HD DVD marketing stepped up

Toshiba is stepping up its HD DVD marketing efforts as studio support gradually ebbs to Sony's rival Blu-ray format.

The electronics manufacturer went on the offensive today in a bid to save the format after Warner Bros confirmed it would join other major studios including Disney and 20th Century Fox in support of Blu-ray, leaving only Paramount among HD DVD's major studio proponents.

"HD DVD is proven to be the format of choice for consumers," Toshiba said today, citing a 50% US market share for next generation DVD sales in 2007.

Jodi Sally, Toshiba's vice president of DAV marketing, added: "HD DVD is the best way to watch movies in high definition. Our HD DVD players not only play back approximately 800 HD DVD titles available worldwide and deliver an entirely new level of entertainment, but also enhance the picture quality to near high definition on legacy DVD titles by all studios. In short, we added hi def to DVD which already is the de facto standard format created and approved by the DVD Forum that consists of more than two hundred companies."

As part of the renewed marketing push, Toshiba will cut prices on its US HD DVD players effective immediately.

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