CrunchGear

Petitions? Do people still do that? Anyway, I, like probably many others, could care less about format-wars and have gone completely download only consumable content. No players to buy, no disks to scratch, no storage space wasted. Backup to a monster hdd and done. Enjoy the lines and ’sold out’, I’m watching my progress bar…er, progress.

drdrew is right and in fact the business leaders know this. There is one reason why Microsoft backed HD-DVD and that reason was to create a format war. They know that they were not ready to push media free content but that it is the future, and you know they are working on it. As long as there is a format war between BluRay and HD-DVD then when Microsoft and others are ready to push full downloadable content, with settop boxes capable of playing any movie ever made, there will be no clear cut winner to compete against and instead they can say “End the format war, move away from hardware formats completely.” Mark my words, in five years noone will be buying DVDs HD-DVDs BluRays or any other kind of discs.

Indeed to y’all. Discs shmiscs! That’s old school.

Indeed to y’all. Discs shmiscs! That’s old school.

Speak for yourself. I still watch VHS exclusively. Say what you will about the so-called “quality” of DVD and Blu-ray/HD-DVD, they really can’t touch the warmth and intimacy of a nice VHS tape. Its really the format these movies were designed for.

Then consider me old school. I still prefer to hold a disc in my hands that I have purchased. And I enjoy being able to watch it whenever I feel like it, not having to worry about any sort of DRM scheme telling what I can and cannot do. And how can you top a disc that has 9 hours of behind the scenes extras to cover a 90 minute movie?! I’m not saying digital downloading isn’t the future. (It’s pretty much the present for music) I just think the movie industry will be much slower to transition. But if format wars continue, the transition will only be quicker. As for the theory of M$ backing HD-DVD to start a format war, let’s just say I wouldn’t put it past them to start chaos somewhere else to take the attention off of their own massive shortcomings.

I still have a huge collection of laser discs. Forget DVD’s - I like that you need two hands to handle them.

Nothing beats having to get up and switch discs for the second half of a movie.
Give you that old school feel.

Furthermore, in the right hands - laser discs can kill.

I want DVD to win, because region coding is teh suck.

I’m still deciding whether to pick up a Zoetrope or a Praxinoscope this holiday season. Any one have an opinion which will win the format wars?