Hooray! Consumers have finally made a choice about the future of home entertainment on DVD, and the news is not going to be pretty for certain companies or videophiles who may have invested too much in the wrong format. Some, like Blockbuster and Target, have already made decisions consistent with these trends, and we’ll get a chance to see how all of this plays out as the fall shopping season approaches.
And what exactly was that news? It’s that sales of High-Definition DVDs finally eclipsed those of VHS. According to Video Business Research, the high-def DVD segment is showing really good growth, while the rest of the DVD sales and rental scene is slowing down (obviously VHS too). Some of that slowdown is blamed on the lack of big hits released on DVD in the first part of this year, but home video execs expect to do a lot better as the summer’s mega hits become available for Christmas.
With sales at only single digits (around less than 3%) the high-definition DVD segment (HD DVD and Blu-ray combined) represents a tiny piece of the home entertainment market, but it’s a growing section and one that the studios will pay more attention to in the months ahead. For example, we can look forward to simultaneous releases of movies on HD DVD as well as standard DVD instead of waiting an extra month or two. The movie execs know that high-definition DVD sales will eventually start affecting DVD sales, but they’re not expecting it to happen this year.
As for VHS… I’m sorry fellas, but those of you still attached to this ancient technology finally need to move on. Even instructional and free infomercial videos are moving to DVD. Heck, if AOL was still at it, they’d be sending out DVDs too. Brand-name DVD players can be had for under $50, and HD DVD players are already in the low $200 range and heading lower each month so there’s not much reason to prolong your agony.
August 20th, 2007 at 6:27 pm
HD DVD will not last all the pepole that I talked with, support Blu-ray and the fact that Paramount’s decision to have Transformers on HD DVD and not Blu-ray is a piss poor move and it’s not far to all those that are waiting for Transformers to come out on Blu-ray, to only have it on your so called HD DVD, you should realy think about your Consumers, all of them because not all of them are for your HD DVD and not all of them have made a choice, I’d like to see Transformers on Blu-ray all of them cause as you know there will be sequels, the real of it is Blu-ray is here to stay and thats that.
August 20th, 2007 at 6:32 pm
I think you meant to post this in the other thread about Paramount and DreamWorks going exclusively to HD DVD.
This posting was about how VHS has finally been “defeated” by HD DVD and Blu-ray combined.
August 20th, 2007 at 6:49 pm
This is not right, this is not about the consumers as you clam it is, to me it’s more of a battle between the corporations and the consumer lose’s out who ever win’s the consumer lose and that’s not far you really need to look this over and give it some more time, HD DVD is good but Blu-ray is better you can do alot more with Blu-ray than you can with HD DVD, but let the pepole pick and chose what they want not the corporations.
August 20th, 2007 at 9:46 pm
Another comment posted in the wrong thread…
This posting was about VHS, and was barely related to the format war, except as an inside joke about Blockbuster and Target “choosing” Blu-ray.
August 21st, 2007 at 6:21 pm
I think this was an excelent decission blu-ray is way over priced and sony is always trying to dominate the market, and once they do they charage outrageous prices for there products. Hddvd is by far a better format more affordable for the average consumer and i have yet to see a movie even in full hd with all its features take up more then 30gb’s and really who really watches all that extra crap? The majority of the time the extras arnt even done in hd and arnt worth watching. And maybe you should compare quality between the two formats before you say anything because from what i have seen hddvd looks far better and is much more affordable. Not to mention look at other cosumer reviews over half prefer hddvd to blu-ray. Why so much loyalty to a company who screws there consumers out of every penny they can get from them, and the only thing keeping the blu-ray format going is ps3 wich has allready failed in the us compared to Wii and Xbox360 who also offers hddvd drives for $175 along with five free hddvd’s now.
August 21st, 2007 at 6:23 pm
U rock PARAMOUNT and thanks.!!
August 21st, 2007 at 6:29 pm
By the way how hypocritical to say thats not fair on Paramount’s decission let the consumers choose, dosnt blu-ray have exclusively Fox, Starz/Anchor Bay,Lionsgate, and sony? Your just upset that hddvd is just that much closer to victory!!
August 21st, 2007 at 7:55 pm
3 cheers for hd-dvd piss on you sony , blu-ray is a joke and ps3 is a joke long live hd-dvd and xbox 360 hey sony remember beta max i see history repeating it self there’s no way microsoft would support hd-dvd if it wasn’t going to win good job mr. gates watch sony become 3rd party just like sega did haha…..and make games for the wii and xbox 360 who laughing now sony!!!!!
August 21st, 2007 at 7:55 pm
i’m far and honest
August 21st, 2007 at 8:21 pm
I’ll just give up on pointing out that this particular message thread is not what all of the posters so far think it’s about.
I’ll leave the comments open just for amusement.
August 30th, 2007 at 1:31 pm
HD-DVD WILL WIN this war. I have tried both systems on my TV and hd-dvd is both BETTER and CHEAPER.
August 31st, 2007 at 9:03 am
Well VHS is certainly done but what a run it had! Seems like 25 years before it was supplanted by DVD and another six or seven before fading to obscurity altogether. I doubt if DVD, HD DVD or Blu ray will enjoy a run like that. Video on disc is probably just going to hold the title temproarily as digital delivery is almost certainly going to be the preferred method in fairly short order.