Both companies are following in the footsteps of several other major consumer electronics manufacturers and content providers and becoming members of the HD DVD Promotion Group.  Other prominent companies that are already members include NEC Corp, SANYO Electric Co. Ltd., Toshiba Corp, Universal Studios and Paramount Pictures Corp. and more.

“There are both challenges and opportunities in the transition to high-definition experiences throughout the home,” said Blair Westlake, corporate vice president of the Media/Entertainment & Technology Convergence Group at Microsoft. “And after looking at the core advantages to the PC ecosystem and how it would benefit the consumer, it is clear that HD DVD offers the highest quality, and is the most affordable and highly flexible solution available.”

“Our vision with Intel® Viiv™ technology is that digital media content can be enjoyed on these Intel-based PCs and consumer electronics devices in and around the home in an easy and affordable manner,” said Brendan Traw, Intel fellow and chief technology officer of Intel’s Digital Home Group. “Intel has determined that HD DVD best meets the needs of consumers and the requirements for the respective consumer electronics, computer and entertainment industries for delivering a high-definition, interactive experience to the home on optical media.”

A complete member list is available at http://www.hddvdprg.com/about/member.html.

In what appears to be more Windows Media Center centric reasons, both Microsoft and Intel cited the following reasons for joining the HD DVD camp:

This is a pretty serious blow to Blu-ray, and it will be interesting to see how the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) responds.  With Sony pushing Blu-ray into the upcoming PS3, there is sure to be even more consumer confusion with HD DVD and Blu-ray.  The one question that comes to mind is:  If Microsoft supports HD DVD, will Blu-ray devices be able to run under the upcoming Windows Vista operating system without a bunch of hoops to jump through?  I can hear the groans now.

Read our Talk Back article: Blu-Ray Wins or Nothing Does