc.[22]The new discs would overlay the Blu-ray and HD DVD layers, placing them respectively 0.1mm and 0.5mm beneath the surface. The Blu-ray top layer would act as a two-way mirror, reflecting just enough light for a Blu-ray reader to read and an HD DVD player to ignore. But the following September, Warner President Ron Sanders said that the company was putting the technology on hold due to lack of industry interest.[23]

Other content creators, aggregators

European independents

Talking during an IFA 2007 press conference held with Toshiba, Ken Graffeo - vice president for marketing at Universal Studios Home Entertainment and co-chairman of the HD DVD Promotion Group - said that the HD DVD format now has the support of 75 per cent of European independent film studios.[24] These include Studio Canal, Pathé, Filmax, Imagion, and Nixbu.[25]

Adult studio support

As of October 2007, adult film studios had not yet played an influential role in the format war, collectively releasing fewer than 20 titles in either format. But the industry reportedly leaned towards HD DVD because of perceived difficulties in contracting replication services from Sony-led production facilities. For example, Digital Playground, originally a Blu-ray supporter, had released at least five titles on HD DVD.[26] Sony dismissed the claims, saying there is no prohibition against adult content. The Blu-ray Disc Association, which handles all licensing for Blu-ray technology, said in a statement that the group is "an open organization that welcomes the participation of all companies interested in using and supporting the format, including those that represent the full spectrum of genres in the content industry." [27]

Rental company support

  • Blockbuster, the largest U.S. movie rental company, offers Blu-ray exclusively in 1450 stores. Previously, the company test-marketed both formats at 250 stores and found that more than 70% of high definition rentals were Blu-ray discs. Blockbuster continues to offer both formats at those initial 250 stores, as well as on its online rental service.[11][28]
  • Netflix, the largest online video rental service, provides both Blu-ray and HD DVD disc rentals at no additional charge[29]. In September 2007, Netflix released statistics from the months of June thru August, showing that customers viewed Blu-ray discs nearly twice as often as HD DVD discs and were 2.4 times more likely to set HD DVD as their preferred HD format[30]. Also only 0.3% of users viewed either format during that time frame.

Hardware support: Standalone players

Prices listed below are United States MSRP, U.S. street prices are also listed if lower.

Prices in other countries are often much higher. For example, the Samsung BD-P1000 has a UK street price of GBP£538 [4], making its ex-VAT cost about 60% higher than in the U.S.

Blu-ray Disc players

Player List Price Street Price Notes
Pioneer Blu-ray Drive US$259 US$239.99[5] £105[6] A DVD writer and Blu-ray reader with SATA Interface. Review: [7]
Sony PlayStation 3 (40 GB) US$399[31] - JP¥39,980 [8] £299[9].
Sony PlayStation 3 (80 GB) US$499[31] - Available in the South Korean and North American markets.
Sony BDP-S1 $799 $638 [10] Review: [11], Producer support: [12]
Sony BDP-S300 $449 $391 [13] Review: [14], Producer support: [15]. Europe: €599, launched mid-September 2007
Sony BDP-S301 $499 $470 [16] Producer support: [17]
Samsung BD-P1200 $599 $450 [18] Review: [19], Producer support: [20]
Panasonic DMP-BD10A $899 $599 [21] Review: [22]
Panasonic DMP-BD10AK $599 $470 [23] Producer support: [24] (five free movies are included in the box "while supplies last") Review: [25]
Pioneer BDP-HD1 $1499 - Review: [26]
Philips BD-P9000 $799 $747 [27] Review: [28]
Samsung BD-1400 $499.99 $399 [29]
Sharp Aquos BD-HP20 $500 $415 [30] €599
Announced
Sony BDP-S500 $699 [31]€899 (1 November 2007)
Denon DVD-3800BD $1049 (November 2007), Profile 1.1
Denon DVD-2500BT Profile 1.1, unknown price and release date
Philips BDP7100 €600 (October 2007 in EU, no information for American release)
JVC Blu-ray Player Unknown
Daewoo DBP-1000 Blue-coloured, unknown price and release date, Profile 2.0 compliant
Daewoo DBP-2000 Black-coloured, unknown price and release date, Profile 2.0 compliant
Loewe Blu-ray Player €1,400 GBP700 (October 2007)
Funai Blu-ray Player Q1 2008, unknown price and release date
Pioneer BDP-LX70A €1,300 (October 2007)
Sony BDP-S2000ES $1,300 €599 (September 2007)
Discontinued
Sony PlayStation 3 (60 GB) $499 $450 JP¥49,980 GBP349 [32]
Panasonic DMP-BD10 $1299 $899 [33] Review: [34]
Samsung BD-P1000 $899 $509 [35] Review: [36]
Sony PlayStation 3 (20 GB) $499 - still available in Japan

Promotions

Between July 1 – September 30 2007, Blu-ray Disc Association had a mail-in rebate for five free Blu-ray movies with the purchase of an eligible Blu-ray player. (Movie selection is limited. Choose 5 by categories from a total list of 21.)

Starting 1 October 2007, Blu-ray Disc Association has extended the same offer. (Movie selection is limited. Choose 5 by categories from a total list of 18.)[32]

HD DVD Disc players/recorders

Player List Price Street Price Notes
Microsoft Xbox 360 HD DVD Drive $179 $179 [37] Xbox 360 console or high-end PC required.
Toshiba HD-A2 $299 $197 [38] Producer support: [39]
Toshiba HD-A2W $198 $279 [40] Identical to HD-A2, sold only at Walmart.
Toshiba HD-D2 $279 - Identical to HD-A2, sold at Costco and Sam's Club. Review: [41], Producer support: [42]
Toshiba HD-A20 $399 $319 [43] Review: [44], Producer support: [45]
Toshiba HD-XA2 $799 $499 [46] Review: [47], Producer support: [48]
Toshiba HD-A3 $299 $189 [49]
Toshiba HD-A30 $399 $329 [50]
Toshiba HD-A35 $499 $389 [51] Higher end model of Toshiba HD-A30
Toshiba HD-E1 €309 [52] £179.99 [53]
Toshiba HD-EP10 €699 £478 €368.54 [54] £228.99 [55] European equivalent of HD-A20[33]
Toshiba HD-EP30 €400 €451.62 [56] £199.99 [57] European equivalent of HD-A30[34]
Toshiba HD-EP35 €499 €499 [58] £279.00 [59] European equivalent of HD-A35
Toshiba HD-XE1 €679 [60] £449.99 [61]
Toshiba VARDIA RD-A300 ¥150,000 ($1,200) Japan Only HD DVD/DVD recorder with built-in HD tuners, firewire and 300GB hard drive
Toshiba VARDIA RD-A600 ¥200,000 ($1,600) Japan Only HD DVD/DVD recorder with built-in HD tuners, firewire and 600GB hard drive
Toshiba VARDIA RD-A1 ¥398,000 ($3,464) Japan Only HD DVD/DVD recorder with built-in HD tuners and 1TB hard drive
Announced
Onkyo DV-HD805 $899 (Fall 2007)
Venturer SHD7000 $199 €300 £200 (Fall 2007)[34] Target's price: $249.99 (Online Only)
Integra DHS-8.8 $1,099 (Winter 2007)
Toshiba VARDIA RD-RX7 $unknown (release date unknown) HD DVD/DVD recorder with built-in 160GB hard drive
Toshiba VARDIA RD-A101 ¥unknown, $unknown (release date unknown) HD DVD/DVD recorder with built-in hard drive
Toshiba VARDIA RD-A201 ¥unknown, $unknown (release date unknown) HD DVD/DVD recorder with built-in hard drive
Toshiba VARDIA RD-A301 ¥100,000 $870 (December 2007 Japan) HD DVD/DVD recorder with built-in 300GB hard drive
Discontinued
Toshiba HD-A1 $499 - Review: [62]
Toshiba HD-XA1 $799 - Review: [63]
RCA HDV-5000 $499 - Review: [64]

Promotions

From October 1 2007 to February 28 2008, Toshiba and Microsoft have a mail-in rebate for five free HD DVD movies with the purchase of any Toshiba HD DVD player, Toshiba HD DVD notebook, or Xbox 360 HD DVD player (Movie selection is limited. Choose 5 titles from a total list of 15. Selecting one movie from each of five categories containing 3 possible selections in each category.)

From March 1 – September 30 2007, Toshiba had a mail-in rebate for five free HD DVD movies with the purchase of any Toshiba HD DVD player, Toshiba HD DVD notebook, or Xbox 360 HD DVD player (Movie selection is limited. Choose 5 titles from a total list of 15. Selecting one movie from each of five categories containing 3 possible selections in each category)

Dual-Format (Blu-ray & HD DVD) players

Player List Price Street Price Notes
LG BH100 $1,199 $699 [65] The player does not support the HDi interactivity features of HD DVD but performs all Blu-ray functions. Review: [66]
LG BH200 $999 $999 [67] LG's second-gen dual format HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc player fully support both of their interactive technologies, HDi and BD-Live. (Announcement:)
LG GGC-H20L $399 $300 [68] A drive supporting the reading of HD DVD and Blu-ray with SATA interface.
Announced
Samsung BD-UP5000 (December 2007 [69]) Full support of both HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats and their interactive technologies, HDi and BD-Java. (Announcement: [70])

Hardware support: Personal computers

Prices for dual format PC drives are approaching $300, which is making the format war less of an issue[35]. Drives can be added to any PC and supported by the drive manufacturer.

  • Blu-ray and HD DVD are both supported in select Hewlett-Packard desktop models. HP uses dual-format drive (Blu-ray reader/writer and HD DVD reader).[36] Both, Blu-ray and HD DVD are available as choice in some Acer laptops, formerly exclusive to HD DVD[37]. During IFA 2007, the Blu-Ray Association announced that Acer had joined their ranks, followed by CEDIA 2007 announcement that they are officially joined North America HD DVD Promotion Group. ASUSTek, commonly known as ASUS, also a formerly exclusive HD DVD supporter, has begun releasing notebooks with Blu-ray drives included, such as ASUS Lamborghini VX2[38] and W2W[39], in addition to HD DVD models.
  • Blu-ray Disc drive is the only high definition media drive supported by Dell, Lenovo and Sony. Hewlett-Packard's business laptop range, unlike the Pavilion consumer line, features Blu-ray drive as the only high-definition drive available to choose from.[40]
  • HD DVD drive is the only high definition media drive available on Toshiba personal computers, as well as on Hewlett-Packard consumer line notebook (HP Pavilion). According to HP, the Blu-ray Disc drive will be available on some of its notebook models, although not in the near future.[41]

Sales data

Discs/Titles

United States

Top ten HD disc sellers for the week ending November 4, 2007
Rank Title Format Sales Ratio
1 Spider-Man 3 Blu-ray Disc 100.00
2 Spider-Man: The High Definition Trilogy Blu-ray Disc 71.95
3 Transformers HD DVD 31.42
4 Meet the Robinsons Blu-ray Disc 8.82
5 300 Blu-ray Disc 6.56
6 Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer Blu-ray Disc 5.03
7 License to Wed Blu-ray Disc 4.24
8 The Shining Blu-ray Disc 4.11
9 Mr. Brooks Blu-ray Disc 4.03
10 2001: A Space Odyssey Blu-ray Disc 3.88
11 2001: A Space Odyssey HD DVD 3.86
12 300 HD DVD 3.82
13 The Shining HD DVD 3.02
14 License to Wed HD DVD 2.71
Sales of high definition media in the United States. Week of November 4, 2007. Source: Nielsen VideoScan.

According to a market research company Nielsen VideoScan, U.S. sales of Blu-ray discs were ahead of HD DVD with 71% of the market for the week ended November 4 2007. In 2007 US sales, Blu-ray leads with 64% of the market. Since inception, US market share was 61% for Blu-ray and 39% for HD DVD.[42][15] Nielsen also releases normalized sales data (presented in the table to the right). For every 100 Spider-Man 3 Blu-ray Discs sold, 31.42 Transformers HD DVDs were sold. The 2007 sales numbers are in contrast with much of 2006 (before the release of the PlayStation 3) when HD DVD had the lead. Although Blu-ray has sold more discs, the HD DVD group claims that the attach rate (the number of movies bought per player) is higher for HD DVD than for Blu-ray.[43]

Nielsen Videoscan figures show that in the week ending November 4, 2007, for the three best-selling titles available on both formats (300, License to Wed and The Shining), the Blu-ray Disc version outsold the HD DVD one, and the Blu-ray version of 300 sold around 70% more units than the HD DVD version.[44]

Movies on high definition discs are commonly priced above their standard DVD counterparts[citation needed]. The average suggested retail of Blu-ray titles is about 5% more than HD DVD (the average MSRP of a HD DVD title is $34.57,[45] while the average MSRP of a Blu-Ray title is $36.32[46]).

Europe

In Europe, a study by Gfk revealed that Blu-ray lead with 70% of titles sold with 650,000 titles for Blu-ray and 332,000 titles for HD DVD.[47]

On 2007-11-12, the European HD DVD Promotional Group published 'attach rate' figures for 8 European countries, as follows:[48]

Country HD DVD attach rate Blu-ray Disc attach rate
Benelux 2.9 0.4
France 5.0 0.6
Germany 2.9 0.6
Italy 4.4 0.4
Spain 5.7 0.4
United Kingdom 3.7 0.8
Average 3.8 0.6

Japan

In Japan, according to Nikkei, the sales figure as of October 2007 is approximately 9:1 in favor of Blu-ray Disc. [49]

Players

United States

For November and December 2006, the NPD Group tracked sales of 92,000[50] HD DVD add-on drives for the Xbox 360 in the United States. On January 8 2007, Sony reported that it had shipped a total of 1,000,000 PlayStation 3 consoles to North America.

In February 2007, the NPD Group (a consumer electronic marketing firm) reported that the total market share of all stand-alone HD players (i.e. excluding games consoles and computer drives) in the United States totaled 52% for HD DVD and 48% for Blu-ray.[51]

A non-scientific daily poll on GameFAQs, a video game website, found that many of their readers were not interested in high definition DVD players.[52]

On April 17 2007, the North American HD DVD Promotional Group said that over 100,000 stand-alone HD DVD players had been sold in North America.[53] The number of units sold increased to over 150,000 on June 11, 2007.[54] The number for stand-alone Blu-ray players is at 100,000 units.

On July 25 2007, Target Corporation announced they will carry Sony Blu-ray stand-alone players in stores as their exclusive high definition player during 2007 holiday season, and they will expand the selection of Blu-ray movies.[55] Target sells both Blu-ray and HD DVD movies in stores, and both Blu-ray and HD DVD players online. The LA Times reports that the deal to promote Sony Blu-ray Disc stand-alone players was the result of a bidding war, in which Sony and three studios reportedly paid a "jaw-dropping" sum for the end cap displays. [56]

On November 2 2007, Kmart affirmed it would support both the HD-DVD and Blu-ray platforms, with no plans to support either platform exclusively.[57]For the 2007 holiday season, the retailer offered Toshiba HD DVD players and the Sony PS3 but no standalone Blu-ray unit.[58]

During the first weekend in November 2007, several US stores dropped the price of Toshiba's HD-A2 HD DVD player to around $99. Over 100,000 players were sold during this promotion.[59]

Europe

In Europe, a study by Gfk revealed that HD DVD leads the stand-alone market (i.e. excluding games consoles and computer drives) with 70% with 83,000 players sold.[60]

Retail price of consumer-writable discs

Disc BD-R BD-R DL HD DVD-R HD DVD-R DL DVD (for comparison)
Capacity 25GB 50GB 15GB 30GB 4.7GB
Bulk-Bought Cost $10.99 [61] $23.61 [62] $9.99 [63] $18.68 [64] $0.47
Cost Per GB (full disc) $0.44 $0.43 $0.67 $0.62 about $0.12
Disc being compared 1 non-rewritable single-layer disc (Verbatim 25GB 2X BD-R) 1 non-rewritable dual-layer disc (Panasonic 50GB 2x BD-R) 1 non-rewritable single-layer disc (Verbatim 15GB 1X HD DVD-R) 1 non-rewritable dual-layer disc (Verbatim 30GB 1X HD DVD-R DL) generic pack of discs

References

  1. ^ "High Def Digest review of King Kong on HD DVD".
  2. ^ "High Def Digest review of The Last Samurai".
  3. ^ Blu-ray stats
  4. ^ Frequently updated list of historical release dates and disc capacities, HD DVD NEWS, High-Def Digest, 15 April 2007
  5. ^ "BD-J Authoring Presentation" (PDF).
  6. ^ "Durabis durability".
  7. ^ "Indies wait for HD - Page 1 - lists bulk prices for blank discs".
  8. ^ "Blu-ray vs HD DVD replication costs analyzed again - Lists 10,000-quantity prices for blank discs".
  9. ^ "Blu-ray replication vs HD DVD replication costs revealed - Lists 100,000-quantity prices for blank discs".
  10. ^ "AACS Costs". AVSForum.
  11. ^ a b Blockbuster backs Blu-ray CNN, June 18, 2007. (Web archive)
  12. ^ Europe Steps Up Probe of New DVD Formats Wall Street Journal, July 3, 2007.
  13. ^ "A Warner Bros. Green Light for Blu-ray?".
  14. ^ "Paramount and DreamWorks Animation Each Declare Exclusive Support for HD DVD".
  15. ^ a b Home Media Magazine: November 11, 2007
  16. ^ Japanese BD/HD DVD titles
  17. ^ Blu-ray.com - Troy: Director's Cut (Blu-ray)
  18. ^ Blu-ray.com - Polar Express Announced for Blu-ray
  19. ^ "hddvd.com - New line titles delayed for HD DVD due to lack of region coding".
  20. ^ "blu-ray.com - New line titles delayed for HD DVD due to lack of region coding".
  21. ^ "New Line Jumps Into High-Def with 'Hairspray' on Blu-ray; HD DVD to Follow in 2008".
  22. ^ Shilov, Anton (2007-01-04). "Warner's Total HD to End Blu-ray Vs. HD DVD War". X-bit labs. Retrieved 2007-01-04.
  23. ^ "Warner Remains Loyal To Dual HD Formats". TWICE. 2007-09-12. Retrieved 2007-11-10.
  24. ^ Rob Mead (2007-09-02). "HD DVD chairman disses PlayStation 3 effect". Retrieved 2007-11-11.
  25. ^ "European independents choosing HD DVD over Blu-ray". Retrieved 2007-11-11.
  26. ^ Swann, Phillip (2007-10-16). "Island Fever 4 to Burn On HD DVD". VPredictions.com. Retrieved 2007-11-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  27. ^ Gonsalves, Antone (2007-1-23). "Sony Denies Preventing Adult Content On Blu-Ray". informationweek.com. Retrieved 2007-11-09. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  28. ^ Blackbuster Online - HD
  29. ^ Netflix will support high-def DVD at launch
  30. ^ "Blu-ray and HD DVD statistics from Netflix".
  31. ^ a b "Sony Computer Entertainment America Announces New 40GB Playstation 3 Configuration" (HTML). Sony. PR Newswire. 2007-10-18. Retrieved 2007-10-29. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  32. ^ BDA Renews "Five Free Blu-ray Discs" Offer
  33. ^ Tony Smith. "Toshiba to bring 'budget' 1080p HD DVD player to Europe". Retrieved 2007=11-08. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  34. ^ a b The Register
  35. ^ http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=913508
  36. ^ HP Adding HD-DVD/Blu-ray Hybrid Drives to PCs
  37. ^ "Acer TravelMate 8215WLMi with Blu-ray drive".
  38. ^ "Asus Lamborghini VX2 featuring Blu-ray and/or HD DVD".
  39. ^ "Asus W2W with Blu-ray and/or HD DVD".
  40. ^ "Some of HP Business Laptop including BD drive".
  41. ^ HP confirm HP Pavilion HDX "The Dragon" laptop
  42. ^ DVD & HD FORMAT STATS, TheDigitalBits.com
  43. ^ Kate Bulkley (2007-05-28). "Blu-ray versus HD DVD". smh.com.au. Retrieved 2007-10-25.
  44. ^ Home Media Magazine: November 4, 2007
  45. ^ [1]
  46. ^ [2]
  47. ^ HD DVD uses stats to claim victory over Blu-ray: 2007
  48. ^ Amy-Mae Elliott (2007-11-12). "HD DVD Group release attach rate figures". Retrieved 2007-11-12.
  49. ^ CEATEC 2007 Japan Sales comparison
  50. ^ "Xbox 360 HD DVD sells 100k in US in two months".
  51. ^ High-def player sales even, says NPD Group
  52. ^ See GameFAQs daily opinion poll for March 27, 2007 ([3]) where 68.84% of those polled gave a "not really interested" reply.
  53. ^ 100,000 HD DVD CE players sold in the U.S.,TG Daily 2007-04-17.
  54. ^ Consumers Drive Record Sales of HD DVD Players to Capture 60% of HD Set-Top Market, North American HD DVD Promotional Group. Press Releases 2007-06-11.
  55. ^ Home Media Magazine: July 29–August 4, 2007
  56. ^ "A high-definition fight scene in slow motion". 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-10.
  57. ^ "Kmart Not Exclusively Supporting HD-DVD Format". PRNewswire-FirstCall. 2007-11-02. Retrieved 2007-11-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  58. ^ http://www.cnbc.com/id/21598441
  59. ^ "With Toshiba A2 Gone, Best Buy Sends Buyers A3". Retrieved 2007-11-08.
  60. ^ HD DVD uses stats to claim victory over Blu-ray: 2007
  61. ^ "Verbatim 25GB 2X BD-R(Blu-ray) Single Jewel Case Branded Disc - Retail". newegg.com. Retrieved 2007-09-17.
  62. ^ "Panasonic 50GB 2x DVD-R Single Jewel Case Branded - Retail". Retrieved 2007-09-25.
  63. ^ "Verbatim 15GB 1X HD DVD-R Single Jewel Case Branded Disc - Retail". newegg.com. Retrieved 2007-09-17.
  64. ^ "1PK HD DVD-R Dl 1X 30GB Branded Jewel Case". amazon.com. Retrieved 2007-09-17.
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