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Cost questions dog Blu-ray DVD's lead
CNet News.com ^ | November 28, 2005, 4:00 AM PST | John Borland

Posted on 11/28/2005 4:31:22 PM PST by Bush2000

Cost questions dog Blu-ray DVD's lead
By John Borland
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

Published: November 28, 2005, 4:00 AM PST

Because Sony's Blu-ray disc technology appears to be the front-runner in the nasty fight to determine how the DVDs of the future are produced, movie studios and disc manufacturers are beginning to come to terms with the financial realities of the new format--as well as some troubling uncertainties.


For more than a year now, a bitter public relations war has been waged between supporters of Blu-ray and a rival Toshiba-backed technology known as HD DVD. Both are high-capacity discs that will support the distribution of high-definition versions of movies, with much better picture quality than what's possible with today's technology.

Blu-ray appears to have the lead, with most major movie studios saying they'll release films in the format next year. That's led to new concerns about mass production of DVDs in the new format. Since it represents a major break with past DVD and CD techniques, some worry Blu-ray will be expensive to support--at least in the short term--and could jack up prices for consumers.

What's new:

Blu-ray appears to be edging out its next-generation DVD rival, HD DVD. But some manufacturers say it will be expensive to produce.

Bottom line:

The debate over next-generation formats remains mired in politics and spin, but the real cost of discs and players will help consumers make their own decisions at the cash register next year.

How much? No one can say for certain. But in at least one early test, according to a top manufacturing executive who asked to remain anonymous, a manufacturing line for HD DVD discs produced nearly twice as many usable discs as a similar line pumping out the Blu-ray format, over the same period of time. That translates into higher costs for Blu-ray producers. Moreover, component costs for Blu-ray can be nearly double HD DVD costs, because elements are still hard to find, the executive said.

That Blue-ray discs may start out pricey shouldn't be a shock. They face a classic curve for new technologies, which are initially expensive as manufacturers work with small numbers of orders and lean how to streamline the process. Sony also disputes those high-priced estimates.

"If there is a (cost) difference, that has yet to be determined," said Sony Pictures' Adrian Alperovich, the studio's executive vice president in charge of new business development. "There are (manufacturers) on both sides of the equation. If there is a difference in price either way, we think it will be minimal."

Alperovich argues that if there is a short-term price gap, the advantages of Blu-ray--mainly more capacity and flexibility for things like gaming--should outweigh that concern. But traditional engineering questions about Blu-ray have taken on a testier tone in this scrap.

Blu-ray's rival, the HD DVD format, relies on a reasonably well understood process. HD DVDs are constructed very similarly to existing DVDs, and the basic discs can be made with relatively minor modifications to existing DVD manufacturing lines.

Blu-ray discs, on the other hand, require completely different equipment. Most of the major disc replicators--the companies that make DVDs and CDs--now have a test line or two up and running, but hard data on production costs remains scant.

The format's backers at the Blu-ray Disc Association have repeatedly predicted that costs would come down quickly and be almost immediately competitive with those of HD DVD.

Yet one senior executive at a major disc replication facility said he has long been worried about Blu-ray costs.

"We feel that some of the (Blu-ray backers') statements are setting unrealistic cost and price expectations for the content owners they are courting," said the executive, who asked to remain anonymous owing to a close working relationship with Blu-ray companies. "They're right at the zero point in terms of operational knowledge."

Spin, or real concerns?

For the most part, things like the technical details of the manufacturing process, of video compression and of disc formats are irrelevant to consumers. But the prospect of a next-generation DVD format war, similar to the battle between VHS and Sony's Betamax in the mid-1970s, has chilled the industry. Analysts at Sanford Bernstein estimated that media companies could collectively lose as much as $16 billion over seven years if HD DVD and Blu-ray were launched without a clear favorite, because without a clear-cut winner, consumers would be leery of buying one or the other.


TOPICS: Computers/Internet
KEYWORDS: bluray; gewannabe
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To: supercat
I expect a lot of customers, ESPECIALLY those with high-definition sets, will remain perfectly happy with their current DVD players and see no reason to upgrade to Blu-Ray.

Agree. Laserdiscs, anyone?
21 posted on 11/28/2005 5:42:41 PM PST by Bush2000 (Linux -- You Get What You Pay For ... (tm)
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To: supercat
Unfortunately, the current plan is to prevent movies from being shown in high definition on most current HDTV sets, and forbid the creation of convertor boxes that would allow high-definition viewing on them.

My understanding of the current plan is that Congress will pass a law for a "broadcast flag" to be used on some HDTV broadcasts. It would not forbid the broadcasting of movies in HD, but it would selectively restrict the ability to record those movies.

22 posted on 11/28/2005 5:55:57 PM PST by HAL9000 (Get a Mac - The Ultimate FReeping Machine)
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To: Ramius

Looks like another Betamax vs. VHS is on the horizon..


23 posted on 12/26/2005 8:15:04 PM PST by RockinRight (It’s likely for a Conservative to be a Republican, but not always the other way around)
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