Home Media Magazine - February 24, 2008 - (Page S15) of Blu-ray All of these factors suggested the following to me back then: If both formats launched successfully, and delivered a similarly high quality experience, the winner would be decided by Hollywood and CE industry support. Advantage: Blu-ray. As it happened, both formats were plagued by buggy hardware and lackluster software at launch – exactly what you’d expect when such products are rushed to market before they’re ready because of a format war. Thankfully, both formats quickly sorted out their technical issues and started delivering a great high-definition movie experience for those few early adopters who were willing to risk giving them a try. For a time, in the months after its debut in early 2006, HD DVD enjoyed an almost unchallenged advantage in hardware and software sales. Its rival, Blu-ray Disc, arrived several months later and then only as a soft-launch with just a single player. It wasn’t until November 2006 that the full measure of the Blu-ray camp’s support finally came to bear, with the arrival of players from several additional manufacturers and the official launch of Sony’s PS3. Even with the delay, I had the sneaking suspicion that once the Blu-ray camp really got going HD DVD was going to be fighting a losing battle. Looking back, that’s exactly how it’s played out. Starting in December 2006, Blu-ray Disc software began outselling HD DVD software every single week in the United States, and that trend has continued through all of Continued on page 16 » February 2008 IT’S BLU 15
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