Watch out, MP3 -- you've got a formidable opponent creeping up on you. All kidding aside (yes, we were kidding), Fraunhofer IIS is hoping that at least four people will turn from their MP3 / AAC addictions and embrace yet another one of its audio formats at CES, which is simply christened MPEG Surround. Harald Popp, head of the Multimedia Realtime Systems department at the company, has asserted that the firm believes that "MPEG Surround will become a major online distribution format when downloading music, movie and TV content," noting that it offers "the music industry a way to sell iPod-compatible surround content through the existing stereo download infrastructure." We suppose the multi-channel aspect is at least somewhat noteworthy, but we still see a hard road ahead for it to gain "global acceptance" in 2009.

HD DVD's strike from beyond the grave may be falling short before it even gets started, as Digitimes reports no Taiwan drive manufacturers have joined the China Blue HD team so far -- and according to the always talkative anonymous sources, there's little optimism they will. Unfortunately the manufacturer support stage is where VMD, EVD and FVD failed before it and with no Hollywood support and cheaper Blu-ray hardware on the way, it's hard to see how CBHD will ever have much impact.

Can you believe it? No really, can you believe ATSC has been kickin' around in TV sets and on street corners for a quarter-century now (okay, so maybe just "established" for that long)? Sure enough, the Advanced Television Systems Committee gathered on Thursday to celebrate its silver anniversary and to take a long hard look at what the future holds. Needless to say, quite a few folks will be getting acquainted with the standard now that the analog shutoff is getting dangerously near. The meeting also touched on taking ATSC mobile with ATSC-M/H and the "next generation of services for fixed receivers" with ATSC 2.0. We know, it's probably all you can do to hold back those tears after hearing of this momentous occasion, but once you're over it, why not chime in below with your fondest ATSC memories? Remember that first digital-tuner TV you got? Yeah, good times.

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".

Sure, moving 100,000 units doesn't seem all that extraordinary when you consider that Microsoft managed to foist off 92,000 of its own add-ons last Christmas, but the number does manage to garner a bit more respect when you realize that the Xbox 360 addition nor HD DVD PC drives are included in it. The North American HD-DVD Promotional Group is now claiming that sales of set-top HD DVD players have finally hit the 100k mark, presumably ready to smack down that Blu-ray supremacy talk and prove that the recent surge in disc sales was more than a well-planned fluke. Of course, claiming the feat really says nothing in the grand scheme of the ongoing format war, but we can officially start the countdown until the Blu-ray camp proudly trounces these figures and yet again claims momentary dominance.

[Via TGDaily]

National Geographic has announced it's releasing its first HD title, Relentless Enemies on DVD, Blu-ray and HD DVD formats, distributed by Warner Home Video on March 27. The 90 minute film, originally shot in HD, is National Geographic's highest-rated special to date. The network was pushed to release on high definition formats after surveys showed its content as what viewers would most like to see. We like watching lions and buffalo battling for survival as much as anyone, but with a $34.99 MSRP compared to the $19.99 DVD we hope they also start including some HD extras in future releases.

Okay, so we're not waxing rhapsodic about a conspiracy theory just yet, but seriously, why can't the general public get a few hard numbers regarding the HD DVD / Blu-ray format war? Since both formats hit the market, we've all been wondering who would be the leader in terms of disc sales once the holiday season was behind us, and although Nielsen VideoScan has finally loosed the deets, we're still (relatively) in the dark. We've wondered exactly what was taking so long for these data to surface, but instead of VideoScan perfecting their report, it has apparently delayed the information only to release several inconclusive "charts" and "ratios" that, quite frankly, aren't what we all want. For whatever it's (not) worth, it looks like Blu-ray titles outsold HD DVD titles by a 2:1 margin during the admittedly slow first two weeks of 2007, but overall, we're still stuck analyzing Amazon's sales figures while trying to piece together the truth. Still, if you're more interested in having the best of both worlds regardless of which is on top (or still around) in a couple years, you know where to go.

[Thanks, Jed]

In the wake of Toshiba hinting at forthcoming price drops on its stand-alone HD DVD players at CES, Samsung has apparently figured out that it can't keep on charging a cool grand (though the price had already fallen a bit "unofficially") for its own high definition unit and remain attractive. As fence-sitters weigh their options and realize that they can get a console and Blu-ray player together for around $500, it only makes sense that we see a (somewhat) healthy price drop on Samsung's BD-P1000. Effectively immediately, the MSRP has been slashed from $999 to $899, putting wholesale prices closer to the $500-$800 range, which should help draw attention from potential buyers who were previously turned off by price. Of course, this theoretical price leveling might not last for too long if Toshiba's whispers prove to be true, but at least we're seeing the prices of stand-alone players dip down from their previous home in the stratosphere.

While some folks just can't make up their mind, and other have already leaned one way or the other, a recent independent survey points to Sony's format being the one losing ground and interest, but we can't say we're surprised. Betamax, ATRAC, MiniDisc, and UMDs were all crafted by Sony, and all fell (basically) flat before ever really catching on, and it seems the costly Blu-ray format may be headed for the same fate. Cymfony, a market influence analytics company, found that "positive discussions" about HD DVD were "46-percent higher" than talks about Blu-ray, with over twice as many post authors being "impressed with HD DVD" rather than "impressed with Blu-ray." A good deal of the negativity shown towards Blu-ray was attributed to Sony's "heavy handed" approach of forcing Blu-ray upon PlayStation 3 owners, not to mention the notoriously delayed (and pricey) standalone players. Although it's still far too early to tell which format will rise victorious (you know, since peace talks have all but ceased), there's no denying the high costs associated with both next-generation discs, but Sony's track record with these proprietary ideas definitely doesn't bode well for it.

[Via TechDigest]

That other high definition disc format, VMD has announced some of the content customers can expect at launch in 2007. German independent distributor VCL is launching with familiar titles like Sleepy Hollow, Paparazzi, Reefer Madness and Hostage in January. No word on price, specific dates or features are available yet. The company behind VMD, NME Inc. has previously indicated it plans to support the low cost format with Bollywood titles and Broadway shows. Using older red laser technology and a multilayered structure, VMD aims to provide HDTV content at a much lower price than Blu-ray or HD DVD. We'll likely find out more about the company's plans at CES 2007 and get a look at the first player.


[Via Home Media Retailing]

While we continue to wait for the first movie release on dual-layer 50GB Blu-ray discs, Sony has announced they are now shipping 50GB BD-R recordable media for use with Blu-ray burners. The 2x media uses their AccuCORE technology to protect it from scratches or warping, and carries a suggested retail price of $48 per disc. This is a win for Blu-ray and its supporters as they're finally delivering on the extra capacity they've promised and it is doubtful HD DVD will ever be able to match -- Microsoft's Amir M. has stated he doesn't expect triple layer HD DVD to be widely adopted -- but due to manufacturing differences between the BD-Rs and commercial Blu-ray discs, we're still left wondering when our MPEG-2 Blu-ray movies will have some room to breathe. One thing is for sure, at $750 for the drive, $50,000 for the software and nearly fifty bucks per single disc this is not for the thrifty.

[Thanks, plaque monster]

We're not sure how to take this. Just as Blu-ray launches, with its own HD DVD players having already been on store shelves for some time, now Toshiba wants to hold out the olive branch again. Even as Blu-ray struggles with underwhelming launch titles and delays, they still hold the trump card of higher capacity, possibly higher burning speed, and more movie studio support. Maybe Toshiba sees this as the best time to cut a deal, maybe not. We already have reports that they are spending a lot of money to make sure HD DVD gains acceptance, but what is the long term strategy?

Not to be forgotten in the BD-R and -RE party is Sony themselves, who have announced they are shipping single-layer recordable Blu-ray discs, with dual layer versions to follow in June, The pricing follows the model set by TDK, $20/$48 for BD-R single/dual and $25/$60 for BD-RE single/dual layer respectively. With the burners going for about $850, we'll take a raincheck, unless someone really needs to back up all their episodes of mariposaHD.

[Via Engadget]

That's what Reuters is saying and if the poll Ken pointed out in AVS Forums is any indication, they are correct. Toshiba's HD-XA1 has, despite limited content, poor demos, massive size and little public awareness, found acceptance with initial buyers and reviewers. I know many of our readers will be shocked to hear this, but apparently there is a considerable audience waiting for high definition content free from nasty compression artifacts and limited television broadcast schedules.

More interesting to note is that some buyers are expressing hesitance towards Blu-ray, with its players starting at $1000 and going up from there. Did they just interview some HD-DVD fanboys (Odds are high they did, with only 10,000 units in stores.), or is there a possibility even the early adopting home theater community won't spend that much on movies?

Whatever the case may be, we know two things for sure. HD-DVD is currently the absolute best format with <7 titles available on the planet; and Blu-ray, the clock is ticking, better get in the game.

[Updated (working) link]

It's like Christmas except ... Christmas was on time. After what seemed like delay after delay, you can now walk into your local electronics retailer and purchase a high definition DVD player. No upconversion tricks necessary here, you'll finally be able to buy discs with more resolution than current players can output. With what would favorably be described as a handful of titles and a launch shipment of only 10,000 players, HD-DVD is coming in with more of a whimper than a bang, but at least its finally here, ICT and all.

There are already a couple reviews of the first HD-DVDs, and more impressions of the launch players and discs will be on their way in the coming days and weeks. Will HD-DVD's early launch help much as Blu-ray still looms this summer? It's too early to say really, but I do know that of the four of us at HD Beat, only Ben has said he is buying one of the first players available and even then may return it if more content doesn't become available soon. If our reaction is so muted, how long will it take for either format to catch on with the general public? I still haven't seen any of the HD-DVD "So real you can feel it" ads.

Have any of you gotten a hold of one yet or seen them in action, or if you haven't, why not? Let us know in the comments.