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Sony Finally Wins One: Blu-Ray Defeats HD-DVD |
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Written by Craig Hebert
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Sony Corp. is celebrating a huge victory today, as rival Toshiba concedes defeat.
Sony's next-generation Blu-ray video format will now become the clear successor to current DVD technology, as Toshiba's HD-DVD gets the axe and production of HD-DVD players comes to an abrupt halt.
The two companies have waged a war over the formats, pitting movie studios against each other as each company wooed execs to support their technology. While Toshiba's HD-DVD boasted a lower sticker price, Sony's Blu-ray player sold both standalone an in a bundle with their Playstation 3 game system, gambling that demand for the PS3 would increase the market penetration of the Blu-ray.
Toshiba pointed to longtime partner Warner Bros. studio's abandonment of the format as one major reason for the death of the HD-DVD, but it can be safely assumed that decisions by retailers Wal-mart and Best Buy Co. to support Blu-ray played a significant role in Sony's big win.
Many consumers recall Sony's last format battle, where their ill-fated Betamax entry was crushed by VHS cassette format. Today's victory soothes the sting of that loss, which has continued to weigh on the company until now. Sony must still find an answer to the major challenge left on the table: convincing consumers to accept yet another new format. The hi-def market has not ramped up as analysts initially expected, and Sony faces an uphill climb encouraging the average consumer that cripser imaging technology is worth the high price of an upgrade. 
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