“We’ve listened to our customers, who are showing a clear preference toward Blu-ray products and movies with their purchases,” said Gary Severson, senior vice president, Home Entertainment, Wal-Mart, U.S. “With the customers best interest in all we do, we wanted to share our decision and timeline with them as soon as possible, knowing it will help simplify their purchase decision, increase selection, and increase adoption long term.”

“We anticipate enhancing our selection with continued great values in hi-definition Blu-ray products, so our customers can further enhance their entertainment experience at home.”

By June, Wal-Mart and Sam’s stores will only offer Blu-ray hardware and DVD’s. 2008 has not been kind to HD DVD. Toshiba rang in the new year by getting the devastating news that Warner Bros. would produce all of their HD titles on Blu-ray.

The decision was made after company research said HD DVDs had the necessary technology on the market, low manufacturing costs and best value and quality for consumers, they said.

On August 28, Blades of Glory kicked off this new program as the first release. Transformers and Shrek the Third follow.

These three movies represent more than $1.5 billion in worldwide box office sales, and company executives believe the sales will keep increasing.

“The combination of Paramount and DreamWorks Animation brings a critical mass of current box office hits to consumers with a line-up of live action and animated films that are perfect for HD DVD,” said Brad Grey, Chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures, the leading studio in domestic box office revenue. “I believe HD DVD is not only the affordable high quality choice for consumers, but also the smart choice for Paramount.”

Regular DVD players are hardware-based, while HD DVD and Blu-ray systems rely on software. That means updates and movie extras can be easily downloaded from the web. Even with this similarity, many movie and technology powerhouses support Blu-ray technology since it offers more than five times the storage capacity of traditional DVDs while still having great image quality.

The price between HD DVD players and Blu-ray players, however, is what interests consumers the most. The cheapest HD DVD player retails for approximately $300, while the cheapest Blu-ray devices sell for at least $599.

“We decided to release Shrek the Third and other DreamWorks Animation titles exclusively on HD DVD because we believe it is the best format to bring high quality home entertainment to a key segment of our audience,” said Jeffrey Katzenberg CEO of DreamWorks Animation. “We believe the combination of this year’s low-priced HD DVD players and the commitment to release a significant number of hit titles in the fall makes HD DVD the best way to view movies at home.”

Paramount Home Entertainment will issue new release dates for upcoming films and will also sell catalog titles in the future. Steven Spielberg films remain uncommitted to either format.

Sony announced last week that the film is the first high definition disc to ship more than 100,000 copies. It’s also the first to have broken into the top 10 on Amazon.com’s best-seller list.

The movie is a perfect selling point for Sony’s Blu-Ray format, and an appropriate one for the company to use as a launching pad to surpass rival format HD-DVD. The crisp transfer on the Blu-Ray version allows fiery explosions to jump off the screen, and highlights every drop off water dripping off Daniel Craig’s sculpted abs as he emerges from a swim.

The special edition-available in both wide screen and full screen-includes a handful of extras tied to both the film and the franchise. A “Becoming Bond” documentary highlights the transformation of unlikely casting choice Craig into a blonde James Bond. A version of the 2002 AMC production “Bond Girls Are Forever” examines the role of leading ladies in Bond films over the years, and is updated to include Eva Green’s Casino Royale character, Vesper Lynd. Stunts performed in the movie’s numerous action sequences are dissected in a second featurette. And then, of course, is the token pop music video: in this case, for Chris Cornell’s “You Know My Name,” which provides the soundtrack to the opening credits of the film.

However, film buffs may want to hold off on rushing out to purchase the DVD, as in what is becoming the norm for DVD marketing, something along the lines of a “Super Special Deluxe Edition” will likely be released in the coming months, with additional extras and perhaps never-before-seen footage.