Posted by Derek Janssen on 01/11/08 01:03

Winfield wrote:
>
>>>
>>> Microsoft offer blu-ray option(s) on Xbox-360??
>
>> No, more like "Dear old loyal faithful MS lets Toshiba go hang when
>> the losses start piling up, and starts dreaming of all the safety-net
>> X-Box online-download money that they'll make by themselves on VC-1
>> coded movies anyway, even if HD-DVD disks themselves take the fall..."
>>
>> ...It's nice to have friends in the industry. -_-

> I see what you're saying but man, that is a cynical, harsh and
> unrealistic view of Microsoft's options re: Xbox & 360-customer base.
>
> Lots of folks here are constantly pointing out online download
> scenarios, which supposedly are the future.

Like the DVD settlement, Toshiba eventually WANTED to settle with Sony
back in the first '06 skirmishes, but *someone* told them to back out of
the negotiations and stay stubborn, and fight to the last man.

It's not cynical to say that MS wanted that VC-1 monopoly out of the
whole deal, and that that particular annexation-of-Poland was the one
single reason why the War went on a lot darn longer than it should have...
And although we'll probably get another entire thread of disk fans
explaining why downloaded movies AREN'T "the future" (as they sure don't
seem to be the present right now, and they sure as heck haven't been the
past), most disk fans could pretty well smell last-ditch "Uh, we meant
to do that!" steering changes when MS started becoming a little *too*
excited about online soft-media--There's no "future" in desperation.

Derek Janssen
ejanss1@verizon.net

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