You've already seen how Sound & Vision graded the biggest Blu-ray studios, but now we're interested in getting your take. Now that you've had a number of months to check out each studio on a level playing field (read: everyone on team Blu), which studio(s) have impressed you the most? Feel free to include pros / cons from image quality, soundtrack fidelity, extras, BonusView / BD-Live support, etc. Let us know which of the Blu-ray studios has made you smile the most in 2008, and make sure you voice your opinion on which one(s) could stand to improve.

And to think, most of you probably had no idea that these two were even having issues. After Paramount's parent company, Viacom Inc., acquired DreamWorks in 2006 for $1.6 billion, things were never exactly pleasant. Now, the two have finally hammered out a deal that will enable them to part ways and retain "joint custody," if you will, of around 40 movie projects. Where do things go from here? Spielberg and his team of executives are out to form an "independent studio backed by one of India's biggest conglomerates, Reliance ADA Group, which plans to invest $550 million for a 50% stake." Under the settlement, Spielberg's new firm (which will still go by DreamWorks) will take the lead on upwards of 20 film projects currently owned by Paramount. As with most divorces, this one too is filled with complexities -- if you're into that, tap the read link for all the minutiae.

[Image courtesy of Kinoweb]

Since the year between HD DVD & Blu-ray releases wasn't enough time to get all the features on-disc, BD-Live connected owners of the Transformers Blu-ray disc can download "Robot Ninjas" starting today. Promised to be the first of many downloadable add-ons, this one gives a look behind the scenes of the fights in the movie, specifically Bumblebee vs. Barricade. High-Def Digest mentions that next up is a "What Effing Happened to Mason City" feature, as these fill in the gap until the sequel Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen hits theaters. Wondering what in the name of Michael Bay's righteous indignation you're missing? Check out a clip from the feature after the break.

While it's not quite a hologram interview, DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg still managed to wow onlookers in Amsterdam by being the subject of a live 3D broadcast originating in Los Angeles. This isn't the first of its kind, mind you, but those involved are still patting themselves on the back and dubbing it the "first transatlantic HD stereoscopic 3D broadcast." Part of the demonstration was to showcase the bigwig's belief that 3D is the future of cinema, as he stated that it was "the most exciting thing to happen to the visual experience in 70 years." Over at IBC2008, 3D HD was being pumped up by firms such as 3Ality and Quantel, and as much as we doubted that this stuff could ever catch on, we can't say the marketing teams aren't doing their darnedest to make it so.

[Image courtesy of PhotoBucket]

Who knows, maybe this holiday season will be a decent time to stock up on Blu-ray Discs. Exactly one month after hearing that Warner would be lowering the BD price bar this winter on a slew of its titles, in comes word that Paramount Home Video is preparing a promotion of its own. Reportedly, the studio will be offering movie collectors a $10 rebate when they upgrade select DreamWorks and Paramount DVDs to Blu-ray Discs. Blu-ray copies of Transformers, The Godfather, Old School, Stardust, Sweeney Todd and Zodiac will be eligible for the rebate, with the purchase having to be made by December 31st, 2009. For all the fine print (there's not too much), the read link has you covered.

[Via CDFreaks]

AT&T may be missing out on this "reach out and touch someone" opportunity, but Dreamworks SKG is there to score on the first real-time 3D HD broadcast. SKG CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg will be interviewed in stereoscopic 3D HD glory by 3Ality Digital, and the resulting bits will be beamed by satellite company Arqiva to Amsterdam. The demo will be the first real-time 3D HD broadcast, and the "real-time" angle is definitely where the challenges are. The two HD camera feeds are muxed together at the source into a (very strange looking, we assume) 2D image, which is demuxed on the receiving end before being beamed out to Christie projectors. Neat stuff, and we're just waiting for the day this tech comes to distance workers all over.

[Image courtesy TMCnet]

When Paramount makes a decision it really gets behind it, and just as quickly as Paramount titles disappeared from store shelves back in August, they'll all re-appear in the next few weeks. With the initial Paramount Blu-ray re-commitment just a few weeks ago, we learned that 8 of the 32 previously releases titles would be available on May 20th, and now the studio has confirmed that the entire Blu-ray back catalog will be available by the end of May. The titles will be true reissues and identical to the original release -- so if you didn't like the first one, you won't like these either. We're sure plenty of recent Blu-ray adopters are happy to get their hands on titles like Mission Impossible trilogy and The Italian Job, but we'd be more excited to see some of the more recent Paramount releases go Blu, like say, Transformers. But hey, at least we can finally get rid of that annoying asterisks on our weekly releases post.

As gimmicky as 3D typically is, we've seen just how impressive it can be when done right. Apparently, DreamWorks Animation thinks it can convince viewers to pay a premium for a three-dimensional product, as its Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg announced that all of the studio's future films -- starting with next year's Monsters vs. Aliens -- will be "made in 3D." Reportedly, adding 3D to each film will require an extra $15 million per production, but after the stunning success of Disney's Hannah Montana / Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour, it reckons the investment is a smart one. As it stands, only 1,200 or so theaters worldwide are capable of 3D exhibition, but Katzenberg is hoping that some 3,000 to 5,000 would be equipped once Monsters emerged.

[Via WidescreenReview, image courtesy of WorstPreviews]

We'll be honest, we can't exactly recall what the going rate on rare Betamax tapes was soon after VHS took over, but it seems that one HD DVD fanatic was willing to shell out quite a bundle in order to take home a presumably canceled version of Bee Movie. In a war that saw some 23 bids fly in, one particularly fortunate eBay seller was able to move a copy of Seinfeld's latest on the now-deceased format for $400 -- we think. Curiously enough, the seller didn't specifically mention that it was the HD version in a publicly answered question, and even more suspicious was the fact that he / she chose to end the auction early despite the chance of it soaring even higher. Here's to hoping the winning bidder both reads this and gets the film they purchased, but let's see some actual pictures as soon as it arrives, cool?

[Thanks, Mack S.]

We don't know if Jeffrey Katzenberg got a text message, fax, e-mail or smoke signal indicating the format war was over, but Video Business has confirmed Paramount and Dreamworks Animation will (rather abruptly) to stop releasing HD DVDs after next week. If you were looking forward to Bee Movie on March 11, Sweeney Todd on April 1 or the just announced There Will Be Blood, those are cancelled. Into the Wild and the appropriately-named Things We Lost in the Fire will be Paramount's last reminders of its exclusive agreement. Not specifically mentioned was Star Trek: TOS Season 2, but don't hold your breath. Blu-ray release plans are still up in the air but we wouldn't be surprised to hear something soon. As far as HD DVD movies still scheduled, that leaves two from Universal (for now) and twelve from Warner Bros, who may have been the first to leave red, but will apparently be the last major studio out the door.

Read - Video Business
Read - High-Def Digest

While even the most steadfast red fans have accepted things are over for HD DVD, it appears Dreamworks Animation isn't able to let the format war go. Even though Paramount seems to have found a way out from under its exclusivity deal, Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg told Reuters he still needs to hear from Toshiba what to do with the truckloads of money HD DVD gave them about its agreement before making any Blu-ray release plans. He seems (to be the only one) worried about the upcoming DVD release of Bee Movie and what will happen there. An analyst quoted said they should certainly have this taken care of by the holiday season, which would only be six to eight months after HD DVD manufacturing has ceased to be. We have a feeling it won't take that long to turn Shrek Blu.

Michael Bay can breathe easy, Paramount (Dreamworks included) has officially gone Blu-ray. Two and a half years after announcing itself purple, and exactly five months after becoming HD DVD exclusive, this move makes all six major Hollywood studios Blu. Don't make space for that Blu edition of Transformers in your DVD rack just yet, as the company plans to "monitor consumer adoption and determine our release plans accordingly", but with PS3 sales up and BD Live on the way, we can't imagine it will take very long. The Hollywood Reporter expects to see Universal and Paramount new releases hitting Blu-ray and DVD at the same time by late spring or early summer, when we can forget this whole thing ever happened -- unless of course you picked up an HD DVD player for Shrek, in which case we have a few ideas on what to do next.

[Thanks to Robert and everyone who sent this in]

Not a whole lot to go on right now, but German site HDTV Praxis has it that both Paramount and Universal will now make the obvious choice and publish their films on Blu-ray. Notably, this follows hints seen in certain Circuit City databases as well as word that we've received noting that both studios would indeed make things easy on everyone and simply support the one format still standing. Interestingly, DreamWorks isn't mentioned in the linked article per se, but we've all ideas it'll be following suit shortly.

[Thanks, Khattab]

Update: Universal's president Craig Kornblau had this to say: "While Universal values the close partnership we have shared with Toshiba, it is time to turn our focus to releasing new and catalog titles on Blu-ray." Thanks, Kiwi616!

Now that Shrek the Third is an HD DVD exclusive, it appears Dreamworks Animation is taking the opportunity to throw in all new HDi features. High Def Digest has the updated specs, which include advanced PiP features above and beyond those of previous HD DVD titles, as well as exclusive downloadable content such as a subtitle trivia and movie guide. It would be nice not to have this format war at all, but increased support for each format's unique -- at least until the Blu-ray players are upgraded -- features is a benefit.

Everyone knows that the outcome of the Blu-ray / HD DVD format war has huge financial stakes. Reporters, then, take the "Follow the money" approach. At Europe's IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin this week, attempts to do so turned up no solid evidence to clarify things. Onstage execs from Warner Bros., Fox, MGM and Sony all denied that they received payola from the BDA. The response from Stephen Foulser, Disney's European Marketing VP, was only slightly more illuminating -- "no comment." This comes on the heels of reports that Paramount and DreamWorks picked up a $150 million check for their 18-month HD DVD exclusivity. The mystery and intrigue in this format war are fitting for a movie, but which format would it be released on?