Warner backs Sony Blu-ray format

Blu-ray stand at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas
Blu-ray's supporters have been celebrating Warner's decision
Warner Brothers is to release high definition films only in Sony's Blu-ray format, in what is seen as a blow to Toshiba in the long-running format war.

Warner was the only major studio still releasing films both in Blu-ray and Toshiba's rival HD DVD format.

Five studios have opted to only release Blu-ray. Only Universal Pictures and Paramount Pictures favour HD DVD.

Toshiba has denied that its format is dead but it admitted disappointment with the Warner Brothers' decision.

Walt Disney, Twentieth Century Fox, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and, unsurprisingly, Sony Pictures are the other studios that only release in Blu-ray format.

Both formats deliver high definition pictures and sound and work with HD televisions, but they are not compatible with each other and neither will play on older DVD players.

Warner said it had opted for Blu-ray because 60% of its US high-definition sales last year had been in that format.

Warner Home Video will stop releasing new titles on HD DVD at the end of May.

'A quick death'

Rich Greenfield at Pali Capital predicted that HD DVD would now "die a quick death" and predicted that would be good news for DVD sales.

"While we still expect overall consumer spending on DVDs to decline at least 3% in 2008, the risk of an even worse 2008 DVD environment has most likely been avoided by Warner's early 2008 decision," he said.

Toshiba denied that its format was dead, with Akiyo Ozaka, president of Toshiba America Consumer Products saying that HD DVD "has not lost".

"We were very disappointed with Warner Brothers' announcement," he admitted at CES.

But he added: "Sales of HD DVD were very good last year, especially in October to December."

Warner's announcement was made ahead of the high profile Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.