CES 2008: It looks like this year’s Consumer Electronics Show might be remembered for Sony’s (NYSE: SNE) Blu-ray disc winning the high def disc format war. With Warner (NYSE: TWX) announcing that they are going exclusively with Blu-ray and rumors that Paramount will do the same, it might just be checkmate for Toshiba's HDDVD format.

A 2007 decline in DVD sales, which account for half of Hollywood's profits, and anticipated further declines in 2008, sped Warner's decision making process, seemingly cementing Blu-ray's victory.

It was not a day too early.

I have pointed it out before - what will possibly be the last physical format for movies and TV shows (before Internet distribution takes over) has done nothing but slow down the adoption of high def players. Consumers have understandably held out on their purchase decision, afraid of choosing the wrong format.

Hopefully the consumer electronics industry can now put their money to better use elsewhere. For example, I don’t understand why CE companies can’t merge all the boxes into one? I would love to have video-downloading and gaming capabilities built right into the television set.

And make it all wireless already.

Joakim Baage

Poll: Has HDDVD Lost the High Def Format War?