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Warner Domino Effect?
January 10, 2008

A major German distributor is opting to switch from a dual format strategy to exclusively supporting Blu-ray, in light of Warner's decision to the do the same. According to this report from sister publication Variety, Constantin Film will start exclu-Blu production this March. In a statement, the company explains, “By taking this trendsetting decision, the market-leading U.S. film group has helped to bring about faster the urgently needed clarification of the situation and to end the ‘format war’ that has been going on for years now." Well, 'years' is a bit of an exaggeration - isn't it somewhere over a year and a half since HD DVD and BD launched? But the point is taken that the format war has taken its toll on consumers, retailers, and suppliers like Constantin, who likely found it expensive to come out with two high-def versions of its releases. This decision might have been made eventually, even without Warner's prodding. The Blu-ray Disc Association trumpeted the fact that BD dominates 85% of high-def hardware penetration during its CES press conference.

Posted by Susanne Ault on January 10, 2008 | Comments (0)