Is Blu-ray the Next Sirius?

In this struggling global economy, it can definitely be a game of roulette as to what will get consumers to open their wallets when it comes to new products?  For example, it wasn't intuitively obvious that netbooks would account for such a large chunk of PC sales.  Be that as it may, I ran upon this analysis of trying to link Blu-ray with struggling Sirius XM radio, and postulating they will have a similar fate.

Huh?  I'm left scratching my head on this one as well.  I really don't see the parallel here.  They are just totally different business models.  Satellite radio is a pure subscription, and the hardware locks you into a single provider.  Don't pay the bill for the month, and you can toss the gadget out the car window as it won't do anything.  In the end, there just aren't that many folks willing to pay to listen to the radio.  With consumers picking up bills for more cell phone features, faster internet, and more HD channels, I just thought that satellite radio would be the breaking point, and mantra of "Enough is enough," and not be willing to fork over the "little more" for more choices.  In the end, I don't think it was terrestrial radio that was its main competition, but iPod and Zune devices, with their free podcasts, and never ending audio choices, that made many wonder why pay a monthly fee for so few channels of satellite radio compared to the endless internet.

The article goes on to point out that Blu-ray will follow the same fate which I disagree with.  First of all, it is not a closed ecosystem.  Any Blu-ray discs will work (with isolated exceptions) with every player.  While it is true that online video is the main competition, I think Blu-ray will still find a place.  How exactly are most consumers getting their NetFlix subscription onto the living room TV?  It's easier with a dedicated device, and Blu-ray has that covered as well with newer players that add in bells and whistles to differentiate themselves in a crowded market.  The Blu-ray player is slowly being transformed into a dedicated living room PC, in a way that was not foreseen.  Not to mention that so many owners of HDTV's want the highest quality image, and quickly realize that DVD's are not it.

No, Blu-ray is far from going down the road of satellite radio, and here to stay.  Don't you agree?