Audio Video News

Computer giant Hewlett-Packard (HP) made good on its threat, announcing that it will support HD DVD as well as Blu-ray Disc as the next generation optical disc format. HP had previously supported Sony’s Blu-ray Disc format exclusively, but has apparently jumped ship over the Blu-ray Disc Association’s (BDA) refusal to adopt the iHD interactivity layer into Blu-ray’s standards.

Of course there’s more to this than just HP and the BDA. Months ago, both Intel and Microsoft shocked many by announcing that, unlike HP, Apple, and Sun Microsystems, the two companies would not be supporting Blu-ray Disc. The compelling reasons they cited most often were HD DVD’s inclusion of iHD and Mandatory Managed Copy. The latter mandates that users be unequivocally allowed to copy HD DVD discs onto a computer for distribution through a home network- a future application that Intel and Microsoft are investing in heavily.

It’s pretty safe to assume that HP wasn’t feeling too safe being on the opposite side of the next-gen fence from Intel and Microsoft, given that HP would like very much to sell Media Center PCs based on technology from those two companies. So, in the fall HP officially petitioned the BDA to formally adopt Mandatory Managed Copy and iHD, the latter of which is claimed to be cheaper and less complicated to implement than Blu-ray’s Java-based interactivity layer.

In November the BDA announced that while it would formally adopt Mandatory Managed Copy, iHd was refused. Accepting iHD may have made Blu-ray more attractive to Microsoft, but almost certainly would have meant a delay in not only the introduction of Blu-ray Disc in general, but also to Sony’s PlayStation3 gaming console, which is certain to give Sony’s lagging sales a huge shot in the arm. A Blu-ray/PS3 delay wouldn’t bother Microsoft of course, since it’s in the business of peddling its own competing gaming console, the Xbox 360!

There are obviously many fronts in this format war, and this most recent announcement is certain to add some spice to the chest-thumping from both formats that we’re likely to see during next month’s CES in Las Vegas. Let’s just hope that whatever happens, we won’t need to buy two different players next year to enjoy both Warner’s Harry Potter and the Goblet of fire and Universal’s King King on a high-definition optical disc.