14 DAY TRIAL // It's common knowledge that consoles today are much more than gaming systems, but video and audio entertainment tools also. Thus, Sony and Microsoft implemented their machines (the PS3 and respectively the Xbox 360) with high definition viewing hardware and software. Microsoft chose the HD-DVD, while Sony came up with the Blu-ray technology. In an interview with GameDaily.biz, analyst Michael Pachter believes that the PS3 will ultimately win, just barely though, thanks to the Blu-ray format.
"We expect the dominant console at the end of the next cycle to be the Sony PlayStation 3 (PS3), primarily due to our assessment that Sony will win the high definition DVD format war. "However, we expect Microsoft's Xbox 360 to enjoy a first mover advantage for the next two years, capturing approximately 44% of U.S. and European combined next generation hardware unit sales by the end of 2007."
Pachter's ultimate prediction for the console wars: Sony wins first place on the market, Nintendo second and Microsoft third: "Ultimately, we see Sony 'winning' the console war with 36% of the market, with Nintendo 'capturing' second place at 34% and Microsoft finishing third at 30%."
These predictions may very well be right as there's no significant difference (if not at all) between the two formats, so in the end, it will be a matter of which format the motion picture studios choose. Sony did start pretty bad with the PS3 but you know, implementing the Blu-ray they had a long time-frame in mind.