UPDATE – If you’re wondering what this means for Universal and Paramount movies, which were releasing on HD-DVD, they’re obviously moving over to Blu-ray. Says Universal: “While Universal values the close partnership we have shared with Toshiba, it is time to turn our focus to releasing new and catalog titles on Blu-ray.”
You’ve seen the signs and heard the rumors – now the truth is here. HD-DVD is dead. The DVD Clinic is reporting that Toshiba has officially pulled the plug on the ill-fated HD-DVD format leaving Blu-ray as the one, true high-def disc. Sez Toshiba in a press release: “Toshiba Corporation today announced that it has undertaken a thorough review of its overall strategy for HD-DVD and has decided it will no longer develop, manufacture and market HD-DVD players and recorders.” The move was widely expected after many major retailers began to abandon the format and Toshiba began to lose money on its price reduced HD-DVD players. Toshiba blamed the decision on “recent major changes” in the consumer marketplace but reiterated that they felt HD-DVD was superior going so far as to say they felt “disappointed…for the consumer.” Well consider us not so disappointed. We got what we wanted – one HD format. In the end it didn’t really matter which it was so long as it was one of them. Toshiba expects to fully cease shipments of existing players in March. Despite the move, they vowed to “full product support and after-sales service” to consumers with HD-DVD product.
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