Onkyo’s move into Blu-ray could be interesting. They shook up the AV receiver market by introducing receivers with fairly low prices yet a lot of features, causing competitors to slash prices and revise their lineups to retain market share. (Coincidentally I ordered an Onkyo TX-SA606 receiver to replace my suddenly dead Pioneer unit just yesterday.) If they follow the same with with their Blu-ray players, it could shake up the market. Onkyo pledges full support for Blu-ray’s audio and video capabilities, which would seem to indicate they’re player will be Profile 2.0 / BD-Live capable.

For the week ending 2/17, the last week before Toshiba pulled the plug on HD DVD, HD DVD managed to jump back to a 27% share, with Blu-ray at 73%. That put them at 76:24 for the year, and 65:35 since inception. It was clear Toshiba’s efforts were not working, with HD DVD only clawing back to roughly 3:1, from the previous week’s 4:1, which is still a big drop from the 2:1 split it held for most of 2007. Something I found interesting. During the war, Home Media Magazine usually had the BD/HD DVD split graphs right on the cover – this week they’re on page 40. There is also a dedicated Blu-ray supplement on this issue, which includes a list of currently announced 2088 releases through May. And a little article entitled “Format War’s End Kills Bloggers Main Topic“.

Onkyo, which had previously suspended HD DVD player production, has now officially killed their HD DVD players permanently. Since they used Toshiba components it is hardly surprising. They are instead turning to Blu-ray. Development of an Onkyo Blu-ray player has been underway, but no specific announcement has yet been made. Though it seems likely we’ll see it later this year, almost certainly before the holidays. Via Blu-ray.com.

sofatronic’s announces Kaleidoscope software, which makes authoring BD-J applications easier by allowing authors to create applications via a GUI editor. EngadgetHD has a press release from sofatronic about the release. Using the tool, authors can create interacting Blu-ray menus and applications without having to write any Java code. The tool will create the Java code for BD-J automatically. This is exactly the kind of thing I like to see, and hope to see more of. The easier it is for designers and authors to exploit the power of BD-J, the more use it will get.

The release:

sofatronic releases Kaleidoscope

Hamburg/Los Angeles, Feb 22, 2008 – Commercial Release of Kaleidoscope

sofatronic is releasing Kaleidoscope, a software platform for creating interactive applications on Blu-ray Discs. Working in a visual authoring environment, users can create user interfaces and advanced interactive features using the format’s unique capabilities without having to write Java code.

Kaleidoscope’s application framework supports all available Blu-ray player models and automatically handles performance differences and compatibility issues, two of the main concerns for Blu-ray authors today .

“The sofatronic team is extremely proud of today’s release of Kaleidoscope not merely for having succeeded in providing a technical solution to the various issues facing the HD industry, but in fact exceeding all expectations of what is possible with the platform. Without a shred of programming knowledge, the in-house designers at movie studios and authoring facilities can create an exciting palette of applications for the entire range of Blu-ray players – and bring it in under budget and on time.”
Rouven Malecki, CTO sofatronic.

sofatronic’s partners receive regular updates and access to new features via the company’s Developer Portal. Newly developed Application Modules are also published here, which make use of the advanced features of the Blu-ray platform, such as internet connectivity. All this and extensive technical support can be found at www.sofatronic-dev.com.

And now Onkyo, a fairly respected brand, is ‘suspending’ their support for HD DVD. Onkyo is a high-end brand, and they added an HD DVD player to their Integra product line last year. The Onkyo DV-HD805 is basically a re-badged Toshiba HD-XE1, which seems to have run into the same troubles as RCA – selling the same goods at a higher price. Onkyo is suspending sales in the UK, telling Home Cinema Choice:

[G]iven the current, multiple uncertainties surrounding the Blu-ray vs HD DVD issue Onkyo has decided against bringing any further DV-HD805s to the UK

Furthermore, it sounds like Onkyo may be ‘suspending’ their HD DVD support permanently, in light of Toshiba’s aggressive price cuts:

Onkyo brings its talents to bear where it thinks it can add value to a given product category. If a category becomes commoditised – as this sector shows signs of becoming – there’s less reason to commit huge resources to it when they may be better employed elsewhere.

Though they may yet release a new device, and if they do I’d expect it to be Blu-ray or perhaps a combination player, in light of the massive shift in the market to Blu-ray. Onkyo says that they will:

unveil a new HD source later this year, but cannot confirm at this stage whether it will be a HD DVD, Blu-ray or combi device.

Considering Toshiba’s deep price cuts, and Onkyo’s statement about adding value and commoditization, I can’t see them releasing another HD DVD player. Given the diversity in the Blu-ray market I could easily see them releasing a high-end Blu-ray player, say Profile 2.0/BD-Live, and perhaps a combi-player as LG and Samsung have done. Vendors just cannot make money selling HD DVD players with Toshiba’s massive subsidies to their own players. Toshiba may be fighting to buy market share with artificially cheap players, but they’re also driving away any other vendors who might support the format. When vendors can make money selling Blu-ray players, but not HD DVD. Which format are they going to support?

From Home Cinema Choice, via WesleyTech.com, by way of Gizmodo.