High definition movie standards

I think it's funny that I'm pretty much a techie-nerd, but I haven't had a single entry about technical stuff yet. So it's time to put an end to that.

I think it's pretty much ingrained in our minds that "competition is good for the consumer". That's why we have anti-monopoly laws. And in general, it's a good idea to let the little guy be on the same playing field as the big guy.

But when it comes to technology, I'm not always sure I agree.

Take for example, HD DVD and Blu Ray Discs. These are the two new types of media that will let you watch high-definition movies on your home television. The problem is, the two formats are incompatible, so you pretty much have to pick one or another. And it's entirely possible that one of your favorite movies might be on one format but not the other.

You might think it's good that there are these 2 formats for consumers to choose from, and that the better one will end up winning a bigger market share. While this might be true, often times the "better one" is the one with more marketing dollars behind it. There's a huge incentive for a company's format to be picked as the "standard" because they often own trademarks or patents or other proprietary material that makes them rich when other people start licnesing it. Is that really "what's best"? And until this format-war is played out, consumers will have to pick one side or another (with players costing upwards of $1000 right now it's unlikely people will buy two players).

I personally could care less which format wins. I'd much rather have the format war be over with, so that I know for sure which types of movies I can watch at home. But maybe it's not so bad this is happening, because prices are so expensive now anyway that I'm going to wait a few years for prices to drop, and hopefully by then there will be more of a standard.

But then again, maybe I'll never really need a HD DVD or Blu Ray player anyway. I barely watch the DVD's that I currently own - I'm much more apt to watch something on cable. And with On Demand and internet movie purchases getting better and better, it's possible that video rentals may be going the way of the past. So by the time the prices have dropped and the clear winner has been declared, it may be that no one really wants to buy a high-definition movie player anyway.