Posted by Derek Janssen on 11/16/07 00:51

Lloyd Parsons wrote:
> In article
> <054ea034-7277-4b9e-98b2-e8387ab4a510@f3g2000hsg.googlegroups.com>,
> ninphan <sjburke73@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>>As long as both remain supported, niche is as good as it gets.
>>
>>Throwing support behind the format most likely to succeed is my MO, as
>>that's the only way one will be successful and all content will stand
>>a chance of being released.
>>
>>One format CAN become mainstream. It is very unlikely to be HD DVD as
>>North America is the only place it's still holding on. The number of
>>different CE's making standalone players is about to double within the
>>next 6-8 months as well.
>
> That is your read, and I respect that.
>
> Mine is that I see no way that BD can win in the short term, say within
> a year. The pricing is way too high to become the next big thing, imo.
> There has to be at least one BD player that is at or near the impulse
> buy price. Today that just isn't there, and not even close to it.

Basically, the reaction to "I don't see anything happening" is
"Oh, big man..."--
Seeing as most of the electronics companies and dual studios like Warner
are weighing everything on 4Q sales and the CES '08. Say what you like,
it's THEIR ritual, and it's what they're going with.

As noted, the brief "Look, cheap players!" gambit didn't pan out for HD
hearts-and-minds acceptance *quite* as hoped earlier this month (they wanted
dopey anonymous consumers, and they GOT dopey anonymous consumers, who don't
know how the product's supposed to work)--And if there's "no mainstream
acceptance"
for Blu, there's even less for HD as we speak...Better to reign in
niche-hell than
junk in the mainstream.
Most companies today are openly ready to go with the "leader", but don't
want to
stand up and have the spotlight glaring on them before the end of the
year Ritual,
when it's "acceptable".
If that's not today, it's certainly on the calendar, and "shutting up
the whiners"
has become more a matter of counting the minutes than simply holding out
"false hopes".
(And believe me, we're counting with every POST.) 9_9
We know what WE'RE waiting for, what are you?

Lloyd wrote in the next post:
> Yeah, right, I'll believe it when I see it...

Okay: Black Friday's in November, and CES'08's in January this year,
IIRC. That way you don't have to wait too long. Would be nicer if it
WAS today, the better to slap war-whiners with, but Time Is What Keeps
Everything From Happening At Once.
The real consumer push this year is for HDTV, but guess which two
products will be getting the press coverage.

Derek Janssen (like every modern war, it'll be covered on CNN.)
ejanss1@verizon.net

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