Circuit City Notes Blu-ray Victory, Extends Trade-In Time Of HD DVD Players
The long-standing war between the two formats, and Blu-ray's eventual triumph will have a deep effect on the industry, and Circuit City is taking note and acting on the change.
"The recent format resolution for the next generation video disc is an important and singular development in the marketplace...and we feel our response in this one case is appropriate, generous and customer-focused," Circuit City spokesman Jim Babb said in a statement.. "At the same time, we note that while some people may want to return these players, many consumers are still purchasing HD DVD players because they are attractively priced at clearance, and they are high quality devices and play not only HD DVDs but also up-convert standard DVDs with improved playback quality."
Reflecting more changes, Sony CEO Stan Glascow earlier this week said Sony will reduce prices for its Blu-ray players from $399 to $299 by the end of the year.
And in another significant shift, he said Sony has been in talks with rival, Micrsosoft, about offering a Blu-ray drive for the Xbox 60, according to Financial Times.