Wal-Mart dumps HD DVDs, backs Blu-ray
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc  has  decided to exclusively sell high-definition DVDs in the Blu-Ray  format, dealing what could be a crippling blow to the rival HD  DVD technology backed by Toshiba Corp .
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InfoWorld - Vendors supporting HD DVD are cutting prices to boost their products, which are vying with Blu-ray disc technology to replace current DVD movie discs.
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The biggest hardware backer of the HD DVD format responds to Warner Bros. recent decision to back Blu-ray exclusively.
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Wal-Mart closes its video downloading service less than a year after it started selling films online.
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Blockbuster Inc. will rent high-definition DVDs only in the Blu-ray format in 1,450 stores when it expands its high-def offerings next month, dealing a major blow to the rival HD DVD format.
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Quiet death Visitors to Wal-Mart's video download site are being greeted with the message "The Wal-Mart Video Downloads Service closed on 12/21/07" after the retail giant quietly canned the service because "Hewlett Packard discontinued the technology that powered it".â¦
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc.,  already the nation's top seller of DVDs, said Tuesday that it  has become the first major retailer to offer a digital download  service that will feature movies from all the major studios.
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Wal-Mart, the largest U.S. retailer, on Friday said it would phase out the sales of HD DVD offerings and exclusively offer high-definition Blu-ray hardware and DVDs by the middle of this year.The decision was based on U.S. customers&#39; preference for Blu-ray movies and hardware in purchases, Wal-Mart said in a statement.The retailer will phase out HD DVD offerings in Wal-Mart and Sam&#39;s Clubs retail stores, as well as online offerings, by June, the company said.Wal-Mart&#39;s rejection of HD DVD is a sign that Blu-ray is catching on with retailers. Best Buy earlier this week said it would recommend users to buy Blu-ray products, though it would continue offering HD DVD products. Movie rental chains Netflix and Blockbuster recently abandoned HD DVD in favor of Blu-ray DVD offerings.Six of eight major movie studios publish Blu-ray DVDs, including Walt Disney, Fox, Lionsgate, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Sony, and Warner Bros. Only two major movie studios, Paramount Home Entertainment and Universal Studios Home Entertainment, publish in the HD DVD format.The Blu-ray format has also seen a spate of victories in the gaming and consumer electronics industries with companies like Philips adopting the format over HD DVD.Blu-ray supporters include Sony, Panasonic, and Samsung, while Toshiba, Microsoft, and Intel are among the companies supporting HD DVD.
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is edging into selling video downloads by offering buyers of the "Superman Returns" DVD a chance to buy downloads of the same movie, beginning Wednesday.
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While clearly a blow, retailers are divided on whether the move actually amounts to a death knell to the format, which is battling Blu-ray.
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Toshiba Corp  said on Sunday  its HD DVD high-definition video format is not dead despite  being dealt a big setback by Warner Bros studio's decision to  exclusively back Sony Corp's  rival Blu-ray technology.
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Warner Brothers is dumping HD DVD and going Blu-ray exclusively. Does this spell the end of the format war?
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc quietly canceled its online video download service less than a year after the site went live, a company spokeswoman said on Thursday.
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The high-definition DVD format war has not been won, at least not in the minds of the retailers. Last week, Time Warner Inc's  Warner Bros studio said it would exclusively release high-definition DVDs in Blu-ray format instead of Toshiba Corp's  competing HD DVD technology.
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Warner Bros. Entertainment said yesterday that it will release high-definition movie discs only in the Blu-ray format, rejecting the rival HD DVD format and creating another complication for consumers.
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General Electric Co's   Universal Pictures, one of a few studios using the Toshiba  Corp-backed  HD DVD format, said on Tuesday it will  switch to the rival Blu-ray format now that Toshiba has  officially pulled the plug on HD DVD.
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc.   on Tuesday introduced a test version of its new video  download service, making it the first major retailer to offer  such a service with the backing of all of Hollywood's big  studios.