Blu-Ray takes a lead in HD battle (Engelska)

Neither side is close to conceding, but the death match over which format will dominate the next generation of movie disks is swinging in favor of Blu-ray, the technology backed by Sony and most of the studios that produce the flicks themselves. Blu-ray was outselling Toshiba-backed rival HD DVD by 2 to 1?though sales for both are still slight?before recent word that Blockbuster, the movie retailer, would not bother stocking HD DVDs. Since the first high definition players began appearing last year, the battle for hearts and wallets has been on a level. Last week, however, video rental group Blockbuster tipped the scales in Sony?s favour.

By mid-July, the number of US stores renting Blu-ray films will be expanded to 1,700, from 250. HD DVD, meanwhile, will remain available in just 250 stores and from Blockbuster?s much smaller online rental business. The picture is the same in the UK - 50 stores stock HD DVD, 490 have Blu-ray. Sales of pure high definition players in either format are negligible so far. Consumer electronics researcher GfK says that in the UK, 1,038 Blu-ray players have been sold since September last year, compared to 2,625 HD DVD machines. PCs with high definition drives have likewise contributed little to the overall total. Blu-ray has been built into a small number of PCs, including Dell?s, and HD DVD will from this summer be available in all Toshiba?s PCs. The computer-maker has already shipped 1m laptops with HD DVD drives. It looks that the winneris almost clear, but the future may be so unpredictable that we had better wait for final resume.

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