Consumer + HD DVD Death = Still Really Confused
March 20, 2008

Sometimes consumers are like people who fall on their face on the sidewalk. You know you shouldn't laugh, because hey, it wasn't their fault - there were loads of cracks in that cement. But then you're biting your lip trying to hold in the imminent giggle explosion. Well, that happened to me while reading over Circuity City's latest March edition of consumer e-zine City Life. In one section, a chain staffer attempts to answer questions Circuit City has received about what this whole HD DVD goes belly up thing really means. 
I think my favorite questions are "Does this mean the computer/portable DVD player/home theater system I bought recently is worthless?" and "I own a HD DVD player. Will I be able to upgrade it to play Blu-ray discs?"
So, the questions are silly. They would at least cause an early adopter to smile. 
But the questions also underscore a current problem for the Blu-ray camp. A lot of people are still in the dark when it comes to high-definition, and it may be a battle getting them to adopt BD. And because there was that little ol' format war going on for most of last year, it's not really consumers' fault if they are confused.
On a positive note, the Circuit City staffer does a great job answering the questions. Retail is trying to stop the confusion, which should please BD studios and manufacturers. For the 'If HD DVD dies, so does my DVD player?' question, the staffer explains that HD DVD's demise "has no bearing whatsoever on the standard DVDs that most of us have been using for the past decade." And for the BD upgrade possibility, he gives everyone a simple "unfortunately, no." response. He then reminds people they can get store credit if they return their HD DVD players within 90 days of purchase, for possible use towards a BD player.
 

Posted by Susanne Ault on March 20, 2008 | Comments (0)