In case you didn't believe the assertions that I made yesterday on Marketnews' Gadget Talk about HD downloads rendering the Blu-ray vs. HD-DVD struggle moot, here's some more on the subject:
Forbes: Last Gasp Of The Physical Formats
Forbes: Last Gasp Of The Physical Formats
The format war between Sony's Blu-Ray and Toshiba's HD DVD has been a self-defeating mess, confusing consumers and slowing acceptance of DVDs boasting high-definition picture quality.But the next-generation discs will still play a key role in restarting growth in the sluggish U.S. home-video market, research firm SNL Kagan says in a new report.
At the same time, the firm's projections suggest that sales growth in physical formats for home video will peter out by 2015 amid growing consumer interest in on-demand services.
Like I said yesterday, it's not an apocalyptic scenario for hardcopy discs, nor are they obsolete before they've even begun. It's just that they are, if anything, a bridge format until HD Video On Demand kicks into high gear.
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1 comment:
While I would be loathe to disparage your erudite prognostications I would like to point out that nearly 30 years ago (or more - it's all getting a bit fuzzy for me) predictions were made about the immanent demise of one of the oldest physical formats - the codex or "book".
The record book sales of our day notwithstanding, and the example of the resurgence - albeit in a limited way - of vinyl lps, one might want to use caution in predicting the demise of any physical format. I suspect that tangibility will be a powerful force in the marketplace for some time yet.
But what do I know? I've only got 1200+ vinyl lps, 350+ audio cassettes, 250+ CDs, 235+ DVDs and over 800 books.
For me at least - and I don't think I'm alone here - getting what appears to be "nothing" for $omething is an unsatisfying experience.
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