On August 28th, Paramount will ship its first high definition title to include a lossless or uncompressed soundtrack - 'Blades of Glory'. This title will feature a PCM 5.1 soundtrack for the Blu-ray release, but will feature no equivalent on the HD DVD, presumably because of the smaller disc capacity. Two weeks later, Paramount will ship 'Face/Off' with extras features available in high definition, but only on the Blu-ray version, again due to space constraints.
This is a drastic change from the Paramount we once knew. For the past year, Blu-ray owners have cringed as they saw release after release issued with low bit rate MPEG-2 video encodes and Dolby Digital soundtracks, while the HD DVD versions received VC-1 encodes and higher bit rate Dolby Digital Plus audio. It was disappointing to say the least.
The shift began with 'Flags of Our Fathers', which was released with a high bit rate AVC encode for the Blu-ray release. The audio was still lacking, but it was clear they were finally recognizing the Blu-ray consumer as a valuable asset. Now, with the addition of PCM audio, Paramount completes the high definition package and Blu-ray owners can now enjoy their favorite Paramount movies the way they were meant to be seen.
SWEET! I hope we get something special when they release Transformers on Blu-Ray....Could be announced this weekend at the Comic-Con...crossing fingers.
It has been a great week for blu-ray. As an HD technology fan, I could not be any happier. Well maybe a little bit happier if Universal were to anounce blu-ray releases. The blu-ray format is really coming on strong on all fronts.
This is great news, I may pick up Blades of Glory when it is released if the reviews for it are good... about Transformers being announced this week for Blu, I don't see that happening since the movie is still in theatres, HOWEVER anything is possible and if it is announced than that would be among the best news of the week.
Looks like Paramount is looking to stop the 2 SL disc SEs and taking advantage of BD50 instead, which is a good thing (though not so good if you are HD only). Odd that they gave Blades of Glory a PCM track on Blu but no lossless for HD, whereas they gave Top Gun PCM on Blu and TrueHD for HD (though Top Gun has no extras, so it might be just a space issue)
Hopefully Transformers gets the same special treatment. I was worried at first that we would definitely just get a bastardized HD DVD rip, but this news gives me hope. Do this right Paramount and Dreamworks!! Transformers could be your biggest BD release ever.
Great news. Now, if only they would change their minds about the release of Star Trek on HD DVD. The way that Paramount has implied in the past that they want to see the format war over and done, it makes no sense to me why they would help keep the losing format alive.
Is there any further confirm? The specs on dvdtown for Face/Off look identical between HD-DVD and Blu-ray. Also see them mentioned as identical in the news story on highdefdigest.com
I KNEW IT!!! I really knew it from beginning that the capacity of HD DVD's 30GB aint enough for high bit rates and lossless audio + extras!! But ALL the stupid HD DVD zealots denied it and kept yelling at me.
BTW!! OWNAGE NEWS for blu-ray i wish sooo bad Warner would follow and use blu-ray's possibilities. I bet no one would say then "HD DVD and Blu-ray = same PQ" THATS BS!!
Its the end of HD-DVD as we know it! Got to love it! Exclusive Blu-Ray features! Hahaha sorry Toshiba but if your lady told you size dosen't matter she was just playing you. ^_^
The title of this story is misleading. If Blu-ray is really so much better, then there is no reason to stoop to these lows. If you're going to win, do it with some class.
I have a PS3, Blu-ray remote and about 5 movies, but I’m growing weary of all the rhetoric and I’m thinking of adding the HD DVD attachment to my 360 when the $180 hits in a few days.
I dont understand... "Why"? honestly... theres 180 bucks worth of quality blu-ray titles wasted on a useless attatchment designed to play useless disks for a useless console...
My movies collection mostly come from Walt Disney. Rarely you will find me having Universal studio's DVD. I got quite a lot of paramount collection. So, good to hear the news. If Universal wants to switch, that will be better news. This will no doubt, boost BD sales. Go, BD!! Ditch HD DVD
On August 28th, Paramount will ship its first high definition title to include a lossless or uncompressed soundtrack - 'Blades of Glory'. This title will feature a PCM 5.1 soundtrack for the Blu-ray release, but will feature no equivalent on the HD DVD, presumably because of the smaller disc capacity. Two weeks later, Paramount will ship 'Face/Off' with extras features available in high definition, but only on the Blu-ray version, again due to space constraints.
This is a drastic change from the Paramount we once knew. For the past year, Blu-ray owners have cringed as they saw release after release issued with low bit rate MPEG-2 video encodes and Dolby Digital soundtracks, while the HD DVD versions received VC-1 encodes and higher bit rate Dolby Digital Plus audio. It was disappointing to say the least.
The shift began with 'Flags of Our Fathers', which was released with a high bit rate AVC encode for the Blu-ray release. The audio was still lacking, but it was clear they were finally recognizing the Blu-ray consumer as a valuable asset. Now, with the addition of PCM audio, Paramount completes the high definition package and Blu-ray owners can now enjoy their favorite Paramount movies the way they were meant to be seen. 
