We sort of saw the writing on the wall, but now Belkin has went and made it official: the FlyWire is dead. Originally showcased at CES 2008 and at practically every AV-related trade show since, the wireless HD-enabling FlyWire was seen as the poster child for wireless HD / HDMI by many, and the death of this product certainly doesn't bode well for the technology as a whole. It's true that AMIMON -- the wireless startup responsible for the WHDI technology within the FlyWire and a few other devices -- just landed an extra $10 million in VC funding, but still, we've literally been waiting years for this so-called "promising technology" to get a foothold in the market. Or even make a wave, really.

As has become customary these days, Belkin is also pinning the cancellation of the FlyWire on the economy, with a spokesperson telling us that the "retail price of $1,499 would be out of line given the current state of the economy." She continued by stating that the company has "opted to halt production of FlyWire" and "will no longer be introducing [it] to the market." Granted, the company does seem somewhat apologetic, concluding that "there will be some disappointed folks out there, but [Belkin's] end goal is to introduce products that are accessible and that make sense in the current environment."


Frankly, we're not buying it. In April, Belkin affirmed to us that while AMIMON's WDHI technology was "solid," it was taking its sweet time in order to "pay very close attention to the user experience, such as the packaging, setup, and the quick install guide." We could be way off base here, but we'd say the economy was sucking quite a bit harder in April than it is today. And honestly, that's beside the point. A $1,500 device that enabled a Blu-ray player to communicate wirelessly with an HDTV is obviously a luxury item, and regardless of unemployment numbers, Belkin had to know that the FlyWire would only appeal to upscale consumers. You know, the same folks who also put in an order for a Ferrari California in 1H 2009 while their hedge fund dived.

To us, the sudden death of the FlyWire is more of an industry signal than anything. For quite some while, we've been wondering when the industry at large would embrace wireless HD and HDMI technology, and now we're beginning to think that said embrace will never happen in any significant capacity. Even Wireless USB couldn't cut it, and we're guessing there are an awful lot more USB users out there than HDMI. If the price dropped dramatically and the sector consolidated a bit in order to agree on a single standard, we'd say wireless HD / HDMI has a fighting chance. 'Til that happens, you can pretty much bank on the FlyWire fiasco becoming a model for the rest. Belkin's statement in full is past the break.

We're pretty sure we speak for music / Blu-ray fans everywhere when we say: "What?" At the JavaOne Conference in San Francisco earlier this year, one of the main news bits to emerge from the show was that Neil Young's entire music archive was going to be released in Blu-ray form. In fact, it was even stressed that BD interactivity would give purchasers the ability to download more songs, photos and tour information via their internet-connected decks. Now, we're hearing that the Archives Volume 1 (1963 - 1972) is being relegated to DVD only, and even the DVD collection is being delayed from November 3rd to "sometime in 2009." Of course, there's still time for Reprise to change its mind and appease all the Blu-ray lovers out in the crowd, but we aren't feeling too optimistic about the possible change of heart.

[Image courtesy of Mashable]

We pinged MOJO HD's parent company, iN DEMAND, in an attempt to hear that some of our favorite high-def programming wouldn't be vanishing forever with the dissolution of the channel. Thankfully, we heard back, and while the news isn't fantastic, it at least gives us room to hope. When we asked what would happen to the programming currently on MOJO HD, we told that "individual producers would be working to find other homes for the series," and that "announcements would come from those networks." Additionally, the MOJO MIX HD video-on-demand service will continue to operate into 2009, giving users another venue to fetch most of the original MOJO programming. In all seriousness, we can't imagine a Travel Channel HD (for example) not picking up Three Sheets, but we suppose only time will tell.

Given the finality of the format war, we can't say we're totally shocked to hear that Samsung will be pulling the plug on its recently announced BD-UP5500 HD DVD / Blu-ray combo player, but still, it's not good news for folks planning to pick it up for kicks (or watching their library of HD DVDs). Interestingly enough, Sammy had already planned to axe its current flagship hybrid player -- the BD-UP5000 -- this May, just months after it went on sale and began taking heat for not meeting expectations. On the plus side, the firm's latest BD-only player was a real gem, so hopefully we'll see lots more where that came from in the future. Oh, and if you're weeping this very moment at the thought of never getting to see one in person, feel free to click here and live vicariously through us.

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