Toshiba claims "no decision" on HD DVD strategy as desertions continue
Toshiba made a formal announcement today with regard to the state of HD DVD. Unfortunately, it wasn't the white-flag surrender we had hoped would bring a swift end to the format war. In a statement made by a Toshiba spokesman, the firm said, "Toshiba has not made any announcement or decision. We are currently assessing our business strategies, but nothing has been decided at the moment." This came as its stock soared under investor speculation that Toshiba was ready to pre-empt future losses and bring the battle with Blu-ray to a conclusive end. Nevertheless, a multi-format disc pressing plant for indie films by the name of Blue Ray Technologies (BRT) announced the closure of its HD DVD stamping lines. According to BRT's founder Erick Hansen, there's no need to wait for the formal announcement, "HD-DVD is dead, all that is left is the burial." Ouch. Read -- Toshiba statement
Read -- BRT press release
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
CUBSWILLWIN @ Feb 18th 2008 8:20AM
I for one mourn in your loss Toshiba. I thought you would be smarter.
Jon @ Feb 18th 2008 8:39AM
I agree. Toshiba, listen to your investors and stock holders. It isn't just bloggers, geeks and fanboys who are urging you to just cut your losses.
Flashpoint @ Feb 18th 2008 9:15AM
I'm waiting to see George W Bush land on an aircraft carrier to announce the end of all major combat operations in this format war.
BLU RAY DISK VICTORIOUS !
guerilla779 @ Feb 18th 2008 9:51AM
dude that would be HD-DVD victorious..........iraq is still more or less a gone case for now. Thw onlt thing holding it together is the BRAVE TROOPS not bush.
CUBSWILLWIN @ Feb 18th 2008 10:21AM
@guerilla779
Off topic anyone?
guerilla779 @ Feb 18th 2008 10:56AM
i know SORRY GUYS...........anyways HD-DVD is dead.
macona @ Feb 18th 2008 12:14PM
I am most sad that this girl will be out of a job:
http://www.akihabaranews.com/en/news-14911-CEATEC+07+%E2%80%93+Babes.html
J @ Feb 18th 2008 12:34PM
except for the poor suckers who bought into HD-DVD, the war was kind of a win for consumers, if sony had owned this from the start there is now way we would be looking at $250 players in 2008.
Shane Lloyd @ Feb 18th 2008 8:20AM
Good christ, pull the plug Toshiba! It's just embarrassing now.
BobbyW @ Feb 18th 2008 11:40AM
This is why regular Joe's can't win in the stock market. Who would have thought admitting failure was enough to move a stock up?
Gremlin @ Feb 18th 2008 8:21AM
Yawn.
pquistgard @ Feb 18th 2008 8:30AM
One side of me is yawning, but the other side is impatient to see this war cleaned up at last. I really am sick of it.
Sergio @ Feb 18th 2008 8:35AM
How come no one has mentioned the porn industry's backing of HD DVD (rim shot)
CUBSWILLWIN @ Feb 18th 2008 8:45AM
you my friend are a strange man
Tom Oliveri @ Feb 18th 2008 8:50AM
because they switched to blu-ray unfortunatley..
Seminole @ Feb 18th 2008 8:51AM
Because anyone who actually buys their porn instead of downloading it is a fool.
Revels @ Feb 18th 2008 9:59AM
What kind of 'rim shot' ?
Sergio @ Feb 18th 2008 10:58AM
Obviously my attempts at comic relief failed. ::Backs away slowly::
JHomer51 @ Feb 18th 2008 8:36AM
Good lord Toshiba give it up already!
Daniel D @ Feb 18th 2008 8:42AM
GO HD DVD GO!
Tom Oliveri @ Feb 18th 2008 8:50AM
yay! hd-dvd represent!
Spyvie @ Feb 18th 2008 8:43AM
I'm as sick and bored with this “format war” as anyone, and I'd really like to see some sort of resolution for the good of everyone.
BUT...
There is still no chance I'll buy anything with a Blue Ray logo on it, not anytime soon anyway. Maybe... and that a big maybe... I'll buy a player when its under $99.
netgem21 @ Feb 18th 2008 8:45AM
I still don't understand why people actually support Blu-Ray. While it is superior in storage, HD DVD is superior still as it is completely region free and extremely affordable! Let alone the fact that it is backed by the Official DVD Forum and the some of the largest companies in the world including Microsoft. I really don't know what you people see in Blu-Ray. However, all discs are dead thanks to the new Apple TV. Downloads are the way forward.
Tom Oliveri @ Feb 18th 2008 8:51AM
woooo!!
stick it to the blu-ray man!
hd-dvd 4evah!
Jon @ Feb 18th 2008 8:52AM
Blu-ray Disc Association is as legal as DVD Forum. Just made up of different sets of backers many of whom are some of the largest technology companies in the world like Sony, Dell, HP, Hitachi, LG, Panasonic, Philips (with Sony, the co-creator of CD), Sharp, Samsung, Sun, TDK etc.
Like I mentioned before, downloads are the future. But not yet. It needs a connection that can reliably stream 20GB HD films before it takes off.
Shane Lloyd @ Feb 18th 2008 8:58AM
You know that Apple, maker of the Apple TV, backs the Blue Ray format?
guerilla779 @ Feb 18th 2008 9:52AM
yo TOM OLIVER:
sony just told u to stick hd-dvd up ur ass as well as toshibas by becoming the next gen format.
CaptCaveman @ Feb 18th 2008 10:42AM
@netgem
If those huge companies backing HD-DVD made movies then perhaps there would be no reason to move over to the BD camp. However all that backing means nothing when there's no content to press on the discs.
Max @ Feb 18th 2008 12:28PM
The Blu-Ray Fanboys have spoken... I'm not a brand whore so I do realise that Apple is involved with Blu-Ray but that doesn't require me to have a Blu-Ray player. Consumer Choice is what it's called. And, I never said anything about legalities - I was just saying that the DVD forum support HD DVD. i.e. it is the natural successor for DVD.
MasterCKO @ Feb 18th 2008 1:56PM
You do realize that most of the founding members of the DVD Forum (Consortium at the time) are actually members of the BDA? So speaking in terms of legacy, BD is more accurately the "natural successor to DVD." But yeah, meaningless proclamations by a group that had to have its votes stuffed to "officially" support a format are the be-all-end-all.
Tom Oliveri @ Feb 18th 2008 8:49AM
yeah baby! go HD-DVD! still in the game!
Rick @ Feb 18th 2008 9:03AM
It must be the end of HD DVD from Toshiba. Circuit City is giving 7 free HD DVD movies with the purchase of any of the two lower priced Toshiba HD DVD players in their Sunday ad and they have 5 free HD DVD movies with any of the three Toshiba players on their web site.
wraith808 @ Feb 18th 2008 6:49PM
That's been the case for a while. Don't get out much?
mattwier @ Feb 18th 2008 9:04AM
Hahhahah that picture on the right is classic!
Backlin @ Feb 18th 2008 9:30AM
The saga continues...
Jerry @ Feb 18th 2008 9:36AM
You guys have to remember that average joe consumer doesn't care about 20GB downloads. That's not what wins the download battle. As long as it's semi-crisp and 16:9, it's "HD" to most people. That's how downloads will ultimately win the war. Just look at the success of cable On-Demand offerings. We're all the exception here. And most have forgotten that.
Jon @ Feb 18th 2008 9:43AM
What cable on-demand? In this part of the world it isn't a success. The world does not revolve around what works for you.
Tony Rayo @ Feb 18th 2008 10:08AM
My cable/On Demand service has continued and is continuing to offer more and more content in true HD, not just SD widescreen. In fact, in my area, Comcast (aka Comcrap, but I refuse to go Sat and FIOStv isn't close to coming to my town) cable boxes have been ALL HD boxes for the last couple years (at least for the DVRs, I've never owned a non-DVR box). I was surprised to see a new category added to the On Demand service in the last month; apparently Adult Swim is going HD since they had HD shows listed (and if you watch the newer episodes of ATHF or some other shows, you notice that they are wide-screen). I don't own a 360 yet (waiting until most problems are sorted out and I can get a unit that isn't a heater, has a good-sized HD and v1.3 HDMI support would be nice, but I'd settle for the current v1.2), but I read that their store has some Adult Swim shows online to rent/buy/whatever. Are any of those in HD? Just curious.
So while you still have to pay an extra 5$ or so for all the non-premium HD channels, I often find myself watching HBO HD instead of HBO so I can see a better + wide-screen picture, even on my SD tv (which will soon be going to goodwill as in 2 paychecks I will be bringing a 50"+ 1080p LCD TV into the hizzie, which I was surprised to find can be bought for under 2500$ now... I'll probably go Sony since they already own my soul).
- Tony R.
Jerry @ Feb 18th 2008 10:51AM
Wow, Jon...it's not all about what works for you either, buddy. In THIS part of the world, Comcast works very well for On-Demand services. I realize that's not the entire country...but then again, Blu-ray hasn't really taken hold of the Heartland either. You do know that HDM is a tiny, tiny fraction of the retail landscape, right?
Hax Or @ Feb 18th 2008 9:55AM
After this "display", I will protest this whole fiasco by boycotting HD-DVD and Blu-Ray.
I'll stick with DVD and wait for the *NEXT-GEN* format. When I'm relaxing at home watching a football game on HD, this #$*& doesn't matter.
When I'm relaxing at home watching a DVD movie, or playing video games, again, who cares?
I believe this was just a hype-show for Blu-Ray/HD-DVD. Consider that Blu-Ray specs are all goofy; that HD-DVD works fine, there should be no complaints.
Yep... just a hype show. I smell clowns.
Spyvie @ Feb 18th 2008 10:06AM
+1 buddy
ATSC FTW!
Denis @ Feb 18th 2008 12:00PM
If HD DVD does die, then I will just stick with standard DVD until it dies. I am not going to go out and spend all that money on a Blu-Ray player only to have new titles released with a new profile that is not compatible with my player. I cannot believe that a company would release an incomplete product to the market and screw their customers over like that.....
Rick @ Feb 18th 2008 10:09AM
Some of us are still using 6 and 8-year old Sony CRT TVs which have a better picture overall (blacks are black!) and don't give a rat's tush about HD, and my 6 year old Sony DVD player works just fine.
Michael Lacy @ Feb 18th 2008 10:13AM
So many posts about something that has not yet happened. Engadget you need a feed without the hype.
CUBSWILLWIN @ Feb 18th 2008 10:21AM
Snore.
CUBSWILLWIN @ Feb 18th 2008 10:23AM
that was supposed to go to Gremlin...
Fix your darn reply system engadget
Ihar `Philips` Filipau @ Feb 18th 2008 10:40AM
LOL. Now that HD DVD is shifted into deep /niche/, thought crossed my mind.
HD DVD due to its future lower market availability might make a perfect media for those companies seeking to build a proprietary disk formats.
Recall game disks from Nintendo which always tries hard to make them unreadable everywhere else.
bobob @ Feb 18th 2008 11:06AM
well Toshiba paired up with Microsoft so a RROD for the red camp was imminent.
Db @ Feb 18th 2008 11:07AM
Please Toshiba just give it up - I still wont buy in to any HD format until I am 100% sure there is only one format. Swallow the pride and just beat Sony at making a great BD player that we all can own and love.
Allen @ Feb 18th 2008 11:21AM
Ahhh, now this is what I call suspense!
Not. Toshiba, just give up already. You are making this even more painful for the consumers like me who lost on HD DVD, but its ok, just end the pain. Pull the plug, HD DVD would want this....