BD vs DVD vs VOD (1 Viewer)

[Alen Koebel]

(My apologies for first asking this in the welcome thread.)

Hi Bill,

I don't have much time nowadays to read The Digital Bits so you may well have already answered the following questions in one of your editorials. Since you're here perhaps you can answer directly: Nearly all HT enthusiasts want HD disc (Blu-ray) to succeed, but many also see DVD as the 800-pound gorilla standing in its way. Do you see BD totally replacing DVD or simply sharing shelf space with it? If the former how long do you think it will take? Do you think that online and/or cable VOD will (ever) have much of an impact on disc sales? Do you think there will be enough consumer demand for BD to save it from being a niche format, akin to (but I believe already more successful than) LaserDisc?

 

[Bill Hunt]

I see a mix. I could see a 40/40% or 50/30 split between Blu-ray and DVD eventually, with the remaining 20% being downloading of some kind. I think they'll all coexist. There may come a day when the studios decide to gradually phase out DVD to "push" people toward Blu-ray, but I think that's many years away yet.