Even as Blu-ray celebrates the future, our present format leader, DVD, had a noticeable sales slippage in 2007. Following a slide in the amount of DVD player sales this should surprise no one, but may give insight to Warner Bros. reasoning in abandoning its dual-format release schedule. A drop in U.S. spending on DVD purchases by 3.6% according to DEG wasn't as bad as expected but studios are definitely looking for the next big thing to make up for DVD's lack of growth.

Microsoft announced today that it has partnered with Broadcom to create a reference design for a low cost HD DVD player. With Windows CE-based software and Broadcom's BCM7440 system-on-a-chip based hardware the idea is to give volume manufacturers a chance to drive prices down faster than Blu-ray can match. Lite-On IT and Zhenjiang Jiangkui Group Co. Ltd./ED Digital are already on deck to build players based on the design, for this war not to be over already HD DVD is going to need every bit of price and manufacturing advantage it can get.

We've seen various slates of HD DVD / Blu-ray titles come out today, and heading up the rear of the release lists is none other than Lionsgate. While a Lionsgate film (The Descent) has caused quite a bit of fuss lately, the studio is hoping to create some positive PR noise by announcing that 40 BD titles should be hitting shelves with its name on it during this year, starting with Crank. It also highlighted the Golden Globe-winning TV series Weeds would be making its way to Blu-ray disc, as well as Ultimate Avengers I and II on the animation side. If you're anxious to get a few more Lionsgate productions in your collection, Employee of the Month is landing on January 16th, while the sure-to-be-successful Saw III hits on the 23rd. Overall, Lionsgate's 2007 list is far from spectacular, but it's got a bit of everything mixed in, including one of our personal favorites: Reservoir Dogs on February 6th. Click on through to see the first 21 titles to be released from Lionsgate on Blu-ray disc this year.

The Blu-ray Disc Association has wasted no time, issuing a statement that it is victorious as the premiere high definition format of choice. With 25 different companies having released Blu-ray related products, over 170 movie and music titles announced so far and of course, more than one million PlayStation 3s shipped to the U.S. Andy Parsons, chair of the U.S. Promotions committee is comfortable citing Blu-ray's industry support as a reason customers have voted with their wallets and will continue to do so. In 2007 the BDA looks forward to second generation PC and and standalone Blu-ray drives, like the BD-P1200, the Sony Vaio XL3 and a strong lineup of movie releases as why its market share will continue to increase this year, all but eliminating any competition by 2010. Check out our live coverage of the BDA press conference going on right now for more propaganda/truth (depending on your viewpoint).

Warner has just released its 2007 plans for Blu-ray releases during the BDA press conference here at CES and... they look an awful lot like Warner's 2007 plans for HD DVD. Actually, they are the same. Almost everything is the same, sans HD DVD/DVD combo releases, Warner notes it has put out 33 Blu-ray discs so far, with Superman Returns leading sales for 2006. Still, we're sure that Blu-ray fans are happy to hear they won't be missing out on Martin Scorsese's The Departed, The Matrix, Harry Potter or even a few titles that have already been released on HD DVD like Enter the Dragon. Blu-ray will also be getting Ultimate Collector's Edition discs, but we have a funny feeling that all this parity is somehow related to Warner's recently announced Total HD combo disc.

Following up on the HD DVD Promotional Group's statement about other manufacturers lining up to support HD DVD, Onkyo has confirmed that it has a player in development to be released this year. Onkyo plans to introduce its HD DVD player along with HDMI-connected receivers to capitalize on the enhanced audio/video capabilities of the format. More details about the player aren't available yet but 2007 apparently will be the year we see HD DVD players from someone other than Toshiba.

The North American HD DVD Promotional Group took advantage of its press event to spread the good news about HD DVD, noting that over 300 additional HD DVD titles should be arriving in 2007. As of January 5th, the group estimates there were more than 175,000 HD DVD players sold in America, with an annualized attach rate of 28 movies per player. The group projects sales will reach 2.5 million players by the end of this year and more than $600 million worth of movie revenues. HD DVD buyers can look forward to more HDi enhanced titles, now featuring internet features that were demoed at the event, as well as more players hitting the market from manufacturers like Lite-On, Alco, Alpine, Meridian and Onkyo. Look for the trend of combo releases to continue, as the format's backers see it as a viable way of introducing current DVD owners to the format and building a library prior to upgrading. With Sony already hitting 1 million PS3s shipped and HD via IPTV picking up steam HD DVD surely has its work cut out for it in 2007 but with a slew of reference quality releases and enhanced hardware offerings they expect to hit all their goals.

Just because they don't have a shiny new 8G plant yet isn't stopping CMO from getting in on the 52-inch 1080p LCD battle. HDTVs from Sharp, Samsung and Sony are already on sale or coming soon, and Chi Mei Optoelectronics, plans to join them in the first quarter of 2007. While you may not know the name, their panels are in many HDTVs you do know like Westinghouse and Toshiba. They'll be showing their 52-inch LCD next month at FPD International 2006 in Japan, and plan to upgrade production to 180,000 glass substrates by December. Their current 5.5G plant can only get two 52-inch LCDs from each substrate however, while the newer plants produce six at a time. Either way, next year will have a lot of players competing in the 40 to 50-inch LCD space driving prices down, we see what they've been able to do at the 47-inch tier. It's not all good news though, CMO may be having trouble mass producing the 56-inch 3,840×2,160 resolution LCD they showed off last year. With four times as many pixels as current 1080p screens, they promise all new debates over how much resolution is actually necessary...whenever the technology is actually released.

No surprise there, but the question is how much? LG was quoted a few days ago as saying they expect LCD prices to plunge as by 30% or more next year, mimicking their behavior in 2006, while today Hitachi says they expect plasmas to drop around 20%. Both have big plans for next year, with LG rolling out their first 47-inch 1080p LCD this year, along with 1080p 65- and 70-inch PDPs, followed by smaller versions of both the LCDs and plasmas next year. Hitachi has a few tricks up their sleeve as well, with their own 50-inch 1080p plasma slated for next year and a high-powered advertising campaign. Still, with so many competitors, both know that increasing production and cutting prices will be the key to keeping/increasing their marketshare. Now the hard part for consumers is knowing when to jump in, that prices have and will continue to drop is nothing new, but even when what is now a brand-new TV is 20% off, you'll have to choose between old technology, a shiny new LED-based set, SED or even something else.


Read - LG Elec sees LCD TV prices down 30% plus in 2007
Read - Hitachi sees smaller fall in plasma TV prices