05-22-2008, 10:16 PM
[quote dk62]And Sony does not have the monopoly on BD - if it did, I would never have bought a player.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc_Association
Yes, that was the other point I wanted to getting around to making. While Sony does own many of the patents behind BR, the same was true of Toshiba for HD-DVD... as well as current DVD technology!
The real reason Toshiba fought so hard for HD-DVD preeminence is because they know their DVD gravy train will soon come to an end -- they wanted to replace DVD technology with technology also owned by Toshiba so the gravy train would keep on rollin'. This is also why much of HD-DVD technology was based on extensions of current DVD technology, where BR technology represents much more of a break from current DVD technology.
As the primary patent holder for much of BR technology, it is in Sony's best interests for the technology to succeed. In the CE market segment, that only happens with volume sales resulting from ever-dropping prices. This is exactly what happened with VHS, CD, and DVD -- BR will be the same.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc_Association
Yes, that was the other point I wanted to getting around to making. While Sony does own many of the patents behind BR, the same was true of Toshiba for HD-DVD... as well as current DVD technology!
The real reason Toshiba fought so hard for HD-DVD preeminence is because they know their DVD gravy train will soon come to an end -- they wanted to replace DVD technology with technology also owned by Toshiba so the gravy train would keep on rollin'. This is also why much of HD-DVD technology was based on extensions of current DVD technology, where BR technology represents much more of a break from current DVD technology.
As the primary patent holder for much of BR technology, it is in Sony's best interests for the technology to succeed. In the CE market segment, that only happens with volume sales resulting from ever-dropping prices. This is exactly what happened with VHS, CD, and DVD -- BR will be the same.