The high defenition war is now over, but what could high definition possibly do for anime, and what does it has to contend with. Read our opinion in the matter.

Now that Toshiba, the maker of HD DVD has announced its high definition technology dead, the consumer electronics and entertainment industry can focus their efforts on a single high-definition media technology, Sony's Blu-ray. I for one would love to see 5 Centimeters per Second and The Place Promised in Our Early Days, which was originally produced in high definition, Air TV and tons of other anime in high definition. Nevertheless, how can high definition technology benefit the anime industry? With DVD sales continuing to decline in North America and online downloads or streaming videos have become the one-stop media for the majority of the fans, how will fans embrace anime on high definition?

Watching anime on high definition has its advantages: vivid and sharp pictures, vibrant colors, and (depending on the sound source) the sound is clearer.  One can hope that distributors would remaster the contents from its orignal source, and have entire series come out in 3 - 4 blu-ray disc box set. Personally, it is something that I've sink my teeth into already. However, great picture and sound quality is all that it has to offer for now, and no matter how great of the quality, it has to contend with some obstacles. Here are a few I can think of:

(This is not a debate for piracy and fansubs, but it will touch on certain aspects of it.)

•      Quality - Fans will continue to download fansubs, watch streaming online video, and purchase standard DVD as long as they can watch anime, regardless of video and sound quality.

•      One Stop Media – As fans continue to download anime online and watch series on distributors' websites, the ongoing trend for the viewers is not purchase the actual product on any media format once they have seen it.

•      Equipment Price Point – unless you already have a high definition setup, the majority of anime fans is in their teens, and is less likely to purchase new equipment to watch anime on high definition.

•      Disc Price Point - unless Blu-ray starts to takeover standard DVD, the prices of anime on high definition discs will start at a point when anime is just gaining popularity, but this will also depend on the anime distributor to suggest the MSRP of the product.

•      DVD Upconverter – this depends on if you already have high-definition television.

DVD with upscaling capabilities (up to 1080p) prices are decreasing. Most are now under a $100 with upscaling to 1080i. It is not truly high definition, but scaling will make it look magnificent, especially to the untrained eyes.

Except when standard DVD media and equipments are phased out in favor of Blu-ray, anime on standard DVD will still be the choice of fans who purchase the actual product and know that upconverters and high definition players have upscaling capacity.

While the last three items that I listed will eventually change with time, the format still has to assert itself against illegal online downloading and official HD downloads through legitimate online distributors, but HD download will be tested on its "retention"- if the file expires or it is download-to-own.

As for the fans embracing anime on high definition, in time they will embrace it as we all move together into this high definition world. Whether it will be on physical media or downloaded content remains to be seen, but I do hope that fans will see the difference and how crystal clear anime on high definition is.

Article written by Rommel Salandanan