Hyperbole aside, it is typical that when a new format comes out, cover art aesthetics are sacrificed.
On CDs back in the early 80s, RCA's CD covers featured a postage stamp sized image of a CD so you'd know what was inside (!). Many other companies put the CD logo on the fronts as well. It took years for these unattractive ideas to be phased out.
But I did not expect it to happen with the new formats, because in more recent years we saw companies come up with ways to distinguish new products without ruining the art:
Many DualDisc releases (love them or hate them) featured a clear slip cover - clear save for the ink that was plastered with DualDisc logos to ensure that the customer would know what they held in their hand. The ugly slip cover came off once the product was bought, and you could once again see the cover art underneath.
HD-DVDs from Universal appear - from these renderings - to be sacrificing the art in the name of making sure the customer knows what they are buying. The sweeping silver curves of Universal's covers is heavy handed, it won't last, and it did not need to be this way.
Here is an old VHS tape with a cover template similar to Universal's proposed HD-DVD template:
