Digital Home Thoughts: Europeans Dig HD-DVD

"Blu-ray may have the upper hand in the North American high-definition market, but HD DVD appears to be the format of choice in Europe. European movie studios are favoring HD DVD over Blu-ray due to the cost savings involved in HD DVD duplication for these independent European studios, according to a report on the Financial Times. Part of the reason for Blu-ray's success in the US is due to the inclusion of Blu-ray players in Sony's newest console, the PS3. According to recent research from Adams Media Research, Blu-ray players that are built into consoles account for roughly 94 percent of all Blu-ray players purchased in the US. Going by that data, Sony's delay in launching the PS3 in Europe could then be holding back the adoption of Blu-ray among the movie studios there, many of which are independent and must focus on targeting the largest installed user base—HD DVD—with their limited budgets."

So basically what they're saying is that the reason Blu-ray is ahead here in the states is because of the PS3. Conversely, the reason why HD-DVD is ahead in Europe is because of the lack of the PS3. So does this mean that Blu-ray will be the eventual winner? At this point I'm so tired of the format war that I just wish one would win so we could get on with our lives. I was really hoping for HD-DVD to win, but at this point I just don't care. Anyone else here turned completely apathetic over the high-def disc war? Or are you still routing for one or the other?