JamieG Analysis

I have been writing about Blu-Ray a lot over the past year. More than I expected. I predicted it winning the war 8 months before hand. I predicted Microsoft would install Blu-Ray drives once HD-DVD lost.

I don’t count myself cleaver for making these predictions. Just level headed.

Now, apart from writing about these predictions, I have spend much more time re-buffing posts by respected Blogs and news sources that are already getting the grave stone ready for Blu-Ray.

I am not saying there isn’t some weight in their comments, however, they have no answer to future storage needs that the future will bring.

No doubt that ONLINE will reduce the requirements for using optical media to store or purchase Video content on. “REDUCE” being the key work here.

What about all the NEW reasons to bolster the need for hi-capacity storage.

Firstly, if you’re stupid enough to ONLY trust long term storage to an external online company. You’re a bigger fool then most. The percentage of companies that have survived longer than 100 years is VERY small. Let alone, if you forget to pay the bill, or many other issues that can lead to problems with this idea.

Consumers will need personal mass storage solutions. To store there favourite movies, they may have purchased, or to store their videos and photos. (For example, any CamCorder TODAY does HD which NEEDS blu-ray)

This IS a huge industry now. Look at the number of Blank Disks that get sold every year (Google it). It is MASSIVE. This industry alone will ensure the survival on Blu-Ray.

But lets get back to Blu-Ray and the distribution of Video content.

Blu-Ray has a far better DRM/copy protection system then DVD. Sure, it can be cracked, but you need to keep at it and give it a lot of effort. As such, I predict now that one of the main reasons the WAR ended so quickly is because the studios are planning to do stagged release of Videos. Blu-Ray, a month later DVD/Online.

They want to leap frog DVD ASAP. And they will be taking big steps to do so.

(Note, the consumer electronics industry would love this too. Get everyone to re-purchase equipment)

Sure, online will be huge, but there is a HUGE part of the world that will not have suitable internet access, if at all, for a long time. Saying Blu-Ray is dead is ignoring this market. It is quite simply a ludicrous viewpoint and as I have said before, borders on FUD. (to me, to be caught producing FUD is about the worst internet crime there is, nearly as low as spammers).

Come on GUYS open your eyes.

(I especially point my finger at “On Digital Media“)