It's OFFICIAL: Toshiba kills HD DVD!

by Alex Zaharov-Reutt

Tuesday, 19 February 2008

Page 2 of 3 Nishida continued that: "While we are disappointed for the company and more importantly, for the consumer, the real mass market opportunity for high definition content remains untapped and Toshiba is both able and determined to use our talent, technology and intellectual property to make digital convergence a reality.” Of course, as we noted in an article entitled “It’s hari-kiri for HD DVD, can Toshiba survive?”, Toshiba is far from dead just because a video player they created didn’t get the momentum they hoped for. Toshiba remind the world that they are far from dead, and will “continue to lead innovation, in a wide range of technologies that will drive mass market access to high definition content.  These include high capacity NAND flash memory, small form factor hard disk drives, next generation CPUs, visual processing, and wireless and encryption technologies. The company expects to make forthcoming announcements around strategic progress in these convergence technologies”. Mark Whittard, General Manager ISD Toshiba Australia Pty. Ltd. said that: “While we continue to believe HD DVD is the best format for consumers, based on its technological advancements and the value inherent in our player offerings, recent market developments have led us to the decision to choose new and different paths". Providing an additional assuranace to Australian HD DVD player owners concerned they will no longer receive service on HD DVD players that develop any kind of fault, Whittard promises Toshiba Australia won't let them down, saying that "We will continue to service and support all of our HD DVD customers and work closely with our retail partners to manage their specific business requirements.” But what about all those retailers still receiving shipments of HD DVD equipment into their stores today, of both HD DVD players and HD DVD equipped Toshiba notebooks? Toshiba's official word is that: “Toshiba will begin to reduce shipments of HD DVD players and recorders to retail channels, aiming for cessation by the end of March 2008. Toshiba also plans to end volume production of HD DVD disk drives for such applications as PCs and games in the same timeframe, yet will continue to make efforts to meet customer requirements. The company will continue to assess the position of notebook PCs with integrated HD DVD drives within the overall PC business relative to future market demand”. Now, lest you think that Toshiba is going to give up on the movie business altogether, Toshiba informs us that nothing could be further from the truth. To see what Toshiba say in this regard - and what Toshiba say concerning their relationship with the movie studios and IT companies that backed either Blu-ray or HD DVD in the 21st century's biggest format war - please read onto page 3. << First page <   1 2 3 Next page > Last page - Post your comment >>

 

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