XBOX 2 TO UTILISE HD-DVD?

Japanese giants NEC and Toshiba would like to see Microsoft use HD-DVD for Xbox 2, the next-generation DVD format and a competitor of Blu-ray - the disc format Sony is utilising for its next PlayStation.[br]According to reports, both NEC and Toshiba, avid supporters of HD-DVD (High Definition Digital Versatile Disk) eventually replacing DVD, have relayed their hopes at the ongoing CEATEC Japan Technology Exhibition, near Tokyo.[br][br]NEC is reportedly actively working at persuading Microsoft to adopt the new format, while it's said that Toshiba president Tadashi Okamura has commented: "We'd of course like them [Microsoft] to use it." [br][br]And that... is it. More on Xbox 2 soon, no doubt.

They could end up use either of the two formats, both of them are supposed to have Microsoft's VC-9 codec (it's not mandatory, MPEG-2 is still in there). However, I do find it likely that if they use a blue laser technology, it would be HD-DVD, because it's the competitor to Sony's Blu-Ray.

It'd be nice if there was one standard, but as usual Sony has gone out of their way to make something on their own. I hope Blu-Ray ends up like the Betamax, otherwise we'll end up in a format war for movies. Yes, you could make a device that is compatible with both, but then you get to pay royalties TWICE, so the device would be more expensive even if you're using hardware that can handle both.