410°

Toshiba's HD DVD Price Cuts May Not Stop Blu-Ray

Newsfactor writes:

"One strength for Toshiba and the HD DVD format is that it has the backing of Microsoft, which uses HD DVD players as a peripheral for its Xbox 360 game console. Microsoft sold 4.5 million Xbox units in 2007, nearly twice as many units as Sony's Playstation 3, which comes equipped with a Blu-ray player."

"But the increasingly difficult question for Toshiba is what consumers will play on those HD-DVD units if they buy them. Just two weeks ago, Warner Bros. Studios announced that it was dropping the HD-DVD format entirely and would produce movies in the Blu-ray format alone. The move leaves just three companies -- DreamWorks, Paramount and Universal -- still releasing Hollywood titles on HD DVD."

Read Full Story >>
newsfactor.com
DJ5944d ago (Edited 5944d ago )

For one thing, the commercials put out by the BDA have been far more intuitive and enticing, using testemonials from everyday people as well as reknowned film directors in order to help consumers understand the difference between Blu-ray and DVD (and even HD-DVD).

The HD-DVD commercials on the other hand have been stuck in the realm of analogies, i.e. DVD gives a TV experience, while HD-DVD gives a Big TV experience. Or even better, DVD is 5 breakdancers on stage while HD-DVD is 10 breakdancers on stage. As hip as their intentions may have been, Toshiba and Microsoft have failed to grasp that educating consumers is the number one issue.

The biggest obstacle for HD-DVD though has been its name: it has too many syllables, and the name is far too similar to the current standard, which is DVD. Even Microsoft had trouble advertising the 360 as an "HD Console" since no one in Japan could understand the english term "HD". It was pretty funny for a while. The term is only intuitive for English speakers, and not very often.

HarryEtTubMan5944d ago

lol HD DVD is doing a total nosedive now. It's like a clearance sale now.

TheTwelve5944d ago

Exactly. There is no doubt about it.

12

cmrbe5944d ago

May be but if you don't have the content you want then what's the point?. Price is the only thing they have which is useless if they don't have the content. I am intrested in what you folks think. Price and content are the two key factors. I would like to here opinions on which is more important.

OC_MurphysLaw5944d ago

I honestly think Price is the most relevant issue to the normal consumer. Think about it, most consumers are being able to get DVD players that can upscale normal DVD to near HD quality...and the HD-DVD players will do the same for them at the same cost...so they can buy the cheap players and still buy DVD...which is still the movie leader over any format right now.

I hate to say it but upscaled DVD is going to be a bug in the side of Blu-Ray for a long time. Its cheaper and the selection of DVD to Blu-Ray...well its not even fair to compare & then factor in the price of DVD vs a Blu-Ray. $25+ for a blu-ray when you can upscale the same DVD for $10 cheaper. Its going to be a tough battle for Blu Ray to win in the next 3+ yrs. And by then...Digital Download could be the norm...

cmrbe5944d ago

As i mentioned. Price is a major factor but i still believe content is more important than price. Especially now that 75% of movies will be exclusive on Blu-ray.In the end i believe people buy into these formats to watch movies and if the format don't have the movies then there is no point in my opinion. I think we are seeing that being reflected in the latest neilsen with the huge percentage of people favouring blu because of the warner switch.If blu players were still $800+ then price would have been more important. BTW thanks for the feedback bubble for your time.

Show all comments (32)
60°

The Nordic Game 2024 (NG24) Spring conference is to host more than 150 speakers

"While the 20 year anniversary edition of Nordic Game, NG24 Spring's homepage on 21-24 May in Malmö, Sweden, is getting closer, the organizers announced that more than 150 speakers are now lined up for the show." - Nordic Game.

170°

I Miss When Games Came In Full Package Rather Than Broken Mess Filled With Microtransactions

The gaming industry has drifted away from offering full-fledged games to putting unfinished titles that are jam-packed with microtransactions on the market.

Read Full Story >>
gamescordia.com
Christopher1d 10h ago

It's not the fault of the gaming industry. Gamers were told what was happening, were warned about where this would lead, did nothing, and now are acting like it's the fault of publishers that they kept buying these games and investing in MTX. If only those gamers at that time felt as strongly about these things as they do Helldivers 2.

Hugodastrevas1d 10h ago

I don't think MTX target the common gamer but instead predate on the so called "whales". It's gambling pure and simple.

Christopher1d 8h ago

Oh, so it's okay to buy MTX-laden games as long as you don't spend money on MTX, which has led to even more MTX-laden games with even more predatory practices where content that used to be unlocked is now behind paywalls?

C'mon now people. You gave the corporations and inch, and they kept taking and taking. Community members told people that investing in these things alone would only lead to more and more MTX and putting more and more behind paywalls. But it's only the fault of the corporations, not the people who kept supporting it with purchases as more and more was taken away?

Hugodastrevas1d 8h ago

@Christopher that's a straw man, I didn't say any of that I just added context.

-Foxtrot1d 5h ago

Well exactly

People stand up for something which seems small to them and they get called whiners or negative. Then years later the shit hits the fan and they all go “why is this happening?” Like they are innocent.

The issue aswell is younger gamers who grew up with all this thinking it’s normal and we all just look like old farts yelling at clouds when we’re trying to help us all, even them.

Crows9011h ago

Who woulda thought that listening to your elders could be a good idea...too late now

Hofstaderman11h ago

It all started with that damn horse armour. Back then I thought nobody was stupid to buy into that crap. How wrong I was....

CrimsonWing6910h ago(Edited 10h ago)

I like how people move the goal-post. First it’s, f*ck any game with MTX’s, f*ck GaaS games, f*ck this game with “optional” MTX’s (Dragon’s Dogma 2), Helldivers 2 is ok because it’s fun and even though it has Battle Passes or Season Passes and MTX’s it’s ok because… you don’t need to buy them? 🤷‍♂️

HellDivers 2 is the best selling game this year. Just think about that, games like FF7 Rebirth sold poorly, but a continuous game that lives off recurring revenue sells extraordinarily well. Then we’ll hear everyone b*tch about a GaaS future.

I really wonder what this industry would’ve been like if we never gave into this crap, and yes I’m saying “WE” since I’m guilty of it, but man it’s literally no closing the door once it’s been opened.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 10h ago
Hugodastrevas1d 10h ago

This is what amazed me the most when playing hours upon hours of stellar Blade version 1.00.00 no bugs, no crashes, no sudden drops in frames, no screen tear, no falling from the world, just a complete package on a game under 50GB.
I think Korea will play a major role in gaming in the long run , because they're releasing banger after banger.

isarai1d 9h ago

Still pretty common to find if you stay away from the AAA publishers, in the last 10yrs ive probably only bought like 3 games combined from EA/ACTIVISION/UBISOFT. Even now i still buy games that work right out the box perfectly fine. Just recently got like 6hrs into Alone in the Dark, and not a single sign of any of that bs, really enjoying my time with it.

shinoff21831d 2h ago

There's such a misconception about every game needing a patch,this and that when in reality it's not even close. You nailed it isarai

Crows9011h ago

It's really only AAA devs and publishers that seem to have these constant problems

z2g12h ago(Edited 12h ago)

And we as gamers have to accept our role in that. Constantly never being satisfied. Constantly demanding more while paying less. Constantly demanding better frame rates, better graphics, more modes and faster faster faster…. Then review bombing the product when a demand isn’t met. Meanwhile those same demands are making games more difficult, complex and more expensive to create than ever before, on shrinking timelines that burn out employees and make their lives miserable.

You wanna know why so many games get delayed? Cuz the original release dates weren’t realistic to begin with, but you can’t tell a gamer their game is further away than they want to hear. Some dev or game designer will be threatened physically. That builds even more pressure and rushing. We are officially squeezing water out of rocks and still complaining about that how hard you have to squeeze the rock be just waiting for rain. Most of the time we take it out on the developing studio, when it’s the publisher making the calls.

All you need to do is read the comments on most websites and social media to see how toxic, entitled and petty the gaming community at large is, and realize how that transforms into impossible expectations on the parts of game makers.

Crows9011h ago

Nope. Some gamers are to blame. Never demanded anything you mentioned.

A fully finished and functioning product is a standard. It's not demanded. If someone sells you a tv that only works 60% of the time are you going to recommend it OR write a review calling out the obvious problem...it's not a demand...it's a standard.

A standard triple A publishers can't seem to hit consistently.

thorstein9h ago

You've never heard of planned obsolescence.

HankHill7h ago

I take it you like microtransactions? 🤣

Kinza5501212h ago(Edited 12h ago)

This is one battle that gamers have never won, hahaha. They were parading recently for their "win" against Sony. Where's the energy for this one, guys? LMAO!

Show all comments (21)
70°

Gamescom Latam 2024 has just announced its finalists for the latam BIG Festival event

"The most important games event of Latin America, gamescom latam, has unveiled the finalists for its flagship award ceremony, the gamescom latam BIG Festival, which celebrates the best in the global market of games." - Gamescom.