Bertelsmann ponders its harmony with Sony

Bertelsmann, Europe’s biggest consumer media group, said that it would sell out of the music business if Sony, its joint-venture partner, was willing to offer a similar valuation to that paid by Guy Hands when he bought EMI for £2.1 billion last year. Thomas Rabe, the chief financial officer, said: “What we will do depends on price. Of course, the EMI price is a good price for a seller, but we would not be interested in selling if we were offered a figure based on the current valuation of Warner Music. The market is undervaluing music assets.” (Times Online, FMQB)

Microsoft says no Blu-ray for Xbox

Microsoft Corp is not in talks to include Sony Corp's Blu-ray high-definition DVD technology in its Xbox 360 video game console, an executive said on Wednesday. The comments by Aaron Greenberg, group product manager for Xbox 360, poured cold water on recent speculation that Microsoft could support Blu-ray after Toshiba Corp, backer of the rival HD DVD format, gave up when key movie studios and retailers abandoned the technology. (Reuters)

Format war reworks 1980s video fight

The race to succeed the DVD between Blu-ray, backed by Sony, and HD-DVD, backed by Toshiba and Microsoft, mirrors the VHS-Betamax format war of the 1980s. When VHS triumphed over Betamax, the victory inspired a surge in consumer spending on home video, forming a lucrative fresh revenue stream for Hollywood. (Financial Times)

Analysis: Looks like Blu-ray Finally Have Won the High Def War

It looks like this year’s Consumer Electronics Show might be remembered for Sony’s (NYSE: SNE) Blu-ray disc winning the high def disc format war. With Warner (NYSE: TWX) announcing that they are going exclusively with Blu-ray and rumors that Paramount will do the same, it might just be checkmate for Toshiba's HDDVD format. (Digital Media Wire)