This story probably isn’t worth spending too much time analysing or trying to draw conclusions from, but it seems that Walt Disney Home Entertainment, a keen supporter of Blu-ray, still voted on a proposal for a new 51GB HD DVD format at a recent DVD Forum Steering Committee meeting.
This is generally an unusual move for Blu-ray exclusive supporters. The likes of Sony, JVC, Hitachi, and other members of the Blu-ray Disc Association tend to abstain from votes relating to HD DVD, which is understandable.
I’m not going to read anything into this, though I’m sure plenty will. There’s no reason that Disney shouldn’t vote on issues surrounding HD DVD, whatever its current or future stance on releasing HD DVD titles is.
Version 2.0 of the triple-layer HD DVD media, offering 51GB of storage, has just recently been approved by the DVD Forum. It was initially approved in September. It’s likely that the extended format will be compatible with most existing HD DVD players, though as far as I’m aware that hasn’t yet been confirmed.
