Warner Bros is still thinking about those customers who bought HD DVD discs as the studio set up a scheme to get them to transition to the Blu-ray experience.

In exchange for the cover art from their HD-DVD movies – but not the disc itself – plus a fee, Warner Bros is offering to ship the Blu-ray version of any film sold by the movie studio in the now-defunct format.

The offer comes more than a year after Warner Bros.' Home Entertainment Group delivered the death blow to HD DVD by announcing that it was dropping the Toshiba-backed high-definition format in favor of Sony. Warner Bros. accounts for roughly 20% of DVD sales in the United States.

The "Red2Blu" service costs $4.95 per disc, plus $6.95 shipping and handling in the continental US or $8.95 in Alaska, Hawaii or Puerto Rico.

There are 128 HD DVD titles that Warner Bros will accept, for which customers will e sent the Blu-ray version. Up to 25 HD DVD movies may be upgraded per household. The entire transaction takes four to five weeks.

Warner is not the first company to offer a break to people who bought HD DVD titles. Best Buy about a year ago handed out $50 gift cards to buyers of HD DVD players. The retailer had planned to distribute more than $10 million in the giveback.

Story filed 27.04.09