 WebProWorld Dev Forum |
hits stat question
Say another site is accessing an image that resides on YOUR site. This other site
gets a visitor. Is this visit to the other site counted as a pageview on your
stats.
Best hardware for online business?
I run a one man on-line business and I want to know the options for upgrading
my hardware.
What is the best and simplest free FTP software?
I have a couple clients that need to upload large files to my Site on a regular
basis. I intend to have separate pass-worded folders, do not want to go anonymous
ftp.
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08.10.05
DVD Wars Looking For The
20th Century Fox
 By
John Stith
Blu-Ray launched another offensive in the DVD war in the form of the 20th Century
Fox studio. Make no bones about it; it is a war as Sony, Toshiba and all the companies
who've signed off on the respective high definition formats continue to look for
an edge.
Fox's home entertainment division announced its decision based on recent commitments
by the Blu-Ray folks to protect copyrighted material, which is a huge point of
contention for most record studios at this time. This stands to reason though
since the Blu-Ray developer Sony is also a major movie company.
"We are in creative collaboration with some of the best filmmakers in the business
and the most important thing to the studio is that we continue to provide the
best possible presentation of our films," commented Jim Gianopulos and Tom Rothman,
Chairmen, Fox Filmed Entertainment. "Creative advances in movie-making technology
have consistently helped raise the bar in films today and with the Blu-ray Disc
the bar has now been raised for the home viewing experience. We will take full
advantage of all the creative possibilities it offers."
HD-DVD, the alternative technology developed by Toshiba has developed a following
too although seemingly not as large as the Blu-Ray folks. They release a statement
shortly after Fox's announcement.
Today's announcement by 20th Century Fox regarding its support of the Blu-ray
Disc format is surprising and misleading in terms of which format provides for
more robust copy protection.
The content protection system of HD DVD provides an equivalent level of security
as the system advocated by Fox for Blu-ray. We also believe the Blu-ray disc format
and proposed copy protection system may result in playability and reliability
issues for the consumer.
HD DVD provides robust, renewable and standardized content protection coupled
with proven reliability, cost effectiveness and flexibility, which is why many
major film studios have announced support for the HD DVD format.
In Case You Don't Know
Toshiba and Sony have been in a row over the next generation DVD format for high
definition playback. There are some distinct differences between the two technologies
and Sony may have the edge.
What many see as the biggest difference is the storage capacity of the two discs.
Each disc is made up of layers and those layers each hold a certain amount of
material, be it data, mp3 or whatever. HD DVD's layer holds 15GB and Blu-Ray holds
25GB per layer.
Toshiba's plan with the HD DVD looks to be releasing a 3-layer disc of 45GB and
Sony's will be two layers at 50GB. TDK, aligned with Sony, plans a 4-layer disc
with 100 GB. What does all this mean, you might wonder. Well, size matters in
this case. High definition video takes up a lot of space on those discs and more
gigs means more content.
The advantage for Toshiba's HD DVD format will be the price point for companies
using their format. Their format is based on the current DVD format and would
require very little modification to current production facilities in order to
being production and some companies have already announced the release of movies
like "Oceans 12" for the HD DVD format.
The other factor in this is computer and games console applications, which means
games mostly. With the new larger capacities, games will get extraordinarily good,
loaded with incredibly high definition graphics and longer games too. Sony, who
plans on releasing the PS3 sometimes next spring, plans on putting the Blu-Ray
into their console. Microsoft currently has a pretty significant alliance with
Toshiba and plans on putting the HD DVD into their Xbox360 console, due out during
the holidays, at some point.
Also, major players in the computer industry have come out on side or the other,
both in terms of hardware and software have chosen sides. Apple, HP and Dell have
both sided with Sony, who makes their own computers well (what doesn't Sony make?).
These companies have all said they will plug Blu-Ray products in their computers
Companies like EA, who make games for both computers and consoles sided with Blu-Ray
as well but Microsoft, the software king, has said they will keep their options
open but they signed a technology sharing agreement with Toshiba and not with
Sony.
What All This Means
Sony went through a similar battle with Panasonic a couple of decades ago over
videotape formats in the VHS vs. Beta wars. Beta was actually a superior product
in many ways but Panasonic handled the battle a bit better and won. Toshiba's
not out for the count but a lot of companies have aligned with Sony, which is
going to make life difficult for Toshiba in this battle for disc supremacy.
As this war goes on, what this means is the consumer loses. The HD DVD format
will be out first, sometime this year. SOME movies will show up in the new format
and other will wait as they've aligned with Sony. Your favorite video rental places
will have to carry two formats to cover the movies and so will all the retailers.
At this point though, you'll have Spiderman and the X-Men on Blu-Ray and you'll
have Batman and the Lord of the Rings on HD-DVD. And for good measure, keep in
mind the VHS will be gone when the new DVDs come out. So, what're you going to
choose?
About the Author:
John Stith is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology
and business.
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