Sony has defended its Blu-ray DVD format following the news that Intel and Microsoft are putting their considerable weight behind Toshiba's HD-DVD.

Sony insisted that there would be "no impact" from Microsoft's and Intel's decision, and that Blu-ray offered better copyright protection, according to a report in the Financial Times.

But Toshiba now believes that the endorsement of Microsoft and Intel is likely to make HD-DVD the standard for the next generation of DVDs.

Analyst firm Gartner advises caution, however, predicting that DVD recorders and games consoles will be a major factor in determining the preferred format.

The company pointed to the importance of Sony's intention to put a Blu-ray player into the forthcoming PlayStation 3 console.

For the moment at least, Blu-ray appears to have public support. In a July poll in the US 58 per cent indicated that they preferred Blu-ray, 26 per cent were undecided, and 16 per cent preferred HD-DVD.

A selection of Blu-ray players, recorders and computer drives are in development from leading vendors such as Sony, Hitachi and Sharp, as well as PC hardware from HP and Dell.

HD-DVD players are expected to be available by end of this year and recorders will be due in the first half of next year. Sony expects Blu-ray recorders and players to be out in the first half of next year.

In June the HD-DVD camp narrowed the gap between the two specifications by announcing plans for a 45GB triple-layer disc, bringing it closer to the dual-layer 50GB Blu-ray disc under development.