@ Legend11

Many older TVs only had a RF connection and that's not great for noticing differences in quality between DVD and VHS.

The fact remains HDTV sales nowadays completely dominate TV sales, Blu-Ray adoption has happened at a faster pace than DVD adoptation. Many HDTV owners will want to get the most out of their TV setup, for this high definition content is needed and for this the PS3 is a very interesting device providing high definition games as well as industry standard Blu-Ray movie support.

Well, cosmetic changes do justify a new format.  That's why regular TVs are going the way of the dinosaur, analog receivers for TVs will be phased out by the new year, and more people are buying HDTVs.  The same argument could have been made to go from black and white TVs to color.  It was only cosmetic changes, but as you can see, it still changed.

DVD took years with no competition to take off. DVD came out in the late 90s and it was not till i think 2003 most stores only started sellin them and stopped with VHS. and if you got facts right HD movies are in more homes and are selling faster then DVDs were at this time in its life. i think blu-ray will take off fast and sony will make billions.....

This is what I was thinking about when I posted. Anytime something about PS3, Blu-ray, high def, etc., popped up, many would say that you have to allow average Joe to know what he's getting. Now with Blu-ray being the only hi def dvd, and the PS3 being one of the, if not the cheapest Blu-ray players on the market, average Joe doesn't have any confusion over media.

 About the price. Look at DVD over VHS. It was more expensive, yet people paid more for it. However, I do agree with the latter of that paragraph.

 All in all, yes, only time will tell

One major benefit VHS VCRs had over most common DVD players was that it was easy to do TV recordings (the one and only reason why I kept my good old Sony VCR). As the PS3 will soon add optional DVR support this may bring back this benefit and expand on this through better connectivity.

With Sony's PlayTV for the PS3 you can record TV programs, you should even be able to record and simultaneously watch another previous recording on your PS3 or even remotely using a PSP through Wi-Fi. I hope the service becomes a success and lives up to its potential, I am looking forward to this.

Does anyone think that online streaming-renting-downloading will take a bite out of Blu-rays growth?

I mean most people still haven't even embraced HD tvs, and when the majority of the market finally catches up, who's to say there won't be a better alternative, or a current alternative made stronger, to acquire media. Haven't Netflix and Blockbuster both setup downloadable movie systems?

I for one do not have a HDTV and have no plans for one until I see a system around 42" for 600 USD. However as most of us are gamers and chances are if you're in the PS3 and 360 camps you most likely have a HDTV to compliment your system. Consider yourself on the cutting edge if so... or a videophile, or a gamer, or not very resourceful with money, or a big spender.

Sony wont make anything out of selling PS3 it's a break even , and people buying it as a player wont buy games.
Where Sony and Toshiba and Samsung etc are reaping money is Flat TV's the players are just bait to sell a $3000 50 inch Flat TV.
Of course Sony/Philips/Warner will also make some cash selling stamping hardware for blu-ray manufacture.

Blu-ray's acceptance is allready far faster then DVD was. With the end of the format war will see it matching DVD sales within 3 years. Distribuitors will sell blu-ray version disks for the same price as DVD by end of this year as manufacturing costs will be the same by then (blu ray has less steps to manufacture than DVD does ) !
FYI - CD ,DVD's and Blu-ray are produced by imprinting information with a metal stamp much like vinyl records once were though the track is far narrower !.

I'm actually saying these spikes are do to tax returns... people get extra money and it burns a whole in their pocket. THEY GOTTA SPEND IT!

I don't know about you but I'm buying a media center capable of reproducing HiDef from the HDD whenever the TV decides to die on me. So that means, new TV + new computer for TV :)

So really the condition is the old TV not the format war, and I really didn't care about the format anyways.

No, they aren't. I dont' think most consumers really give a damn other than they want a sub $100 high definition video device and movies/content that is as available as current DVD and is priced very similarly. When that happens, hidef media will explode.