bit-tech.net | Universal no longer HD DVD exclusive

Speedo 11th January 2008, 11:59

No source quoted in that article, and nothing from Universal saying they're going to start supporting Blu-ray.. if, but, maybe.. something solid please.

D3s3rt_F0x 11th January 2008, 12:11

If true i'd say the more expensive, more DRM filled, more locked down and not yet fully realised format wins which is bad news for everyone

CardJoe 11th January 2008, 12:11

Well, our source is Variety, who has themselves sourced and confirmed the story with Universal according to their own text. If Variety is claiming they've confirmed the story then that seems solid enough to me, especially since Universal hasn't released a denial and the story has been massively reported.

Needless to say though, if Universal does issue a correction then we'll let you know. For now, it looks pretty solid though.

Tomm 11th January 2008, 12:20

Sounds like rumours. And not the 'Mac album.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/sources-say-universal-and-paramount-are-both-going-blu/

Quote:

Universal hasn't released a denial

Or maybe, they just did :D

http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/01/10/universal-current-plan-is-to-continue-to-support-the-hd-dvd-fo/

spazmochad 11th January 2008, 12:20

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Universal/Industry_Trends/Universal_Re-Affirms_HD_DVD_Support/1362

?:/

Tomm 11th January 2008, 12:23

I'm bored of it now anyway. I don't care if Blu-ray wins any more - I just want closure.

CardJoe 11th January 2008, 12:25

Hm. Oddly worded denial - all it says is that they'll continue to put out HD DVD titles, not that they will remain exclusive. To me, that suggests that they are reneging on the exclusivity and, just as the article says, preparing to support both. Either way, I'll update the article. Cheers guys!

Arkanrais 11th January 2008, 12:35

At least this war is going somewhere, unlike the war on terror. I wonder if the thought police can get me all the way in NZ...
either way, I've been hoping that blu-ray would win cause of its higher data capacity but in spite of sony's a$$holery and tendency for laying a big steaming one on its consumers.

mclean007 11th January 2008, 13:03

Huzzah! Heroes on Blu-Ray at last? If so, I'm going straight down the shops to buy a PS3.

Bionic-Blob 11th January 2008, 15:34

so, whens the blu-ray drive for 360 gonna be released <_<

>_>

Lazarus Dark 11th January 2008, 16:11

I really never chose a side and actually was about two paychecks from getting the LG Bluray/HDDVD combo drive. But after everything I'm hearing, I'm gunna save myself a hundred US bucks and get the Liteon Bluray rom drive instead. Even if the format war somehow continues, I'll just pick up the xbox hddvd rom drive later.

I'm just glad its (probably) over. The war was chasing many away, but if it's over, more people will dive into bluray, leading to lower prices on media very soon. 1080p/7.1surround I think will last me many years and I am one who would still prefer a hard copy, at least for my favorites, rather than all digital distrubution.

maha_x 11th January 2008, 20:17

It just sickens me that people with HD-DVD equipment get let down. These corporations should have worked harder and come up with one format. That would have been fair to everyone. Not to mention all the wasted resources.

And then there's the "mayby" HDCP requirment. My first gen LCD TV doesn't support HDCP, so even if I could get the HD movie out as HD, there's no quarantee that the next movie doesn't get downscaled. What confidence it creates for the tech...

I don't own either tech, I prolly won't for a while. All of this has totally put me off from adopting.

E.E.L. Ambiense 11th January 2008, 20:37

The operative word here is "current" in the statement released. That gives them an out in the future if the market turns to that point.

JrRRr 11th January 2008, 22:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by maha_x
It just sickens me that people with HD-DVD equipment get let down. These corporations should have worked harder and come up with one format. That would have been fair to everyone. Not to mention all the wasted resources.

And then there's the "mayby" HDCP requirment. My first gen LCD TV doesn't support HDCP, so even if I could get the HD movie out as HD, there's no quarantee that the next movie doesn't get downscaled. What confidence it creates for the tech...

I don't own either tech, I prolly won't for a while. All of this has totally put me off from adopting.

It's all about the money.. If you're always want the new stuff, it will be expencive and sometimes, like in this example, you will end up with a dscontinued lne earlier than normal.

BTW: I still buy DVD's and my first LCD-TV was bought last summer.. ..I'm getting there, just not right away..

To be honest, what's easier to say? Bluray or "eitch-dee-dee-vee-dee" :p

Anakha 12th January 2008, 06:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by JrRRr
To be honest, what's easier to say? Bluray or "eitch-dee-dee-vee-dee" :p

Ah, but remember, people are used to their DVDs. And now they've got a HD TV. So they're going to want their DVDs in HD. Like some kind of HD DVD...

And remember the typical Yank mentality: '"Blue Ray?", that's one of them fish that killed that English guy, the Crocodile Hunter, isn't it?'

C0nKer 12th January 2008, 13:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anakha
Ah, but remember, people are used to their DVDs. And now they've got a HD TV. So they're going to want their DVDs in HD. Like some kind of HD DVD...

And remember the typical Yank mentality: '"Blue Ray?", that's one of them fish that killed that English guy, the Crocodile Hunter, isn't it?'

Erm. Isn't Steve Irwin Australian?

Anyhoo. Truth be told, I do not like the name Bluray. Sounds as if someone is trying to make the format sound "cool". But I am utterly impressed with the quality though.

lamboman 12th January 2008, 15:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anakha
Ah, but remember, people are used to their DVDs. And now they've got a HD TV. So they're going to want their DVDs in HD. Like some kind of HD DVD...

And remember the typical Yank mentality: '"Blue Ray?", that's one of them fish that killed that English guy, the Crocodile Hunter, isn't it?'

I laughed hard, post of the year lol :)

That was a stingray, and it killed the Australian Steve Irwin.

Hazardous 12th January 2008, 17:43

Universal are definitely not dropping their support of HD DVD.

Quote:

Universal Studios has officially dispelled the rumors from Variety that it will drop HD DVD and switch to Blu-ray.

"Contrary to unsubstantiated rumors from unnamed sources, Universal's current plan is to continue to support the HD DVD format,"
said Ken Graffeo, executive vice president of HD strategic marketing for Universal Studios Home Entertainment and also co-president of the HD DVD Promotional Group.

Source: Beta News (dated 10th January 2008).

supermonkey 13th January 2008, 02:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anakha
And remember the typical Yank mentality: '"Blue Ray?", that's one of them fish that killed that English guy, the Crocodile Hunter, isn't it?'

Please tell me you aren't serious. Let me guess, you typed that after you got home from the hockey game. Or was it curling?

-monkey

HourBeforeDawn 13th January 2008, 20:50

okay so what studios are left on HD-DVD? that are exclusive not ones that supply both formats...

TimB 17th January 2008, 05:26

Yah, rootkits for all that will take over your computer! All hail Sony!

MilkMan5 17th January 2008, 09:50

The game/war is not over yet!

themax 17th January 2008, 13:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by TimB
Yah, rootkits for all that will take over your computer! All hail Sony!

Except Sony has never used rootkits on their Video media, that was something that occured in their Audio division, and something they've stopped doing since the whole thing blew over.

skpstr 17th January 2008, 14:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by MilkMan5
The game/war is not over yet!

This may still be true. I was reading an article the other day that stated that the new Blu-ray profile 2.0 that is being ratified could leave early adopters out in the cold with regard to new features, but most importantly could lead to incompatability on old equipment for new titles, which may even goes so far as to make some movies unplayable on some equipment.

http://www.hdtv-news.co.uk/2008/01/16/blu-ray-craps-on-customers/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7187179.stm

Apologies for the wording used in the link, these aren't the article I was reading, but they same the same sort of thing. The comments of the Blu-ray big cheese, Mr Simonis, if they are to be believed, scream Sony attitude.

E.E.L. Ambiense 17th January 2008, 14:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by skpstr
This may still be true. I was reading an article the other day that stated that the new Blu-ray profile 2.0 that is being ratified could leave early adopters out in the cold with regard to new features, but most importantly could lead to incompatability on old equipment for new titles, which may even goes so far as to make some movies unplayable on some equipment.

http://www.hdtv-news.co.uk/2008/01/16/blu-ray-craps-on-customers/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7187179.stm

Apologies for the wording used in the link, these aren't the article I was reading, but they same the same sort of thing. The comments of the Blu-ray big cheese, Mr Simonis, if they are to be believed, scream Sony attitude.

It's no different than when DVD was still "ironing out the kinks" in the early days of that format. For example, if some of you recall, many couldn't decode DTS audio tracks because of hardware limitations. This has nothing to do with Sony in particular regarding 'attitudes' or anything, merely growing pains with the format. New tech poses new problems, like anything. The main difference is, this time the virtually all the hardware available have ethernet capabilities so firmware upgrades are rather easy and relatively painless. Some things cannot be upgraded, unfortunately, namely physical hardware. This is why early adoption is always a risk. The users knew this by buying the hardware in the first place.

I can recall my first DVD player. A table-top unit. I paid $800 for it, and it couldn't even play dual-layer discs without issues.

skpstr 17th January 2008, 15:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by E.E.L. Ambiense
The users knew this by buying the hardware in the first place.

The thing is did they? I consider myself relatively tech-savvy and have followed the HDDVD/BluRay battle to a certain degree and I wasn't aware this was the case. I don't think this sort of blanket statement can fly to be honest, especially with the way HD is being pushed in adverts. In all the electrical retailers I've been in I haven't seen any notices stating anything about BluRay profiles and I can't see the staff in Currys or Comet mentioning to a potential buyer that even though Blu-Ray is now top dog the £400+ player they want to sell you now in 6 months is not going to be able to allow you access to all the stuff on any of the £30 BluRay disc, in fact there is a small chance it might not even play it at all.

E.E.L. Ambiense 17th January 2008, 16:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by skpstr
The thing is did they? I consider myself relatively tech-savvy and have followed the HDDVD/BluRay battle to a certain degree and I wasn't aware this was the case. I don't think this sort of blanket statement can fly to be honest, especially with the way HD is being pushed in adverts. In all the electrical retailers I've been in I haven't seen any notices stating anything about BluRay profiles and I can't see the staff in Currys or Comet mentioning to a potential buyer that even though Blu-Ray is now top dog the £400+ player they want to sell you now in 6 months is not going to be able to allow you access to all the stuff on any of the £30 BluRay disc, in fact there is a small chance it might not even play it at all.

I certainly knew this was the case, from being bitten the first time around with the early issues with DVD.

Oddly enough, here's a quote about this issue recently from Digital Bits:

Quote:

It's being reported by BetaNews and other sites that some current Blu-ray Disc players won't be able to play all the features on future Blu-ray Disc releases. This isn't really news, as it's been widely known for months now. It's true that many current stand-alone Blu-ray Disc players are not BD profile 1.1 or 2.0 compatible. All new players sold as of last November MUST be profile 1.1 ready. Stand-alone profile 2.0 players will be available in the next few months, beginning with Panasonic's BD-50. By the end of 2008, virtually all new Blu-ray players should be 2.0 compatible, and the issue will resolve itself. However, by far the largest base of Blu-ray Disc players currently in the hands of consumers is ALREADY future-proof... Sony's PlayStation 3. It's already been firmware updated to profile 1.1 compatibility, and it features a built-in Internet connection, making it ready for a future profile 2.0 firmware update as well (which Sony has confirmed is coming). As to the fact that some existing players aren't 1.1 and 2.0 ready, it's unfortunate. But it should be pointed out that both HD-DVD and Blu-ray were rushed to market because of the format war before they were ready. Anyone who was there at the beginning two years ago will recall that both formats have had plenty of technical issues to deal with. But let's put this into context. Anyone who was there are the beginning of DVD will recall similar issues. People who purchased the first DVD players weren't able to access the DTS audio on many DVDs a couple years later without buying a new player. Many early adopters also needed new players to take advantage of DVDs with RSDL layer switches and seamless branching. It's just part of the reality of being an early adopter that when you're among the first to buy any technology, new features may come along that require new hardware. The good news is that by the time more mainstream consumers buy in, most of these issues have been resolved. So if you've been sitting this format war out so far but are now interested in Blu-ray, the PlayStation 3 is your safest buy at the moment... or you can wait a little longer for reasonably priced profile 2.0 Blu-ray players which will be available in stores in the coming months.

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Universal no longer HD DVD exclusive

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