OPINION: A third party

By Paul Sweeting -- Video Business, 2/8/2008

Paul Sweeting is editor of Content Agenda

FEB. 8 | It’s too early yet to know the full impact of Warner Bros.’ embrace of Blu-ray Disc on the battle between Blu-ray and HD DVD, but the expectation that it would bring clarity to the high-def DVD business still looks like a long shot.

According to the latest data from NPD Group, Blu-ray purchase intent is rising among regular DVD buyers in the U.S., up to 8.1% compared with 6.3% at the end of last year. But it still lags behind HD DVD purchase intent, and overall interest in the two formats remains weak, with fewer than 10% of regular DVD buyers saying they expect to buy one or the other in the next six months.

Purchase intent for HD DVD has been flat since Thanksgiving, according to NPD, but the latest round of price cuts from Toshiba and Microsoft could yet stir some interest.

Read the full column at ContentAgenda.com.

« Back | Print