I bought it on Super 8, then on VHS, then Laser Disc, then DVD and now it’s available on HD DVD and BluRay. So what’s the next format I can look forward to buying it on?
HD DVD is great but can’t the movie look and sound even better? Is HD DVD the point where we are simulating the projected 35MM image electronically as closely as possible? If so, could they make it look even better than pristine prints struck from the original negative and projected with the best lense onto the finest quality silver screens in the next digital format?
If HD DVD is the ultimate in picture and sound, could they sell it to me again in a more compact format? Maybe a one inch square chip.
For many years I considered DVD to be the ultimate in resolution. Then a couple of years ago it started filtering into my head that there was going to be a higher resolution and that current DVDs would also become obsolete. I pretty much stopped buying them.
I imagine DVDs in 1080p is about as high in definition as one will ever need to go. I do not believe the eye can perceive much higher resolution on a moving screen at projection sizes that are reasonable for a home. I also believe that in the future there will be the need for only 5 supercomputers 
I really notice differences in quality of HD programs we receive on TV. Some of the shows are so grainy that the extra resolution is completely lost.
Next format’s probably going to be completely digital. Why lug around a case or disk when you can just shoot the file over to whatever display device you want to use it on? Hell, why even shoot the file anywhere when the entire world’s wired? Just log in to your account, wherever it is, and access the file there.
The entertainment industry and their siblings in the hardware section of the same are always looking for opportunities to sell more gadgets, and re-sell the old stuff with new packaging. Every format change means they can sell the old stuff again with great profit (which, BTW, is why the recording industry was making so much money in the 80’s and 90’s and why they’re bitching about lower profit margins now).
So… don’t look for a better format, look for the next gadget.
Sony thought that the PS3 with blu-ray would be as winning a concept as the PS2 with DVD. It seems it’s not working out the way they want. Without going into the debate about which is best, people are wary of format wars. Too many consumers still remember the Beta/VHS fight and one reason the shift from VHS to DVD was so painless was that everyone was behind it. As long as Joe Public doesn’t know what the winning format’s gonna be, he’s not gonna pay $1000 for a new player.
The electronics industry is selling flat screens and HDTV like crazy, but my guess is that next in line is integrating the computer (even more). I have my computer hooked up to my HDTV and with a tv card it’s also my DVR. Judging from people at workl friends ASF, not too many have their computer and tv hooked together, so my guess is some kind of box with Internet access and computerish features that will allow streaming software. The industry wants to find a way to combat illegal DLing, and if they can make money in the process, they’re gonna jump on the opportunity like a horny teen boy on free online porn.
In short about what is next - A new distribution system.
Yeah, hard drive storage with digital delivery of content. Set-top-box type hard drives with AV-out are already out there, and it’s not too hard* to set up a PC for that purpose.
This does open up a pay-per-viewing model, though. Nobody I know as a consumer likes that idea, being used to owning DVD you can watch as many times as you want for one purchase.
*: Not too hard for people like us, but it’s not quite plug-and-play like a DVD player, which is what needs to happen for the multitude of idiots and technophobes out there.
IIRC, the small metallic marble from Men in Black. “Great, looks like I’ll have to buy The White Album again.”
Yes, I know its real title is The Beatles.