Toshiba pulling the plug on HD DVD already? - Yup it's over.
Japan's NHK has followed up The Hollywood Reporter's earlier indications Toshiba was ready to dump its money-losing HD DVD business, with news that the company is prepared to cease manufacturing software and hardware, at a loss of hundreds of millions of dollars. This caps the worst week ever for red, when HD DVD was dumped by Netflix and Wal-mart, pushed to the background by Best Buy and put on -- an apparently incredibly short -- deathwatch right here. Toshiba is mum on the subject right now, but we hear there's plenty of cheap players and movies in a dumpster around back of the HQ. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in; via Reuters; warning, Japanese read link]
Update: Along with an English translation of the NHK's article (Thanks sfditty!) comes additional confirmation from Reuters sources, it's a wrap. Toshiba is shutting down its DVD manufacturing facilities in Aomori Prefecture, Japan, while official word is expected "soon".
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
JonDavis @ Feb 16th 2008 8:41AM
Wow, I honestly cannot believe it is ending this quickly...its gonna be a blu blu world!!!!!!!!!!!!!
KayRazy Ken Kutaragi @ Feb 16th 2008 11:22AM
And now comes the slow inevitable march towards Chumpvision (DVD) players. I do not think that it matters much though simply because ALL movie studios will want to continue to release HD movies and they know that Blu is the ONLY format out there. Not to mention every BaM retailer has NO Chumpvision TV's on sale.
I hope the rumblings of Transformers and others from Paramount are real, I would imagine that they are. I cannot for a moment believe that the retailers and Netflix did NOT inform Paramount and Universal that they were dumping the DEAD format. It just does not work like that. I am thinking this was planned during the WB conference about 2 weeks ago.
And I thought the Berlin Wall came down fast. WOW that was quick. 1 stinkin week and its finally over.
Bring on the BIG catalogue releases please.
Nfinity, and Truth Teller...it's been fun, and like others said post your Blu collection when you have one, and if your stubborn enough to NOT buy Blu...then whatever.
PS3 will DOMINATE 08 and beyond. Like Sony said, this is a marathon....NOT a sprint.
Larry @ Feb 16th 2008 12:00PM
Why would it scrap production?
Did JVC scrap S-VHS?
Did Sony scrap MiniDisc or UMD?
No.
ProfWho @ Feb 16th 2008 12:01PM
Is Larry living in denial?
Yes
Larry @ Feb 16th 2008 12:04PM
"PS3 will DOMINATE 08 and beyond"
Haahaa... Very funny... It's being outsold 2:1 by the 360, which has sold 4 times as many games.
How long till Sony halts PS3 production???
ProfWho @ Feb 16th 2008 12:07PM
Larry are you Nfinity?
Anyway, no actually the PS3 beat the 360 in US sales last month and the PS3 sells better in Japan and Europe (minus the UK).
Nfinity @ Feb 16th 2008 2:01PM
I told you that Blu-Ray will win. :)
Andy Anonymous @ Feb 16th 2008 2:37PM
"PS3 will DOMINATE 08 and beyond."
Actually the collapse of HD-DVD could conceivably make Blu-ray LESS of a factor for the PS3, if the pattern follows anything like what happened with DVD and the PS2. Lots of people bought the PS2 as a cheap(ish) DVD player during its first year, but once player prices started falling (which Blu-ray should be able to accomplish now), who used it as a movie player anymore?
No, the PS3 will live or die by its game library, and it definitely needs to catch up to the other two in that arena. It's getting there, but right now for exclusives it's got Uncharted, Ratchet, and, uh...
Will @ Feb 16th 2008 2:49PM
Andy:
the reason people quit using the ps2 as a dvd player is because it couldn't play a lot of dvd's. and even the ones that it could play didn't have the full dvd quality. the ps3 couldn't be further from this, it's the best bluray player available on the market...especially considering the price and the fact that it's fully upgradeable.
Andy Anonymous @ Feb 16th 2008 3:57PM
@Will:
The PS2 could play all DVDs just fine after a few very early problems with the firmware were quickly resolved. That's not why people stopped buying it as a DVD player; it was because DVD players fell below the price of the PS2, and it was no longer a "bargain" as a movie player.
From that point on, the PS2 had established itself with enough hot games (particularly GTAIII) that it didn't really need DVD as a selling point any longer. Will the PS3 do the same? Maybe, but it needs to pick up the pace where good exclusive content is concerned.
E71 @ Feb 17th 2008 1:12PM
YES! SWEET JESUS YES!
Felix @ Feb 16th 2008 8:41AM
HD DVD, you are the weakest link, GOODBYE
KayRazy Ken Kutaragi @ Feb 16th 2008 11:29AM
How stupid and silly do Ken Graffeo and the suits at Paramount look now? Honestly, how can these people keep their jobs after a monumental fuckup of these proportions?
I knew this was over when...the PS3 released AND when Disney sided with Blu. So if I knew over a YEAR ago that Toshiba was doomed with NO corporate experience....how the FRAK do these tools keep their jobs?
DEEZNUTZ @ Feb 16th 2008 11:42AM
@ Krazy
It was a lot closer than that... Toshiba could have easily been THE format had they capitalized on a number of opportunities. BD's marketing was on spot.
The PS3, with all it's bells and whistles was a monumental screw up at launch, and only now are they starting to see some success. Sony should count their blessings that the PS3 was able to bounce back from all the negative publicity they faced throughout last year.
All history now, but I can't agree with you that it was won when the PS3 launched...
ProfWho @ Feb 16th 2008 8:54AM
It isn't that surprising that once the fat lady has sung, went home, ate a meal, showered, slept, got up, went to work and sung again that Toshiba would move quickly to finish off HD-DVD. They are a publicly traded company and investors would be pissed if they continued to throw money away.
Larry @ Feb 16th 2008 12:01PM
If it was never a threat why do the Blu fanboys care so much???
Meanwhile, they're getting ****ed in the a** by poor, overpriced, hardware and software.
ProfWho @ Feb 16th 2008 12:04PM
You are a fucking moron Larry. If you are going to respond to my post at least read what I said. I never said that HD-DVD was not a threat. HD-DVD could have easily won.
All I said was that investors would not want Toshiba to continue to spend money on a format that was not going anywhere anymore.
ProfWho @ Feb 16th 2008 9:05AM
Oh, and what will this mean for Truth Teller and Nfinity? What will they do with their lives now? Is there even a reason for them to stay alive?
WTF @ Feb 16th 2008 9:58AM
God I hope not!
Seppuku for both of them :)
DrXym @ Feb 16th 2008 12:04PM
If they have any sense they'll learn from this experience, grow up a bit and not become so emotionally invested the next time a format war erupts. At the end of the day it's just a $150 box of electronics. Formats deserve to be promoted rationally but when the end is nigh, just accept it and walk away.
rip @ Feb 17th 2008 11:33PM
Quite obviously, THIS is the special, super-secret announcement from the HD-DVD camp that Truth Teller has been hinting at for months.
temp1 @ Feb 16th 2008 9:10AM
HD DVD - The Look And Sound Of Obsolete.
sfditty @ Feb 16th 2008 9:10AM
I found this interesting:
The company said it will continue to sell HD-DVD products for a while but will stop further development of HD DVD. Meanwhile, it said its DVD factories in Aomori Prefecture, northern Japan, would be closed.
http://www.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/
ProfWho @ Feb 16th 2008 9:41AM
Update from Reuters
"Toshiba Corp (6502.T: Quote, Profile, Research) is planning to give up on its HD DVD format for high-definition video, conceding defeat to the competing Blu-Ray technology backed by Sony Corp (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research), a company source said on Saturday."
http://www.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idUSL1637974620080216
Mr Stevo @ Feb 16th 2008 10:08AM
That's interesting. Shutting down their HD-DVD production lines is one thing, but the latter implies that they're closing shop on the DVD lines too. That only makes me think that Toshiba's attempt to succeed with HD-DVD has cost them more of a loss than they could handle and are now forced to close factories in order to minimize their losses. Wow. Yes, Toshiba is a huge corporation with their hands in many technologies, including my PS3, but those hundreds of millions of dollars they've lost didn't just show up at the door one day without explanation and consequences. Maybe we'll see the impact of their investment loss once the dust settles. And it won't take long, as we all know Sony has lost quite a huge amount of money on the PS3 as well, fortunately for Sony, they've managed to lowered their cost per unit and sell it at cost, or sometimes with at a small profit.
Kyle Waitkunas @ Feb 16th 2008 9:44AM
R.I.P. HD-DVD.
We shall miss you.
So anyway, where's my American Gangster on Blu-Ray?
ProfWho @ Feb 16th 2008 9:48AM
Truth Teller and Nfinity spin on this will be epic. Remember Toshiba was paid off and the 51 Gig triple layer disc will be here in the next week with the Chinese HD-DVD players.
DrXym @ Feb 16th 2008 11:11AM
Nfinity will have to include Toshiba in his delusions. Maybe they were paid off just like everyone else in the world who doesn't agree with Nfinity.
Jove @ Feb 16th 2008 9:48PM
lmao lolz hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha yo man ur hilarious! keep it up!
Truth TeIIer @ Feb 16th 2008 9:50AM
This is a lie. Stupid console kiddies will believe anything.
bry2an @ Feb 16th 2008 10:04AM
No cake is a lie. Also really the average gamer is in the 30s. Kiddie console the PS3 is not. I'm sorry to hear you will no longer be receiving checks for spreading FUD about the High Def Format war.
Jnas @ Feb 16th 2008 10:15AM
LOL.
Ya know, i think i'm going to miss Truth Teller and his stupidity the most out of this format war.
:P
alienclays @ Feb 16th 2008 8:24PM
*sniff*
me too, even truth commenter.....
Jnas @ Feb 16th 2008 9:54AM
ITS OVER ITS OVER!
HUZZAAAAH!!!!
mike @ Feb 16th 2008 9:57AM
whats funny is the fact that warner single handly choose the winner. had warner gone hd-dvd exclusive, all the rest would of followed red, and it would be blu-ray strugling (although I dont think sony would give up with its ps3 and its own sony pictures still out there).
Its a shame warner choose the wrong side, the lower quality side. The region coded consumer unfreindly side :(. But at least there is a clear cut winner now. this stupid war went on for too long. Now that blu-ray has one I expect them to up their quality. I want to see all those old mpeg2 based releases re-released. All the crappy releases, put out again in proper quality.
Ben @ Feb 16th 2008 11:49AM
Why blame Warner?
Blame HD DVD owners who didn't buy more movies. What do you expect Warner to do when Blu-ray Warner titles out sold HD DVD titles every single week despite the fact that Warner titles had better special features and the same exact encode?
T-bone @ Feb 16th 2008 10:01AM
So what about Paramount / Universal. I want Apollo 13, but can't buy it now because there may not be a player to play it in.
I guess Paramount / Universal will just give up on HD releases....oh well.
Jnas @ Feb 16th 2008 10:06AM
You mean HD-DVD releases right? It would be stupid to think they wouldn't release ANYTHING in HD.
Btw, i heard that TruthTeller and Nfinity are going to put all their resources together and manufacture homemade HD-DVD players out of their garages. Reuters will be reporting it any day now.
T-bone @ Feb 16th 2008 10:29AM
All this means is that I will have to wait FOREVER to get 'Back to the Future' in any HD format. I'm assuming when / if these studios change it will take 6-8 months to gear up for BD and then another 2-3 years to start releasing any titles that were not already available in HD DVD on BD.
I may just give up on all HD formats and stick with a good OPPO player.
p @ Feb 16th 2008 10:43AM
@T-bone
6-8 months? 2-3 years? Where did you get these timelines from? Dreamt them up last time you went for a crap perhaps?
Mr Stevo @ Feb 16th 2008 11:08AM
It should not take that long for studios to release their HD-DVD releases in Blu-ray. The most time consuming part is mastering the movie in HD so it looks great. They already have that taken care of. And let's not forget that both HD formats use the same codecs. So, all the studios would have to do is write the menus for the Blu-ray version and done. The artwork will be the same, just change a logo and the slogan on the case from "The Look and Sound of Perfect" to "Beyond High Definition." That should not take 6-8 months or 2-3 years. Besides, Paramount should have a warehouse full of Blu-ray titles they recalled when they went Red. So, Paramount will hit the road running. No worries. HD is here to stay and going Blu-ray would not slow anything down.
BMZ @ Feb 16th 2008 10:05AM
I believe the next year will teach BR supporters the truth behind the expression: "be careful what you wish for."
p @ Feb 16th 2008 10:37AM
I think the term "BD supporter" is a little defunct now. How do you support something that has no opponent? Unless you're talking about 480p vs 1080p? Not much of a contest that one.
sfditty @ Feb 16th 2008 10:05AM
Oh, you're *that* much of a kook...
Killer @ Feb 16th 2008 10:06AM
So begins Round 2...
DVD Vs. Blu-ray 3...2...1...Fight!
(Ps. Does this mean that the weekly sales graph is going to be Blu-ray Vs. DVD? I'm calling a 99/1 split that DVD is ahead on the first week.)
JimC @ Feb 16th 2008 10:17AM
Fantastic! Truth Teller and Nfinity, you can go back to your day jobs now....enjoy those upconverted SD movies as we all know you will never get a blu-ray, lol.....
Truth Teller @ Feb 16th 2008 10:39AM
Oh well (if it's true) it was fun while it lasted
(and I shall have a stack of heavily discounted HD DVDs to buy in the coming months).
Poor old consumer tho, the worst format won - tho happily it will not be braking out of the niche and no-one but the PS3 kids will ever care much about it.
You'll be sorry.
I myself will stick to HD TV & my DVR
(which are going to be the real winners this time around),
my HD DVDs,
upscaling my SD DVDs
(which are going to see off Blu-ray no matter what anyways) and
downloading
(where approx 400+ of your beloved Blu-ray catalogue is now available).
I don't need and I will not give Blu-ray a dime
(but thank you for helping to fund my high def movies :P ).
CharlieX @ Feb 16th 2008 10:43AM
You will buy someday if you're truly a patron on Engadget HD. Upscaled DVD's look great - from way across the room. Downloads look super - on your 15" laptop monitor from across the room.
DEEZNUTZ @ Feb 16th 2008 10:47AM
Seriously, at the end of it all, it was fun Truth Teller.
Do check in every now and then and let us know how you Blu-Ray collection looks.
Stay safe.
Truth Commenter @ Feb 16th 2008 11:06AM
TruthTeller aka Dave: "Oh well (if it's true) it was fun while it lasted"
Yup, it was fun Dave.
But for Toshiba & company, is was not.