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27 Sep 2005
The standards war over the next generation of DVDs has heated up after Intel and Microsoft issued a joint announcement that they will join the HD-DVD Promotion Group.
The announcement is a serious blow to the Blu-ray camp, which has been bolstered by recent partner wins. It also sets Intel and Microsoft on a collision course with the world's two biggest PC manufacturers, Dell and HP, both of which support the Blu-ray standard.
"There are challenges and opportunities in the transition to high-definition experiences throughout the home," said Blair Westlake, corporate vice president of the Media/Entertainment & Technology Convergence Group at Microsoft.
"After looking at the core advantages to the PC ecosystem, and how it would benefit the consumer, it is clear that HD-DVD offers the highest quality, and is the most affordable and highly flexible solution available."
Westlake outlined his reasons for the decision, citing the low cost of manufacture and the superior capacity of HD-DVD media, following the announcement this week that 30GB HD-DVD discs will be available soon.
"The announcement from these two leading IT companies confirms the design advantages of HD-DVD and its achievement of maximum compatibility between AV and PC products," said Hisashi Yamada, chief fellow of Toshiba's digital media network company and chairman of the technical coordination group at the DVD Forum.
"In fact, it is increasingly clear that HD-DVD offers the best way forward in the convergence of the AV and PC worlds.
"Hollywood studios are now working on preparation of HD-DVD content, and I look forward to the near future when people everywhere will be able to enjoy high definition images on TV and their PC."
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Do you agree?
No Big Deal.
Why is this announcement a major blow to the Blu-Ray Camp. Microsoft has always been a competitor and played second fiddle to Sony in the movie and game industry, so everyone already knew Microsoft would support HD-DVD. They would have no competitive edge if they supported Blu-Ray. I'm shocked there even had to be an announcment.
Posted by: Michael 27 Sep 2005
....
Personally i think that this is a bad choice on microsoft and intels part, blu ray seems far superior in storage space and seen as though these companys are all trying to find larger storage capacity discs it is the obvious choice
Posted by: Tom Cartwright 27 Sep 2005
Microsoft vs Sony
the only reason why microsoft has chosen to adopt a technically inferior format is that its rival Sony has chosen to adopt BluRay... had Sony been advocating HD, i'm sure microsoft would have had no qualms about choosing bluray.. microsoft is choosing hd because that's precisely what it has chosen for its xbox... it wants to do whatever it can to ensure that it's latest baby does not become a dud with a drive that isn't industrial standard
Posted by: kanak 27 Sep 2005