DVD is history: get ready for next video format

It will come as a shock to film fans who have spent Christmas stocking up on their movie collections, but the technology industry is in agreement: the DVD is dead.

Consumer electronics companies have begun to show off what they believe will be the next generation of home video technologies. But despite the common belief that the DVD is history, the industry is split over what the next step should be.

Two warring factions each believe their product should become the standard that takes over from the DVD, and both sides have been using the huge Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show this week to confront each other directly.

In one corner stands Sony, which has gathered a wide spread of support for a new format known as Blu-Ray. In the other is Toshiba which is championing HD-DVD, a cheaper, less advanced option.
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