DVD Wars - Prepare for the next round

In the run up to MacWorld speculation is rising on what Steve Jobs will announce. Things got more interesting with the announcement that Warner Brothers have withdrawn from publishing movies on HD-DVD. 

It seems highly likely that with Apple promoting High Definition in their software applications that they have to move to endorse one of the HD disc standards. The turf wars of the last twelve months seem to tip the balance in favor of Apple choosing Blu-Ray. 

Let's think about this for a moment, but not from a technology perspective. Let's consider instead some of the industry dynamics. Who uses  HD DVD? For one Microsoft in their Xbox. Then there is the other adversary, NBC Universal. They have thrown their hat in the ring with the HD DVD crowd. Is Steve going to apply his growing influence in the media and consumer electronics industries behind his adversaries. Picking Blu-Ray makes sense, after all Disney has adopted Blu-Ray and who is the largest Shareholder there? Yes, our man Steve.

So yes, Apple adopting Blu-Ray seems inevitable. If it creates inconvenience for Microsoft and NBC because they have to re-tool to switch to Blu-Ray at some point in the future that is just a nice fruity topping on an inevitable decision.