So it finally appears that the format war is over and while the outcome is what I expected, I’m left feeling a little sad. Sure I knew it would end and I knew someone would win, but I’m sad because HD DVD’s interactive features worked so well and maybe if the two camps would’ve gotten together before hand consumers would’ve been better off if both BD-J and HDi were part of the BD spec.
As odd as this might seem, I really enjoyed watching it all play out. With each announcement was a new debate and although I always thought Blu-ray would win because it has more industry support, HD DVD did have me wondering a few times.
In the end, I believe the consumer would be better served if HDi was added to the BD spec. I doubt this will ever happen, but I think it would be a nice option for the studios, especially when you consider that Warner still says a few titles like The Matrix Trilogy isn’t available on Blu yet because of where BD-J is.