The two different factories working completely independently suddenly created near enough the same thing at the same time. These things were Toshiba HD DVD and Blu-ray.
Then came a fight. Various companies and motion picture houses supported one party or the other. Some, like Warner Bros, couldn’t decide who was going to win and so supported both. This made it impossible for the public to know what was going to happen and several people buying the wrong thing. In the end with Blu-ray securing big support from companies such as Universal, Paramount and Blockbuster, and, very importantly, PlayStation 3 launching itself as a dual games and Blu-ray Disc player, it was Toshiba HD DVD who, in February 2008, hoisted the white flag and threw all their rubbishy stupid useless boring bits of old metal in the bin.