Did Harry Potter win the the HD format war for Blu-ray?



Even before Warner Bros announced its exclusive support for the Blu-ray High Definition DVD format, rumours of various sweeteners from both HD camps aimed at securing the support of big Hollywood studios were rife.

Although Warner has dismissed claims that they were paid a massive $400m sweetener, rumours of this, and other payments continue to circulate.

Earlier in 2007, the rival HD DVD camp was at the centre of similar murmurings from industry insiders. The consortium led by Toshiba was said to have paid $150m to Universal and DreamWorks to secure their support.

Blu-ray supporters however have a different take on its emergence as the dominant format. Vice President of Panasonic's technology and liason group, Jeffrey Cove, points to Harry Potter and the 'Order of the Phoenix' as the defining moment in the format war.

Towards the end of 2007, 'Order of the Phoenix' was the only blockbuster out on both competing formats and as such provided a barometer for their respective success. By the end of 2007, blu-ray sales of 'Order of the Phoenix' had reached 4.2m compared to just 1.6m for HD DVD, the writing was on the wall ...