format war

Much like the format war that once divided us between HD DVD and Blu-ray, a battle between two different types of 3D-capable HDTVs rages on while customers wait to be convinced that any of the new tech is worth the troub

Toshiba Corp. has confirmed that it may pull the plug on its HD DVD format for high-definition video, the Japanese electronics maker said Monday.

However, according to The Associated Press, Toshiba has not made a final decision, but acknowledged that it had started a review of its HD DVD business strategy.

Like the Betamax-VHS battle in the 1980s, the format war between Toshiba-backed HD DVD and Sony's Blu-ray has slowed development of what is expected to be a multibillion dollar high- definition DVD industry.

Toshiba Corp. is reportedly planning to stop production of equipment compatible with the HD DVD format for high-definition video, giving the competing Blu-ray camp a free run.

According to the report from Reuters, which cited public broadcaster HDK as its source, as Toshiba scraps production of HD DVD players, recorders, and takes other steps to exit the business, losses are expected to hit hundreds of millions of dollars.