Rumor: Paramount set to jump ship, HD DVD all but dead

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HD DVD’s booth at CES was a sad, sad sight to see. You could tell by the demeanor of everyone working the booth. They knew. Blu-ray’s booth was less than 20 yards away and they were rocking out and people were milling around trying to watch demos, take pictures with Captain Jack Sparrow and the Spartans from 300. Don’t get me wrong, I’m in HD DVD’s camp, but how are they going to recover from Warner Bros. departure?

The Financial Times is reporting that Paramount has a purported clause in their contract that allows them to switch sides in the event Warner Bros. backs out of HD DVD. Why the two studios have anything to do with each other is beyond me, but that’s what ‘people familiar with the situation’ are claiming. Biggs says it’s not over because Samsung is still producing dual format players and apparently they have more say in the situation then one is to believe, but we’ll wait and see what Paramount does.

Paramount in HD DVD blow [FT]