Toshiba's CES press conference kicked of with CEO of Toshiba, Atsutoshi Nishida, taking the stage and stating straight away that Toshiba has always enjoyed a "long history of technical innovation and market leadership".

Nishida stated that in 2007 both the Regza LCD television brand has achieved amazing success and that the HD DVD format has enjoyed "strong momentum and the strongest yet sales figures".

The CEO of the consumer electronics giant stated that Toshiba has been "suprised by the Warner Bros announcement to abandon the format later this year".

Nishida said plainly that Toshiba is "disappointed that the decision was made in spite of momentum in the US market in 2007".

He stated that they believe that HD DVD is still the "best format for wants and needs of consumers".

Following him on stage was Jodi Sally, Toshiba's vice president of DAV marketing, who, playing for sympathy with the press crowd, opened her speech with "this is a tough day for me" which got some knowing laughs.

Showing a brave front in the face of difficult timing, Sally said: "We've been declared dead before" and went on to emphasise the stability of the HD DVD format, the connectivity that the platform offers, and re-iterated what is becoming a familiar pitch now, about HD DVD offering the best choice for the consumer.