It looks like HD-DVD vs Blue Ray battle is pretty much over. A crack has been released that can decrypt HD-DVD movies. As long as Blue-Ray stays secure for a few more months HD-DVD will go the way of the Dreamcast. Once a format is “insecure” studios will see fit to put all their eggs in the other basket, and HD-DVD should die like beta-max. The only thing that could fix this problem is finding a flaw in Blue-Ray. I wonder how much money Sony and Microsoft have invested in a strategy to break the security of the opposing format. If they haven’t, they are fools, being the secure format is a sure fire way to win the latest format battle. Apparently the crack isn’t complete, it lacks the code to extract the keys from memory, so I guess we will have to wait until January 2nd to find out the rest of the story, will HD-DVD movies be posted to the internet, and whether a Play Station 3 is a good investment…
So, is it a full crack or will it require a simple fix for Toshiba et al.? I think what will spell the death of both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray is dual-mode players. To me, the HD format wars won’t even amount to much more than a skirmish as people realize upgrading isn’t worth it at this point. Hell, a lot of people have to still buy HD televisions.
By the time adoption wars really start they will be over because of the dual-mode players.
This isn’t like Beta or VHS because there wasn’t an alternative at the time. Right now, DVDs just overtook VCRs. Think about that!
I still think that HD-DVD has a huge advantage just by merit of having ‘HD’ in the name… If Sony wanted to win, they should have invented Blu Ray TVs a while back… at least the playing course would be level then.
On the other hand I never did figure out what VHS stood for… but it won out…
It is a little known fact, but VHS actually stands for: “Valhalla High Society.” The inventor was a big fan of Thor and was always pissed off that he was treated as just another blue-collar, low-class individual by the Valhalla elite.
It was his little statement to Marvel.
I thought it was “Van Halen Sucks”.
or “Vehicular Homicide via Sidewalk”.
or maybe “Very Heavy Slingblade”
mmm-hmmm. freanch-fried-pertaters.