HDBeat Podcast 025 - Interview with Andy Parsons
By Trent Wolbe 
posted Aug 8th 2006 11:00AM
posted Aug 8th 2006 11:00AM
This is the first HDBeat special podcast and we interview Andy Parsons, Pioneer's senior VP and self proclaimed Blu-ray cheerleader. Andy was nice enough to spend some time with us to explain why he thinks Blu-ray will prevail and to answer our questions, including explaining BD+, managed copy, and the lack of license restrictions for dual-format players. This is a one sided interview, so don't expect a HD DVD fanboy's perspective and the transcribed version is available on HDBeat.com for those who want to read along.Get the podcast
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Hosts: Ben Drawbaugh and Matt Burns
Guest: Andy Parsons
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Format: 46:30, 21 MB, MP3
Program:
Interview with Andy Parsons of the Blu-ray Disc Association and Pioneer's Senior VP
LISTEN (MP3)
I give it up to Andy he almost had me convinced to go run our and spend $1000 on a BD player. Great interview guys and Im very curious to hear how a HD-DVD rep would respond
Are you guys using a tape recorder to do the Podcast? I listen to all of your Podcast and they vary from content and sound qualty, but I couldn't bare to listen 45 minutes of mono or worse.
Please guys, invest in better mics or something.
Here's one thing that I think many people, including Ben, are not separating out in their minds:
Which format do you *want* to "win"?
Vs.
Which format you *think* will "win"?
I'm shocked that anyone can be so dogmatic, right now, about which format they want to win as we still know so little about each format. Just look at all the questions that are relatively basic about each formats.
Therefore, it would appear the only reason someone would so adamantly want one format to win over the other, is simply so they can beat their chest about picking the right one and "knowing all along." That's not a very good reason.
It's absurd to hear Ben's, as with many other's, stance from a few months ago claiming that Blue Ray's technology will be so much better and provide such a better quality, be whittled down recently to just a matter of which format has more content and therefore his undying support.
When deciding which format you *want* to come out on top, current studio alignment should have NOTHING(!!) to do with it. That's the scariest thing about the situation right now. The studios do put Blue Ray in a great position, but if that results a poorer experience (not saying definitively that it will, but so far this is the case) for the user, that's a clear LOSS for all of us as consumers.
Which ever format wins, when and if that happens, the studios and content on the other side will switch over. Studio backing is probably the biggest enemy to deciding a format war, hopefully we as consumers won't let ourselves (Ben) fall into that trap.
Good job, though, guys with getting out such great content about this topic, regardless of how tiring it can be.
Brian
Just a follow up on my lengthy post.
I just finished the last 3 minutes of the interview and Andy's answer is exactly what I was wanting to warn against.
It's absolutely the scariest argument (current studio backing) that can be made on behalf of any format. If the consumers don't get to decide which format is best for them, and that decision is instead made by movie studios, we are clearing jeapordizing the end user experience. That's a path we should all hope to avoid.
Brian
Also, that this dangerous argument is the stand out key to Blue Ray's success is a fairly loud admission of an inferior technology. I don't necessarily know if that will bear out to be true, but it sure points to that.
Did Ben tell him that although some HD DVD's are filling up close to the 30 GB, they contain Dolby Digital Plus and/or Dolby TrueHD, bonus features from 2-disc special edititions on DVD, and are the unrated/director's cut.
With better tools and better compression (using VC-1 instead of MPEG2 on bonus features), they are going to be able to add even more.
Is Andy Parsons aware that Blu-ray titles have generally been crippled, losing special features and/or next-gen audio?
Toobs,
The interview was recorded via a conference call, so phones were used instead of mics. It just wasn't possible to record all of us the way we do for a normal Podcast. Matt on the other hand was able to record his own voice with his mic which is why his audio is much clearer.
Ben
Brian,
I have never said that I thought Blu-ray would have better PQ than HD DVD. You can go back and listen to every podcast I have done for the past year to confirm this.
I didn't choose sides until I went to CES last year and saw the overwhelming support for Blu-ray. Once I saw Blu-ray at so many booths I started to supporting it because I "think" it will win. To your point I want it to win because I was lead to believe they would have 50GB discs and I believe this makes it better and worth more money. If 50GB discs never come than I don't see how Blu-ray can win.
Ben
Ben, so why are you so dogmatic about your support for Blue Ray if you only care about an elusive 20 GB that might never show up?
Like I said, we should be nervous of the fact that so many studios are already behind one of these formats. That makes this battle more about money and politics, than the best format winning. While that is the case with just about everything in this world, it's certainly not something we should be in support of.
Brian
Brian,
Because I love HD and I believe there can only be one format. The format war is not good for HD movies so the sooner it ends the better.
I understand why the studios back the format and I don't have a problem with DRM as long as I can watch my movies. If you want to make a change, then change the DMCA to make an exception for fair use. Choosing a format based on DRM is not the best way either.
I really haven't even gotten into the issue of DRM. Mostly, because I wouldn't be surprised if HDDVD has a few DRM tricks up their sleeves, especially with their ability to push out firmware updates.
DRM is definitely a scary thing and I surely hope this doesn't follow the footsteps of the music industry's dominance by iTunes, which presents a horrible solution for consumers that has, unfortunately, been all too easily accepted by us.
I'm just saying it's silly to throw support behind a format because there is currently a greater promise of content on that format, even if that format is inferior. Put your support behind the better format and demand, as consumers, that content switch over.
Brian
To be fair I think Ben believes that the format itself is better (or will be when they start putting out 50GB discs).
Brian: "we should be nervous of the fact that so many studios are already behind one of these formats. That makes this battle more about money and politics, than the best format winning"
I would be more nervous backing a system that isn't supported by lots of studios. Maybe the studios believe that Blu-Ray is the format that will give their consumers the best HD experience whilst also providing the best protection for their content. They may have other motives, but as a consumer a greater selection of titles is more likely to persuade me to buy into a format than marginal differences in PQ.
The format wars are very boring to me. I decided long ago that I won't buy a Hi-Def DVD player until there is clearly only one format. I don't care how it gets resolved -- whether one side gives up, or players are eventually released that are compatible with all disks. I like Hi-def, and I watch a lot of movies, however, and this is probably heresy here, but Hi-Def isn't *that* much better than a good regular DVD to be compelling for me. It's not like CD Audio, which was subjectively, maybe 5 times as good as vinyl records. Plus, there was only one, unified, format. In comparison, Hi-Def is only (totally subjectively), about 1.5 times better. Your mileage may vary. As far as the podcast goes, you could limit the format-wars coverage to an announcement at the end letting us know who won. Or, maybe, a sports-score style report once in a while, you know, "Blu-Ray is leading HD-DVD, 43 movies to 17 at the end of month 7". (totally made-up numbers)