Walt Disney has announced that it will begin rolling out Blu-ray formatted DVDs in September, officially choosing their side in the next-gen DVD format war that no one can afford (at least, not here at humble DVD Fodder). Beginning with a few select titles such as "Dinosaur" and "Eight Below," Disney plans to release a total of four Blu-ray disks in September, 5 titles in October, and continue launching salvos from their side of the war throughout the rest of the year.
Now it could just be us, but it appears that Sony's Blu-ray format might be on the verge of taking over the market. So far they have Buena Vista, 20th Century Fox, MGM, Paramount Home Entertainment, Lionsgate, Warner Home Video, and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment lined up on the Blu-ray side, while only Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Paramount, and Warner are releasing rival HD-DVD disks. Since no one could agree on a standard format, we're crossing our fingers in the hope that one format goes the way of the Dodo with the quickness (suffering the fate of Betamax), or that dual-format players become the living room set-top player's pièce de résistance.
Then again, if Verizon would hurry up and bring everyone FIOS to the curb, we could all download our movies and fulfill Bill Gates' prophecy of the "death of disks."
Disney's launch titles include this curious mix:
September:
* Dinosaur
* Eight Below
* Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
* The Great Raid
October:
* Glory Road
* Haunted Mansion
* Dark Water
* Gone in Sixty Seconds
* The Brothers Grimm