Toshiba Disc Blu-Ray Player

While Toshiba has reluctantly embraced the Blu-ray format, its former HD-DVD ally Microsoft is still refusing to budge. Earlier, its CEO Steve Ballmer had hinted at a Blu-ray addon for the company's Xbox 360 to gadget blog Gizmodo. But this turned out to be a "miscommunication" according to a Microsoft spokesperson, as Ballmer was referring to the PC market instead. This official response is in line with the Redmond software giant's vision of an online content distribution model, including Xbox 360's upcoming full-HD movie-streaming service in the US.
 

The new study suggests it may take a further eight years for Video on Demand services to become the dominant media provider. Research firm SNL Kagan has predicted that physical media – ie, Blu-ray and DVD – will continue to be the leading providers of home entertainment.According to the study, DVD is still overwhelmingly the main market leader, with a 97.1 per cent share. This is set to continue for the next five years, with Blu-ray finally becoming market leader – by an estimated 59.7 per cent – in 2014.