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[Cheebs]

At the CES this morning, Fox announced that BRD sales surpassed HD-DVD by 20% for the first time with an overall 3.5-to-1 ratio, and made projections for the next year.
The source is Fox though, so wtf.

Press Release

It's projected, of course they will project huge gains next year. :lol

 

[VictimOfGrief]

TRACKER:
Top 10 Average Sales

Total Top 100

Total Top 1000

Total Top 10000

RIGHT NOW (JAN 3)
Average Top 10

http://www.eproductwars.com/dvd/

When it comes to Amazon.com sales rankings, Blu-ray is getting incredibly close to HD-DVD now. There could be a takeover by Blu-ray in the next few days, possibly even tommorrow. Any one up for a prediction?

I can make graphs with lines too!

 

[HyperionX]

There effectively tied right now. It doesn't get any closer than this!

 

[HyperionX]

Going by http://www.hdgamedb.com/amazon/versus.aspx which updates faster than dvdwars, Blu-ray has lead for several hours as of now. The crossover moment may be this afternoon when dvdwars updates.

 

[TheJesusFactor]

This is due to the companies in the BDA buying up all the disc to make them look like they are winning. ..... J/K..... or am I?

 

[HyperionX]

Blu-ray has a much stronger lead today than yesterday going by http://www.hdgamedb.com/amazon/versus.aspx. So we likely won't get a situation where the updating moment catches Blu-ray still in the behind.

Barring any surprises, Blu-ray takeover should happen today.

 

[Mrbob]

If MS is true to their word, they should be offering a Blu Ray Player add on for Xbox 360. They don't care who wins, right?

I would be all over a Blu Ray player add on at $199.99.

 

[Petrarca]

Blu-ray has been outselling HD-DVD in Amazon the last week or so

http://www.hdgamedb.com/amazon/versus.aspx

Blu-ray has been outselling HD-DVD in DVDEmpire for the last 6 weeks or so

http://www.dvdempire.com/index.asp?userid=99365218164130&tab_id=60&site_id=69&site_media_id=0

and the gap is widening

 

[Argyle]

If MS is true to their word, they should be offering a Blu Ray Player add on for Xbox 360. They don't care who wins, right?

I would be all over a Blu Ray player add on at $199.99.

[FUD]If HD-DVD is using the system at near 100% utilization according to MS when playing HD-DVD @30mbps, are they really going to be able to decode AVC @ 40mbps for Blu-Ray?[/FUD]

 

[Striek]

Barring any surprises, Blu-ray takeover should happen today.

According to that sites graph, Blu-ray was leading all day and suddenly it takes a nose dive and HD-DVD jumps up alot. Hah. I don't know when the other site updates but it might be thwarted again.

 

[HyperionX]

According to that sites graph, Blu-ray was leading all day and suddenly it takes a nose dive and HD-DVD jumps up alot. Hah. I don't know when the other site updates but it might be thwarted again.

It's because all the HD-DVD fanboys immediately jump to buy HD-DVDs to keep the lead![/sarcasm]

HD-DVD is one stubborn bastard though. Tomorrow should bring another takeover chance.

 

[Days like these...]

I love my HD DVD add on and if HD DVD ultimately loses the format war it was only a $200 investment no big deal really. The lack of any sort of major announcement from Universal @ CES was at pretty disconcerting IMO. Sony needs to hurry up and drop the price on the PS 3 so I can have a Blu Ray player as it seems the tide is starting to turn. I have nothing against blu-ray or PS3 its just that some in blu ray camp really irk me with their "HD DVD just die already!" whining.

 

[mckmas8808]

I like these updated websites. Information is right at our hands.

 

[Suikoguy]

The lack of any sort of major announcement from Universal @ CES was at pretty disconcerting IMO.

Yeah, that was pretty significant.
Certainly did A TON to fuel the rumors of them going to blu-ray in addition to HD-DVD

 

[ManaByte]

Yeah, that was pretty significant.
Certainly did A TON to fuel the rumors of them going to blu-ray in addition to HD-DVD

There is enough bad blood between Universal and Sony to ensure that they will NEVER go to Blu-Ray.

http://www.eff.org/legal/cases/sony_v_universal_decision.html

In 2006, Universal sold more HD-DVDs than all of the BRD exclusive studios combined. That and their bad blood with Sony will keep them away from BRD even with their no-show at CES.

 

[Suikoguy]

There is enough bad blood between Universal and Sony to ensure that they will NEVER go to Blu-Ray.

http://www.eff.org/legal/cases/sony_v_universal_decision.html

In 2006, Universal sold more HD-DVDs than all of the BRD exclusive studios combined. That and their bad blood with Sony will keep them away from BRD even with their no-show at CES.

Then why announce nothing at CES?
And why not deny the rumor?

 

[ManaByte]

Then why announce nothing at CES?
And why not deny the rumor?

The Blu-Ray camp used CES to announce software, while the focus of the HD-DVD camp was hardware (and lower priced hardware at that):

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/#mytwocents

Okay... now for some final thoughts on CES 2007. I have to say, both the HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc camps surprised me at the show. Both made some interesting and even impressive announcements. What struck me most, however, is just how different the big announcements for each format were. Nearly all of the HD-DVD announcements (aside from the cool Bandai Visual news) were related to hardware, specifically word that more affordable HD-DVD players from Chinese manufacturers is on the way. Conversely, on the Blu-ray Disc side, nearly all of the announcements were about software, specifically that major catalog and new release titles were coming to the format in the next year, including many from the Blu-ray exclusive studios. I was very surprised that Warner and Paramount revealed few new titles at the show, and that Universal announced nothing at all that we didn't already know was in the works. I was also surprised to find myself impressed at Warner's Total Hi Def announcement, which brings a new studio, New Line, to both formats.

 

[mckmas8808]

The Blu-Ray camp used CES to announce software, while the focus of the HD-DVD camp was hardware (and lower priced hardware at that):

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/#mytwocents

And software is whats going to sell the format.

 

[ManaByte]

And software is whats going to sell the format.

Most of Universal's big catalog titles, with the exception of Spielberg (who won't jump on either HD format for a long time), are already sitting on store shelves as the format has been out longer than Blu-Ray.

 

[Mrbob]

Most of Universal's big catalog titles, with the exception of Spielberg (who won't jump on either HD format for a long time), are already sitting on store shelves as the format has been out longer than Blu-Ray.

This is exactly why Universal has sold more HD DVDs.

And in 2007...they won't.

 

[Kleegamefan]

[FUD]If HD-DVD is using the system at near 100% utilization according to MS when playing HD-DVD @30mbps, are they really going to be able to decode AVC @ 40mbps for Blu-Ray?[/FUD]

Oh snap!!!

 

[Kleegamefan]

The Blu-Ray camp used CES to announce software, while the focus of the HD-DVD camp was hardware (and lower priced hardware at that):

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/#mytwocents

Didn't stop HD-DVD software announements at CES 2005 and 2006....not to mention HD-DVD software was announced at CES 2007 from Paramount and Warner anyway...


Lionsgate, Sony, MGM, FOX, Paramount, Disney, Warner....they ALL announced dates for upcoming HD-DVD and/or Blu-ray releases at CES 2007.....

 

[Bad_Boy]

For the time being, it looks like blu-ray may be on top.
http://www.eproductwars.com/dvd/

 

[painey]

 

[Cheebs]

For the time being, it looks like blu-ray may be on top.
http://www.eproductwars.com/dvd/

Uh.... that site says:

Salesrank of top 10 products:
Current leader:
HD-DVD

# in top 100:
Current leader:
TIE

# in top 1000:
Current leader:
TIE

# in the top 10000:
Current leader:
HD-DVD

 

[Suikoguy]

Uh.... that site says:

Salesrank of top 10 products:
Current leader:
HD-DVD

# in top 100:
Current leader:
TIE

# in top 1000:
Current leader:
TIE

# in the top 10000:
Current leader:
HD-DVD

It's updated every 15 mins now

 

[Bad_Boy]

Uh.... that site says:

Salesrank of top 10 products:
Current leader:
HD-DVD

# in top 100:
Current leader:
TIE

# in top 1000:
Current leader:
TIE

# in the top 10000:
Current leader:
HD-DVD

I said for the time being.

 

[TheJesusFactor]

It looks like HD-DVD has a slight lead over Blu-ray. I think the google search is more interesting, it seems like a lot of people are doing searches on HD-DVD over the holiday shopping season.

 

[Bad_Boy]

It looks like HD-DVD has a slight lead over Blu-ray. I think the google search is more interesting, it seems like a lot of people are doing searches on HD-DVD over the holiday shopping season.

I think the most telling thing is that you said slight lead. Months ago hd-dvd was pretty much dominating. Really shows what kinda effect the ps3 can have on the "war".

I mean just look where blu-ray was 6 months ago.

 

[Maxwell House]

What happens when porn HD-DVDs come out? That will be interesting to watch.

It would be funny if a porn HD-DVD ended up being the top selling HD-DVD title during one of the weeks.

 

[Bad_Boy]

What happens when porn HD-DVDs come out? That will be interesting to watch.

It would be funny if a porn HD-DVD ended up being the top selling HD-DVD title during one of the weeks.

IIRC porn HD-DVD's are already out. So are ones on Blu-ray, atleast in japan anyways.

more coming as well..

Washington, D.C. (January 12, 2007) -- Vivid Entertainment will release its first adult film on Blu-ray and HD-DVD in late March or early April, TVPredictions.com has learned.

http://www.tvpredictions.com/debbie011207.htm

but honestly, I dont see porn having as big as effect on the victor this round as much as it was with dvd.

 

[Maxwell House]

Well porn was a $4.5 billion industry last year. I think it will have more of an effect on this war than many people think.

Adult DVD Industry Supports HD-DVD
The crew at AVS Forums has great coverage of all things CES this year, including this story from Tuesday that says the porn industry is backing HD-DVD instead of Blu-ray. Don’t feel bad, I laughed at first too…until I read the part about the industry sold over $4 billion in adult DVDs last year. Wow.

Who cares? Well, a lot of technology developers should. Some $4.28 billion worth of adult videos were sold or rented in 2005, according to Adult Video News. About 1 billion adult videos were rented in 2005. And statistics show that there is affluence among porn aficionados. Some 35% of them have incomes over $75,000. That's enough to buy a high-def DVD player or two.

http://www.hardocp.com/news.html?news=MjM0OTEsLCxobmV3cywsLDE=

 

[ManaByte]

Fry's has some good HD-DVD deals this weekend, such as Enter the Dragon for $14.

So I was in there deciding on what HD-DVD to get (got Constantine since I never got the 2-disc DVD) and this Blu-Ray fanboy working there tried to talk me into selling my HD-DVD player for a PS3. When I told him I already had a PS3 he shut up as obviously the viral marketing materials he had at home didn't tell him how to handle that answer. :lol

 

[davepoobond]

Well porn was a $4.5 billion industry last year. I think it will have more of an effect on this war than many people think.



http://www.hardocp.com/news.html?news=MjM0OTEsLCxobmV3cywsLDE=

they also said "adult dvd industry" is supporting HD-DVD...with no real list of companies. the whole "industry" could just be one company for all we know.

 

[Maxwell House]

they also said "adult dvd industry" is supporting HD-DVD...with no real list of companies. the whole "industry" could just be one company for all we know.

It is more than one company though:

CES 2007: HD DVD versus Blu-ray - The porn industry says HD DVD
By Aaron McKenna
Published Thursday 11th January 2007 12:39 GMT


Las Vegas (NV) - Knowing their audience quite well, the adult entertainment industry holds their annual get together in Las Vegas to coincide with the CES. There is also a very pertinent crossover between the adult and tech industries - porn has a tendency to drive, and be driven, by technology. Which means HD DVD when it comes to high-def.

Quite famously in the war between Betamax and VHS the latter won especially because the adult industry preferred it. If you've been around long enough, you probably remember that the very early home video rental stores were primarily responsible for driving Betamax out of the market. And those stores carried almost exclusively pornographic content.

Although the market environments from then do not really compare to today's home video market, parallels are drawn between the Betamax-VHS battle to the ongoing and escalating fight between Blu-ray and HD DVD. One of the key questions at this year's CES actually is "Which high-def format will win the current format war - Blu-ray or HD DVD?" Surprisingly, it seems that there is no such question in the minds of the adult industry luminaries.

Putting myself through the arduous trek through the floor of the adult expo I did a quick straw poll on, the virtues of HD DVD versus Blu-ray, and the answer from a dozen companies, big and small, including Pink Visual and Bangbros editor-in-chief, is going into a single direction: HD DVD is the preferred format. Period.

One of the big problems they have with Blu-ray is its expense, followed by its market share. "Blu-ray has superior quality, yes," said a spokesperson for porn studio Bangbros, "but HD DVD is easier to produce, cheaper to produce and there are more HD DVD players in homes than there are Blu-ray players, for example in the Xbox 360."

Pink Visual heavily complained about the fact that Blu-ray discs cannot be replicated and a range of other studios, who did not want to be mentioned by name indicated that the cost of going with Blu-ray cancels the technology as a possible HD solution for this industry. "Only bigger studios can afford Blu-ray, and even then it's not economical," we were told.

It would seem that either Blu-ray has to do some catching up very quickly. But we got the strange feeling that HD DVD has won the format war already, at least in the porn industry.

 

[Cold-Steel]

What a joke, they say HD-DVD is in more homes because of the Xbox 360?

Look at PlayStation 3 sales in comparison to Xbox 360 HD-DVD Drives:

HD-DVD Drive: 92k
PlayStation 3: 600k

600 > 92 = Winner.

 

[ManaByte]

What a joke, they say HD-DVD is in more homes because of the Xbox 360?

Look at PlayStation 3 sales in comparison to Xbox 360 HD-DVD Drives:

HD-DVD Drive: 92k
PlayStation 3: 600k

600 > 92 = Winner.

100% of the HD-DVD drives sold are being used for movies.

 

[Maxwell House]

Well I also read an article recently about one of the big porn companies (I believe it was Dark Angel or something), in which they spefically stated that the fact that most of the BR players out there are PS3s is a reason they didn't want to go with BD for their titles. They didn't like the idea of releasing their adult titles on a format heavily bought by kids (PS3 being seen as a game machine).

Edit: Found the article:

CES - HD DVD gets boost from adult film industry

Dan Nystedt

Early support from the adult film industry may be helping HD DVD to take an early lead over Blu-ray Disc in the battle to become the next-generation DVD format.

Wicked Pictures, one of the leading names in adult films, released the first HD DVD adult video at a trade show this week in Las Vegas. Digital Playground Inc. plans to release its first HD DVD adult film on Jan. 18, and several others say they'll follow suit later in the year.

It may not seem like a big deal. But, like it or not, the adult industry has long been a first mover in using new technologies, and urban legend says the industry played a huge role in making VHS the winner in the video cassette fight with Betamax years ago.

" If Blu-ray isn't adopted by the adult industry, thenHD DVD will win out," said Jake Richter, an analyst at Jon Peddie Research.

There are several reasons the adult industry is turning to HD DVD instead of Blu-ray Disc, including primarily the lower production costs and better technology support, adult companies say.

"It's a lot less expensive to use HD DVD," said Jackie Ramos, vice president of DVD production at Wicked Pictures, at the Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas, which runs parallel with the International Consumer Electronics Show.

Wicked faced a huge hurdle because neither the HD DVD nor Blu-ray Disc camps seemed willing to help the adult industry mass-produce their films on high-definition discs, Ramos said. But some members of the HD DVD camp -- whom Ramos declined to name -- finally lent a hand.

"Suddenly we got help, and boom, we were able to move forward and do it," he said.

Blu-ray never offered such help. Wicked had no access to the "stampers" it needed to reproduce its films in bulk, Ramos said. Still, Wicked has not ruled out Blu-ray Disc and hopes to work with the format some time in the future.

Another concern raised about Blu-ray was its installed user base. Part of the reason ClubJenna Inc. plans to release its first high-definition title on HD DVD is due to concerns that the rival format isn't aimed at its target audience, according to Jay Grdina, the company's president. The PlayStation 3 appears to be a central part of the plan to increase the number of Blu-ray Disc players in use, but game consoles target a younger audience than ClubJenna would like, he said.

ClubJenna plans to release its first HD DVD title in March, and aims to put out a total of 10 this year.

Richter says the HD DVD name will ultimately help it win the format war because it's an easier connection for consumers. "If you buy an 'HD TV,' the natural choice is to buy an 'HD DVD' player to go with it," he said. "Are there any 'Blu-ray TVs'? No."

He said there is truth to the legend that the adult industry helped decide the battle between Betamax and VHS, and that the comparison appears to fit the current situation. As in the current fight, it was harder for adult film makers to get technical help from Betamax.

But Wicked's Ramos demurred on the VHS/Betamax question. "I don't think the adult industry decided that. It was one factor, but not thefactor," he said.

He had his own prediction on who will ultimately decide the winner between HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc.

"It will probably be Wal-Mart," he said.

http://www.infoworld.nl/idgns/bericht.phtml?id=002570DE00740E1800257261002D0264

 

[Triumph]

I want dvd sales figures in there, too. I need a good laugh!

 

[Cheebs]

I want dvd sales figures in there, too. I need a good laugh!

That would be unfair. :lol

Day one sale for big name dvd releases sell around 3 million on the first day of release.
I assume Blu-Ray/HD-DVD sales are probably 1-2k for day one sales for big releases.

 

[Maxwell House]

Yeah, does anyone know what percentage of the market HD-DVD and Blu-Ray are even capturing? Is it 1% of what DVD has? 1/10 of a %? 1/100 of a %?

It seems that is is pretty miniscule currently. Correct me if I am wrong.

 

[Bad_Boy]

100% of the HD-DVD drives sold are being used for movies.

Even if 10% of PS3 owners were buying blu-ray movies, thats a pretty big number. Hell, even if it were 1%, in a year that number would still be pretty large I would assume.

 

[Cheebs]

Yeah, does anyone know what percentage of the market HD-DVD and Blu-Ray are even capturing? Is it 1% of what DVD has? 1/10 of a %? 1/100 of a %?

It seems that is is pretty miniscule currently. Correct me if I am wrong.

It likely does not even have 1/4th of a percent right now.

DVD penetration is mind blowingly huge. Even PS2 sales are a joke compared to standalone DVD player sales.

 

[ManaByte]

It likely does not even have 1/4th of a percent right now.

DVD penetration is mind blowingly huge. Even PS2 sales are a joke compared to standalone DVD player sales.

Because you can get a good progressive scan DVD player (brand name, like Sony) for $50 now. Upconverting brand name players can be found for $60-$100.

 

[Cheebs]

Because you can get a good progressive scan DVD player (brand name, like Sony) for $50 now. Upconverting brand name players can be found for $60-$100.

I highly doubt 95% of the DVD owners in the market even know what progressive means.

 

[davepoobond]

I highly doubt 95% of the DVD owners in the market even know what progressive means.

before i actually learned about it, i thought progressive scan meant it loaded the movie before it actually played through the tv to avoid any possible slow down. never would have thought it had to do with tv resolution.


its pretty retarded now that i look back on it...but that's what i thought ::shrug::

 

[The Elite]

My friend has had that "Pirates" porno for weeks on HD-DVD. So they are definitely out there.

 

[Raistlin]

Based on the current tie-in ratios ... more than 10% of PS3 owners are buying BD titles.

 

[Cheebs]

Based on the current tie-in ratios ... more than 10% of PS3 owners are buying BD titles.

And yet that is less than what the HD-DVD drive sold.

 

[HyperionX]

They're basically swapping leads now.