See news headline here Microsoft Cuts Price of Xbox 360 Add-On
Short article, but the quick and dirty of the news is that Microsoft has dropped the price of their HD-DVD add-on drive (which already includes a copy of the movie King Kong in HD-DVD format, along with the inclusion of their 'media' remote control -- which doubles as a universal remote control for most TVs and also controls the Xbox 360 -- which normally sells separately for approx. $30) by $20 -- from $199 down to $179. Of course these are the suggested retail prices, some retailers may offer lower pricing, etc.
No mention in the news article of the movies that are available to choose from at this time, though it is reportedly a list of 15 titles that buyers will be able to choose 5 titles from. If this is done similarly to the way Sony and company have done their Blu-ray disc give away there will be additional restrictions such that you must choose 5 titles but have to pick each one from a subset of 3 to 5 titles per. Meaning you must pick one selection from a choice of 3 titles as your choice for disc A, then repeat that process for disc B, repeat again for C, etc. The idea being that you can't cherry pick from the entire 15 title list and must choose from some titles you may not really want.
Anyway, it's nice to see Microsoft firing a salvo across Sony's bow in trying to keep the HD-DVD format viable. Though some people have been hoping for an end to the format war, I'm happy having a choice and having the competition between HD-DVD and Blu-ray. The competition has been keeping prices down and has -- in my opinion -- helped keep Sony and the Blu-ray camp more user friendly in the features that they offer. If HD-DVD didn't exist, I suspect that Sony and their partners would already be implementing nasty restrictions on the use of Blu-ray discs, or at least would be limiting the ability to get the highest definition playback on equipment that isn't connected up over HDCP supporting ports. Sony already does limit the ability to up-convert DVD format playback on the PS3, and would like nothing better than to place more restrictions and copy protections into effect to help push hardware sales, and help keep customers from ripping off their intellectual property.
In my case I have players for both formats, and as I pointed out elsewhere, the discs and cases take up the same space in my collection. It is simple enough for me to reach into the cabinet, pull out a movie and place it into the appropriate player. I'm happy that I can get some of my favorite movies in either format and I'm not rushed to see a winner in this format war as I'd rather see competition stay around and help keep prices down for the discs I want to buy.
