In a report out this week by the Entertainment Merchants Association, estimates are that by 2012 Blu-ray discs will overtake standard-disc sales. Apparently the EMA believes that Blu-ray sales will surge to $9.5 billion by then. What’s this have to do with the Apple TV you say?

I’ve always been a firm believer in that whoever controls the content will win or lead this new format war. I believe that customers want content, as big a selection as possible, and as easy to get at as possible. The reason I bring this up is because I happened to hear recently, from someone in the know about all things Blu-ray, that it took Blu-ray 15 months to gain the number of HD titles that Apple TV has gained in 5 months. I believe this gain comes from the obvious fact that Apple doesn’t have to take the time to produce a disc or the extra content which comes from producing a disc. Aside from getting permission from the studios to sell the titles, they or the studios simply have to digitize the movie and drop it into their database. As the Apple TV gains momentum, and if this surge in content continues, I believe our “little box that could” has an excellent chance of being at the top in the end.

Oh Blu-ray, you may have won the traditional media battle, but the digital war has just begun.