heh, heh :)
--- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, "Martin Baxter"
<truthseeker...@...> wrote:
>
> Object lesson here, gentlefolk?
>
> Never jump into the big, showy limo with all of the bells and
whistles, because a *better* limo is just around the corner.
>
>
>
>
>
---------[ Received Mail Content ]----------
>
Subject : [scifinoir2]
Blu-ray's_Fuzzy_Future__-_get_ready_for_TV_downloads
>
Date : Mon, 5 Jan 2009 17:54:00 -0800
>
From : "Tracey de Morsella" <tdli...@...>
>
To : <scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com>, "CINQUE " <cinque3...@...>,
<ggs...@...>, "'Chris de Morsella'" <cdemorse...@...>, "'paul
demorsella'" <pc...@...>
>
>
January 5, 2009
>
>
> Blu-ray's Fuzzy Future
>
>
> By MATT RICHTEL
>
> ndex.html?inline=nyt-per> and BRAD STONE
>
> ex.html?inline=nyt-per>
>
> The biggest news at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last
January
> was not the birth of a new product but the death of one.
>
> A decision by Warner Brothers
>
> ment_inc/index.html?inline=nyt-org> to withdraw support for the HD DVD
> video disc format sent shock waves through the electronics industry and
> appeared to hand the future of home entertainment to Blu-ray, a rival
> format.
>
> The move set the stage for this year's Consumer Electronics Show, which
> starts Wednesday under the dark cloud of a recession and a sharp
downturn in
> consumer spending. Nearly two million square feet of convention hall
will be
> stocked with the latest mobile phones, portable music players, digital
> cameras and expensive flat-screen televisions.
>
> But many eyes will be on Blu-ray, which for the first time has the floor
> largely to itself as the heir apparent to the DVD. Over the last
decade, DVD
> players and discs have generated tens of billions of dollars for
Hollywood
> and the consumer electronics industry, so the pressure for a blockbuster
> sequel is high.
>
> This year will be crucial for the new format. Heavy holiday
discounting and
> the natural decline in electronics prices over time have pushed
prices for
> some Blu-ray players under $200, a drop of well more than half in
the last
> few years - and into the realm of affordability for many. At the
same time,
> Blu-ray's backers, including Sony
>
> x.html?inline=nyt-org> and the Walt Disney Company
>
> ndex.html?inline=nyt-org> , face a growing chorus of skeptics that
says the
> window for a high-definition disc format may be closing fast.
>
> One reason is that discs of all kinds may become obsolete as a new
wave of
> digital media services starts to flow into the living room. On
Monday, for
> example, the Korean television maker LG Electronics plans to
announce a new
> line of high-definition televisions that connect directly to the
Internet
> with no set-top box required. The televisions will be able to play
movies
> and television shows from online video-on-demand services, including
Netflix
>
> l?inline=nyt-org> .
>
> "The Blu-ray format is in jeopardy simply because the advent of
downloadable
> HD movies is so close," said Roger L. Kay, president of Endpoint
> Technologies Associates. a research and consulting company.
"Streaming video
> from the Internet and other means of direct digital delivery are
going to
> put optical formats out of business entirely over the next few years."
>
> Blu-ray's supporters have another view. They say the technology had a
> breakout year, crowned by the holiday success of "The Dark Knight,"
which
> sold 600,000 Blu-ray copies in one day. They also say that Blu-ray
players
> are selling faster than DVD players did at a comparable time in their
> emergence.
>
> "What we saw in 2008 was increasing adoption of Blu-ray along with
> decreasing hardware prices," said Reed Hastings, the chief executive of
> Netflix, which has persuaded more than half a million members to pay an
> extra dollar a month to rent Blu-ray discs. "The window of
opportunity for
> DVD and Blu-ray discs is longer than most people think. But it's not
going
> to last forever."
>
> The Consumer Electronics Association predicts that North American
consumers
> will spend $1.3 billion on Blu-ray players in 2009, outpacing the
projected
> $1.2 billion that will be spent on regular DVD players, although Blu-ray
> players are two to three times more expensive.
>
> Last year "was a launching pad, and 2009 is going to be our growth
year,"
> said Andy Parsons, the chairman of the Blu-ray Disc Association, a
> consortium of the format's backers. "We think this year we'll start
to see
> the format really take off into the mass market."
>
> But evidence exists that many people either do not know enough about
Blu-ray
> to buy or do not think the more expensive players and discs are
worth the
> extra investment.
>
> Going from the whirring VCRs of yore to a DVD player was a big leap in
> picture quality and convenience, while the jump from DVD to Blu-ray is
> subtler, at least for those who do not have the latest and largest
> high-definition televisions.
>
> Americans are still expected to buy more standard DVD players next
year than
> Blu-ray players, according to the Consumer Electronics Association.
People
> like Erik Swenson, a 37-year-old interior designer in San Francisco,
> represent one reason. "I've heard of Blu-ray, but I don't know much
about
> it," he said, shopping last week at a Best Buy
>
> x.html?inline=nyt-org> for a DVD player. "I'm a little behind with this
> tech stuff."
>
> Blu-ray's backers acknowledge that they have a tougher sell with Blu-ray
> than they did with DVD, particularly in light of the sour economy.
>
> "Satisfaction with DVD is very high, and sales figures for the DVD,
though
> the market is contracting, are very strong," said Chris Fawcett, vice
> president for the home audio and video division of Sony Electronics,
which
> has lowered growth projections for Blu-ray to account for the
downturn in
> consumer spending.
>
> But Mr. Fawcett also said that technology companies, electronics makers,
> movie studios and retailers have made a significant investment in
developing
> and promoting the format and are largely united in their
determination to
> see it succeed.
>
> That commitment has been on display recently. In November, a group of
> studios and electronics manufacturers began a $25 million barrage of
> television commercials, using the theme "Tru Blu" and promoting
Blu-ray as
> "the best way to watch movies at home. Ever."
>
> On Black Friday
>
> s_and_trade/black_friday/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier> , the crucial
> shopping day after Thanksgiving, electronics manufacturers
coordinated with
> retailers to heavily discount Blu-ray players. As a result, sales
surged.
>
> The continued push for Blu-ray will be a central theme at the Consumer
> Electronics Show, as manufacturers introduce new players and
continue to cut
> prices on older models. Analysts say they expect companies to
announce more
> support for a feature called BD Live (as in Blu-ray disc live),
which lets
> people download additional material from the Internet and interact with
> friends in text chats that appear on the television while playing a
movie.
>
> Consumers must buy adapters to bring most Blu-ray players online, though
> devices to be unveiled at the show may have Internet access built in.
>
> Integrating the Internet may be a matter of survival for Blu-ray,
because
> the Internet is shaping up to be its biggest rival. More services are
> popping up that let people download high-definition movies and shows
> directly to their televisions and home computers.
>
> There are 1,092 discs available in Blu-ray format, mostly new movies
like
> "The Dark Knight" and "Wall-E." Apple
>
> dex.html?inline=nyt-org> 's iTunes Store introduced high-definition
movies a
> year ago and already has 600 titles available to rent or download. A
similar
> Internet-connected box, Vudu, can access about 1,400 high-definition
films.
>
> "When Vudu popped up and had more high-definition movies than
Blu-ray, it
> was a warning sign," said Rob Enderle, president of the Enderle
Group, which
> advises technology companies like Microsoft
>
> /index.html?inline=nyt-org> and Toshiba. "I think Blu-ray can sustain
> itself as a transition technology, but, at the end of the day, I
don't think
> it will ever replace the DVD."
>
> Still, for some consumers, nothing beats the crisp, clear picture of a
> Blu-ray disc. "It's a huge difference," said Gary Tsang, 31, a computer
> network engineer in San Francisco who bought a $299 Blu-ray player in
> October and was among the shoppers who rushed out to buy "The Dark
Knight"
> last month.
>
> Mr. Tsang added that Blu-ray made a real difference only when viewed
on a
> good high-definition television, like the one his family bought in
February
> for $2,700. "We're not bleeding edge, but we're cutting edge."
>
>
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/05/technology/05bluray.html?_r=2&ref=business
>
>
>
>
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQdwk8Yntds
>
