Audio Video News

Predictions on the success or failure of Blu-ray seems to shift daily.  Just a few days after the Blu-ray Disc Association predicted a Blu Christmas,  an analyst who specializes in the technology sector, Roger Kay, said just the opposite.

Kay had nothing but doom and gloom, predicting a dramatic drop in Blu-ray sales in the fourth quarter of this year. We all know the economy sucks, and folks aren't rushing out to buy anything, but he went so far as to say that this slow-down is going to open the door for other new formats, such as VOD and Internet downloads to push Blu-ray out the door.

Keep reading to see what Kay said.

"If you can get movies over the wire on demand and have an entire library at your disposal on the screen a la Netflix, that's the way you're going to go," said Kay, president of Endpoint Technologies Associates.

The Blu-ray folks countered by saying,"We're hopeful even though things are getting a little tough out there, economically speaking," said Andy Parsons, chairman of the BDA's U.S. promotions committee and also an executive with Blu-ray backer Pioneer Electronics. "Everyone thinks of DVD as an overnight success, but it actually took several years for that overnight success to happen."

Maybe all these analysts just need to get together for a Blu-ray movie night. Quit analyzing and start watching movies. —Leslie Shapiro

The San Francisco Gate 

Photo by Daniel Sancho