Blu-ray, which only just officially launched in Australia earlier this week, has already been declared the likely winner in the HD format war by the Australian press. At a Sydney event for the nation's leading media, retailers and analysts more than twenty Australian companies announced their support for the Blu-ray format including JB Hi-Fi, one of the largest consumer electronics retailers in Australia, which announced that they would be supporting the Blu-ray format exclusively.
"Today's launch is a clear demonstration of the overwhelming cross-industry support for the Blu-ray Disc format," said Michele Garra, chair of the Australian Blu-ray Disc Working Group. "The majority of the world's consumer electronics, IT, music, game companies and Hollywood studios, have already endorsed Blu-ray Disc because of its technical superiority and ability to provide an entirely new experience to consumers. We are thrilled to announce that Australian consumers can now experience Blu-ray Disc for themselves."
Scott Browning, Marketing Director at Australia's leading entertainment specialist retailer, JB Hi-Fi said, "Today's launch is one of the most significant in years for all Australian retailers interested in a slice of the growing entertainment market. Blu-ray is the only format that has the ability to tell the whole story, with the most comprehensive offering on the market. With seven of Hollywood's leading studios accounting for the vast majority of 2006's home video sales, among the 170 plus companies globally that support Blu-ray Disc, it makes sense that content will be king when it comes to Blu-ray."
"Indeed this is the reason that we have decided to only stock Blu-ray products at JB Hi-Fi. The range of exciting new film and TV releases as well as the potential back catalogue means that we can deliver everyone's favourite films on Blu-ray."
Globally, Blu-ray continues to grow as the natural choice, next generation format. In the United States, Hollywood studios are selling upwards of 45,000 Blu-ray titles weekly, with predictions showing steady growth driven by increasing hardware sales. According to Sony Computer Entertainment America, the
PlayStation 3 is making strong progress, with the company reporting that two million PlayStation 3 consoles have shipped worldwide — a figure which is further bolstered by emerging sales of stand-alone Blu-ray players. These figures show consumers are readily embracing Blu-ray as their preferred next generation high-definition entertainment format.