Another nail in the coffin – Netflix boots HD DVD

Continuing the work that Warner started to when it dropped HD DVD, Netflix announced today that it would cease the purchase of HD DVDs going forward and phase out its inventory by year end, choosing to support the Blu Ray format only.

The opening line of the press release says it all: “With the industry now having picked a winner in the face-off between the two competing high- definition DVD formats…” The release goes on to say that of the small portion of subscribers that choose to have their movies delivered in a high-def format, the majority are choosing Blu Ray.

As a HD DVD supporter, I was disappointed by the Warner announcement. This one, however, sounded the death knell in my eyes. I just recently started my Netflix subscription again, and I’ve been enjoying the HD DVDs being sent to the Prairie Lane compound. After reading this announcement this morning, I felt the air come out of my sails. My head dropped. Seriously. I was sitting at my desk, staring at the floor. This was the equivelant of the doctor telling you “there’s nothing we can do, the patient has 10 months to live. Enjoy your time together.”

A bit dramatic, sure, but you get the picture.

With the Netflix rental option out of the picture – even though they will continue to rent their current inventory – the announcement means no upcoming releases such as Beowulf, American Gangster, Fletch (yes the Fletch), Michael Clayton, and I Am Legend available for rental.

The announcement does not give specific dates, other than the year-end phase out, so there’s still hope that when Netflix clarifies the decision further, that some of the bigger new releases may see the light of day, but it’s not likely.

I still don’t think this accelerates by Blu Ray purchase plans (I’m holding out for a finalized product, I don’t want a version 1.1 player), but it certainly means Netflix is going to lose a subscriber once I’ve gone through the list of HD DVDs in my queue currently.