Microsoft Clarifies Vista HD Support
Joe Wilcox, an analyst with Jupiter Research, doesn’t think that this confusion over whether Vista users will or will not be able to play Blu-ray or HD DVD movies, will derail the Vista project. “It’s more of an ‘oh, that’s too bad,’ rather than an ‘oh, that’s terrible,’” he said.
Will it or won’t it? According to statements made by a Microsoft official at TechEd 2006 in Sydney, the 32-bit version of the company’s upcoming Windows Vista OS will not support protected high-definition content, including HD DVD and Blu-ray movies. Not now, not ever.
But, as news of the announcement spread across the Internet, Microsoft was quick to clarify senior program manager Steve Riley’s statements. He was, they say, essentially wrong in saying that protected video playback will require special security Relevant Products/Services from Microsoft features that won’t be part of Vista until the 64-bit release.
Whether or not it will actually happen is up to the third-party playback software makers and the content owners themselves. There will be no native Blu-ray or HD DVD support in Windows Vista.
Of course, it’s hard to imagine any of the major studios jumping at the chance to release HD content for a platform that, like Vista 32-bit, won’t be able to protect it. Since 32-bit processors still make up the vast majority of the market, it will be some time before the 64-bit version of Windows Vista — and the security for Blu-ray and HD DVD that will come with it — is released.
Next-Generation Entertainment
But Joe Wilcox, an analyst with Jupiter Research, doesn’t think that this confusion will derail the Vista project. “It’s more of an ‘oh, that’s too bad,’ rather than an ‘oh, that’s terrible,’” he said.
“If it was a situation where there was a lot of content available, a lot of consumer players on the market competing, and Windows Vista were about to launch, circumstances might be different,” Wilcox says, “but we’re talking very early days with technologies that really are a long way from mass market.”
And, at this point, high-definition video support from Media Center PCs is still more of an industry goal than a consumer expectation.
“When you think of the HD DVD or Blu-ray experience, probably you’re going to want to have it in your living room on the big screen TV,” said Wilcox. “What Microsoft and some of its partners have been hoping was to make that content available not just in the living room but throughout the home and further establish the Windows PC as a hub for digital entertainment. It was a dream that was far off anyway.”
source: www.toptechnews.com
