Microsoft fueling HD wars for own benefit

[akrako1]

from:
http://www.electronista.com/articles/07/12/04/bay.on.microsoft.hd/

Director: Microsoft fueling HD wars
Microsoft is deliberately feeding into the HD disc format wars to ensure that its own downloads succeed where physical copies fail, says movie director Michael Bay in a response to a question posed through his official forums. The producer contends that Microsoft is writing "$100 million dollar checks" to movie studios to ensure HD DVD exclusives that hurt the overall market regardless of the format's actual merit or its popularity, preventing any one format from gaining a clear upper hand. Bay's own Transformers is available on disc only in the less popular HD DVD format despite his stated preference for Blu-ray. To the director, this is primarily a stalling tactic while Microsoft refines its own online-only technology.

"What you don't understand is corporate politics," he says in the response. "Microsoft [officials] want both formats to fail so they can be heroes and make the world move to digital downloads."

Microsoft is known to support HD DVD-only studios and promotional groups financially and offers its own add-on player for the Xbox 360, but has also shifted much of its attention to the download-only Xbox Video Marketplace, which will expand worldwide next week. The console service allows users to rent movies and buy TV shows at an HD resolution and with prices roughly favorable to physical stores.

Regardless of actual intent, the balancing effect spurred on by the sponsors of either format may create trouble for download rivals such as Apple's iTunes and Pioneer's SyncTV, many of which either offer their Internet content only in standard definition or back the Blu-ray standard. Apple has contributed to both Blu-Ray and HD DVD in financial and software support but has yet to introduce a computer or device with an HD-capable optical drive.

[SCDVD]

Of course any company with any type of associated interest in the HD nightmare is going to come down on one side or the other in this mess. This "battle of the Shoguns" with the two competing formats is a disaster. Since Sony and Toshiba named trump and called it war, the option any company has is to pick a side of the "war" that suits their own interests and chip in and help win the war. What's all this altruistic crap about "helping" both sides!? What a crock!

There is one thing that influences my own opinion about who I want to see win. I have an abiding and deep-seated distrust of Sony and anything it touches. Their DRM obsession is truly dangerous. For example, BR+. Any nitwit is going to think that plus is better - right? Buzz, WRONG! BR+ isn't plus anything; it's an "enhanced" DRM management stunt. There isn't anything "plus" about it! It's is so "enhanced" that a lot of players can't play it!!! So as usual, Sony is giving the market the finger with their own obsessive DRM management stunts. Remember their root kit debacle? I don't have any particular love for Toshiba et al but Sony can go rot!

[oldandinthe way]

Until there is consumer demand for HD, or HD costs are reduced to those of SD and they cannibalize DVD sales, there will be nothing to win.

Just another example of Japanese "tone-deaf" to the market behavior.

[JohnnyMalaria]

Just another example of Japanese "tone-deaf" to the market behavior.

Japanese industry seems rather good at listening to the market - especially when it comes to identifying commodities that the market doesn't even know it wants.

They OWN the market.

It's the Western companies that are oblivious.

[oldandinthe way]

The Chinese own the market. And it's DVD.

[JohnnyMalaria]

Oh, I see. I was being more general about Japanese success in international markets for a wide range of technologies. Overall, I don't think the tone deaf label is true.

[oldandinthe way]

The Japanese have rarely shown marketing success. They have led in markets when they have been successful due to an appearance of superior technology - like Trinitron, or superior manufacturing capability like VCR.

They have been also-rans consistantly in the PC business which is highly marketing intensive.

They have failed to make a success of their acquired movie studios, and record companies which are also marketing intensive.

Even when the market likes their product - like the Walkman, they have failed to hold market share and have failed to recognize when the product life has been exceeded and develop follow-on products.

If NEC could have learned to market 15 or 20 years ago, they could have ruled the world of PCs and electronics. They couldn't and didn't.

[JohnnyMalaria]

Japan and South Korea lead the shipbuilding industry (destroying stalwarts such as the UK) - each product 33% of finished ships

Japan dominates in consumer and broadcast video equipment including camcorders/cameras

Japan dominates the automotive industry both in finished goods and components - this includes heavy transportation equipment

Japan produces 10% of the world's steel - the highest per capita (China produces about 40% for 8 times the population)

Japan leads the market in mobile technologies - the US is at the rear of the field

Japan is one of the triad of top chemical industries

Japanese industry pioneered Just In Time manufacturing

Japan pioneered such processes as Quality Function Deployment which, in part, listens to customers (Voice of the Customer) and translates their wishes into tangible, measurable attributes that are used to create new products with new features. Often, new features are designed that the customers don't even know they won't but eventually become indispensible.

Historically, Japan has been portrayed as a nation of copiers but not innovators. This is highly inaccurate and quite offensive. Such portrayal was deliberate FUD by western companies and industries that realized that Japan is a highly innovative and successful nation because its industry does listen to the market and can see how industry needs to change to remain viable.

Historically, it is western companies that have had their fingers in their ears.

[oldandinthe way]

You are mixing marketing success with the areas of Japanese strength, principally manufacturing prowess.


Just in time manufacturing is not a sign of market awareness, it is a strategy for manufacting cost effectiveness.

The chemical industry is not driven by market innovation, it is driven by production capabilities. Similarly the shipbuilding industry.

Japan has faltered in electronics in recent years having to rely on joint ventures with South Korea to develop and build products. Its principal contribution to these joint ventures has been manufacturing technology.

It is hard to think of them as a leader in consumer video when they are no longer the dominant force in the US market for LCD TVs, no longer leaders in LCD manufacturing, no longer leaders in DVD sales, no longer leaders in inkjet printers, laser printers, computer monitors or other areas they pioneered. They have never been leaders in PCs.

Cameras and camcorders are increasingly becoming commodites with little to differentiate them and the transition to a commodity market dominated by Taiwan, China or South Korea appears inevitable.

It is not that they cannot innovate. It is that they cannot sustain the growth of their products by appealing to consumers in the presence of competition.

Western companies often use their superior ability to market in combination with manufacturing in other companies to gain a dominant position in markets, and the Taiwanese and Koreans have learned from this. And the Chinese are well on their way to understand these lessons.

The Japanese auto industry has benefited as much from the errors of US automakers as from marketing. Yet that does not guarantee that Nissan can make a car which is a success in the market. Just as it cannot guarantee that a superior vehicle manufactured by GM or Ford will be successful.

[yoda313]

the only downside I see to the xbox 360 video services is that some are for limited viewing only. You don't really "own" the content you download.

Whereas with a physical disc you can play it as many times for as long as you want.

I don't have a problem with video downloads as a future format. My only real problem lies in internet connection speeds. If I were to be downloading 4-10gb and up movies my sub .5mb dsl connection won't cut it. I don't really need a faster connection but if high def movies were only available via download that would be a restricting factor.

And another problem would be portability. I would want to be able to use it on portable devices without restrictions. I wouldn't mind if it was restricted to a certain class of players like the subscription wma model uses. I just would want portablitliy.

Also - currently the 360 only offers a maximum of 120gb storage - as far as I know. That won't cut it for a large high def movie collection. If you were able to use and authenticate large usb harddrives in the terrabyte range than it would be more feasible.

[SCDVD]

Also - currently the 360 only offers a maximum of 120gb storage - as far as I know. That won't cut it for a large high def movie collection. If you were able to use and authenticate large usb harddrives in the terrabyte range than it would be more feasible.

You can also attach the 360 to a host media server on which you can have terra-mother storage. You don't have to have your video collection in local storage in the 360.

[yoda313]

Also - currently the 360 only offers a maximum of 120gb storage - as far as I know. That won't cut it for a large high def movie collection. If you were able to use and authenticate large usb harddrives in the terrabyte range than it would be more feasible.

You can also attach the 360 to a host media server on which you can have terra-mother storage. You don't have to have your video collection in local storage in the 360.

Ok that is good I forgot about the wifi streaming.

But for high def vids isn't it better to watch them over a physical connection? Would a lan line be better for such high bandwidth video?

[SCDVD]

WiFi streaming is problematic for video. It's hard to avoid stuttering on the video. HD is even more of a problem with WiFi data rates. An Ethernet connection is a much better choice.

[Xylob the Destroyer]

..."What you don't understand is corporate politics," he says in the response. "Microsoft [officials] want both formats to fail so they can be heroes and make the world move to digital downloads."...

This part certainly isn't news. They've been trying to get into this business forever, and as broadband penetration increases, so do their chances of success.