What now for Xbox360 HD DVD?

[NEONKNIGHT]

Now that Toshiba has finally accepted defeat on the HD DVD format http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7252172.stm and as Microsofts partner, when do you expect a Blu-ray add-on to the xbox range?

Toshiba will continue to supply retailers with HD DVD machines until the end of March this year.

Microsoft offers an HD DVD drive with the Xbox 360 games console. The company told the BBC it did not believe the apparent end of the format would have an impact on Xbox sales.

"It is games that sell the consoles and the Xbox has the largest next-gen games library," a Microsoft spokesperson said.

[peanutkp]

What now for Xbox360 HD DVD? - Might make a good door stopper or whatever.

Hopefully they'll bring out a blu ray player for the 360, sounds like a too good an opportunity to pass up in terms of competition. If people are buying the ps3 just for the blu ray player then M$ are bound to do the right thing (if they are allowed to of course).

[Stephen]

Why would I want to use it as a door stopper?

Just because you eventually won't be able to buy new HD DVDs is no reson just to get rid of it. I plan on keeping hold of my player so I can keep watching the 16 HD DVDs I already own.

[peanutkp]

You could buy another one and use them as bookends in between watching X for the 20th time.

[gadge]

Originally Posted by DarthYoda

Why would I want to use it as a door stopper?

Just because you eventually won't be able to buy new HD DVDs is no reson just to get rid of it. I plan on keeping hold of my player so I can keep watching the 16 HD DVDs I already own.

Just look on ebay mate loads off films on there just picked up the reaping for £9.

---------- Post added at 18:01 ---------- Previous post was at 18:00 ----------

Originally Posted by peanutkp

What now for Xbox360 HD DVD? - Might make a good door stopper or whatever.

Hopefully they'll bring out a blu ray player for the 360, sounds like a too good an opportunity to pass up in terms of competition. If people are buying the ps3 just for the blu ray player then M$ are bound to do the right thing (if they are allowed to of course).

They would be allowed too if they wanted sony dont own the rights to blu ray.

[shawty]

Originally Posted by gadge

Just look on ebay mate loads off films on there just picked up the reaping for £9.

---------- Post added at 18:01 ---------- Previous post was at 18:00 ----------



They would be allowed too if they wanted sony dont own the rights to blu ray.

Thats poor guess work. We dont know how much Sony have a stake in Blu-ray, all we known is that they are a major company involved with it.

[Damien]

Sony would love the 360 to sell blu-ray, helps their profit really

[shawty]

Originally Posted by Damien

Sony would love the 360 to sell blu-ray, helps their profit really

So would not selling them it? Im not trying to say which would be the best for them or anything, its just its not as easy saying well Microsoft can have it if they want it, they might not even want it.

[Matt D]

MS & Toshiba are discontinuing the 360's HD DVD drive:

http://www.engadget.com/2008/02/23/x...le-theyre-hot/


To be expected, really.


As for a BD drive for the 360... MS have never ruled it out, & have said they'd do it if the demand is there.


If MS do ever decide to release a BD drive for the 360, I can't see Sony stopping them (even if they wanted to stop them), as surely all MS would have to do would be to pay for a licence from the BDA.

[shawty]

Originally Posted by Matt D

MS & Toshiba are discontinuing the 360's HD DVD drive:

http://www.engadget.com/2008/02/23/x...le-theyre-hot/


To be expected, really.


As for a BD drive for the 360... MS have never ruled it out, & have said they'd do it if the demand is there.


If MS do ever decide to release a BD drive for the 360, I can't see Sony stopping them (even if they wanted to stop them), as surely all MS would have to do would be to pay for a licence from the BDA.

Which Sony are apart of, and one of the major companys. All Sony would have to do, if they wanted is to flash some cash at the other companys. Whatever happens, its not as easy as saying Microsoft can have it if they want it.

[Stuart C]

Originally Posted by shawty

So would not selling them it? Im not trying to say which would be the best for them or anything, its just its not as easy saying well Microsoft can have it if they want it, they might not even want it.

Very true, but if memory serves, Sony and Microsoft have been in the same position before. When MS launched both the Xbox and Xbox 360, Sony would have been in a similar position to refuse licences to DVD technology. They didn't.

It's also entirely possible that from time to time, both the Xbox and Xbox 360 have included Sony parts in their manufacture.

We don't know if Microsoft will get the rights to include BD drives either in the XBox 360 or in external caddies, and we don't know if they'll even apply for them. One thing I have learned (over the last 15 years or so) is that Microsoft tend to "hedge their bets" and are capable of changing direction extremely quickly if their strategy fails*. In fact, Microsoft have been known to move considerably faster than much smaller companies. Something which is nearly impossible with large companies. The fact that Microsoft staff have said that BD is a possibility backs this up, even though Microsoft have not said it officially.


*One example of this: In 1993/94, Microsoft said that the Internet had no future. They announced that within a year or so, we would all be using MSN, and browsing using "MSN Explorer" (an AOL-like program). 4-6months later, they had the first version of Internet Explorer out, a major website launched (Microsoft.com) and had pretty much wound up development on MSN. I know they have an MSN now, but it bears little resemblence to their plans.

---------- Post added at 22:56 ---------- Previous post was at 22:47 ----------

As for whether Sony will licence the tech if asked to, I'd say they would. DVD suceeded partly because it was one standard. A user could buy a player from any manufacturer, and a disc from any manufacturer and barring certain early problems (The Matrix with it's then new branching option springs to mind), they could be fairly certain the disc and their player would work together.

DVD achieved excellent sales very quickly (it was bettering VHS within 2 years). HD-DVD and Blu Ray have had a slower takeup, and I personally think the main reason is that the two formats being available has caused confusion, and put Joe Soap off buying for now. I personally believe BD will really take off now, but I don't believe Sony (or the BDA) can afford to lose the several million potential customers who already own 360s, and may or may not want PS3s (or any other box) under their TVs.

[NEONKNIGHT]

According to this article:- http://blogs.pcworld.com/gameon/archives/006503.html they think we will be looking at a standalone blu-ray player for xbox360 by May or June of this year.

[Uncle Peter]

The public noises coming from Microsoft at the moment seem to suggest that they are steering towards the digital download direction which is a very risky path to take. It's unlikely that a mass take-up of digital distribution would succeed for the forseeable future unless ISPs can offer real high speed broadband without traffic management restrictions or caps. There's also the issue of people preferring to have a physical product for their money and whether or not it will be possible to change this mindset at all.

In reality I suspect that there are a few big wigs at Microsoft currently locked in a room flipping coins.

[NEONKNIGHT]

Not forgetting the awful DRM issues aswell.

[Matt D]

Xbox 360 HD DVD drive is having a price-cut to £39.99

http://aceybongos.spaces.live.com/bl...FD2!9612.entry


OK, dead format, but there's still loads of discs out for it, which should also be going cheap.