The reason it needs to be decided soon is because according to surveys, most consumers are waiting to see which formats wins before stepping into the HD disc arena and with DVD sales dropping off, movie studios want/need to get people buying into HD. This is why a single format needs to be settled upon, to get consumers to commit. The longer this stand-off continues, the longer it will take consumers to buy into the HD disc market wholly.
This is why titles sales are most important right now, to show strong numbers and coax other consumers into the market. Strong sales = more confidence by those waiting. Who has the strong sales of titles and total HD playable devices (irregardless of "dedicated player" spin, BOGOS, and any other bloody excuses)? Answer that and you might have the one which comes out on top.
That doesn't answer the whole question, though, or the most pertinent part: why "this year?" Let's just assume Nate meant 2008 and not THIS year. And what will both "loose?" "Lose," even?
This standoff is not the only thing stopping people from wholly buying into HDM. Maybe it's because they haven't wholly bought into HDTV yet?
This is why hardware sales are most important right now. HD display hardware. Sell more of that, and the market for HDM grows.
Who has the ability to ride out the transition at it's natural pace without the need of declaring victory at every turn for fear of bleeding money from every orifice and potentially going belly up in the meantime? Answer that and you might have the one which comes out on top.
“While it's not exactly punching it out with the heavyweights in multi-room audio, the Mint Studio does certainly hold its own with many similarly-priced iPod docks out there.”
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If someone doesn't "win" this year, then both formats will loose.
Why, exactly?
The reason it needs to be decided soon is because according to surveys, most consumers are waiting to see which formats wins before stepping into the HD disc arena and with DVD sales dropping off, movie studios want/need to get people buying into HD. This is why a single format needs to be settled upon, to get consumers to commit. The longer this stand-off continues, the longer it will take consumers to buy into the HD disc market wholly.
This is why titles sales are most important right now, to show strong numbers and coax other consumers into the market. Strong sales = more confidence by those waiting. Who has the strong sales of titles and total HD playable devices (irregardless of "dedicated player" spin, BOGOS, and any other bloody excuses)? Answer that and you might have the one which comes out on top.
@JimC
That doesn't answer the whole question, though, or the most pertinent part: why "this year?" Let's just assume Nate meant 2008 and not THIS year. And what will both "loose?" "Lose," even?
This standoff is not the only thing stopping people from wholly buying into HDM. Maybe it's because they haven't wholly bought into HDTV yet?
This is why hardware sales are most important right now. HD display hardware. Sell more of that, and the market for HDM grows.
Who has the ability to ride out the transition at it's natural pace without the need of declaring victory at every turn for fear of bleeding money from every orifice and potentially going belly up in the meantime? Answer that and you might have the one which comes out on top.