Blockbuster Gives Blu-ray The Nod June 18, 2007

Read more Blu-ray , HD , HD DVD , HDTV , Movies

HD DVD has just received a royal kick in the nuts from the hobnailed boots of the Blockbuster movie rental empire in the US. The group has put its faith almost completely in the Blu-ray HD movie format and said it's going to roll out Blu-ray movie rentals to 1,700 stores by the middle of next month.

Originally, HD DVD and Bu-ray were on offer in 250 of its stores and, while HD DVD flicks will still be offered in those 250 stores, Bu-ray has gotten the green light for the big push.

"We intend to meet the demands of our customers and based on the trends we're seeing, we're expanding our Blu-ray inventory to ensure our stores reflect the right level of products," said Matthew Smith, SVP mrchandising for Blockbuster. “While it is still too early to say which high-definition format will become the industry standard, we will continue to closely monitor customer rental patterns both at our stores and online, so we can adjust our inventory mix accordingly and ensure that Blockbuster is offering customers the most convenient access to the movies they want, in the format they want.”

As the man above stated, it’s too early to say which format will win but this is a big blow to HD DVD, which has been staging somewhat of a comeback in recent weeks.-Martin Lynch

HD DVD blu-ray movies blockbuster