Warner Bros. has developed a new disc capable of playing programs in both rival high-definition DVD formats, hoping to break a year-long stalemate between the technologies.

The announcement of the "Total HD Disc" comes on the heel of LG Electronics' plan to offer a DVD player capable of playing both formats.

The high-definition DVD format fight pits Blu-ray discs backed by a group led by Sony Corp. against HD-DVD discs being promoted by an alliance that includes Toshiba Corp. and Microsoft Corp.

The incompatible formats, introduced in 2006, use a blue laser to store more information than a standard definition disc, which employs a red laser. The additional storage capacity can translate into better, more detailed picture quality and allows movie studios to include more features on a single disc.

But neither format has won over consumers, who have so far stayed away from both for fear of adopting the losing technology.

Warners Bros., a unit of Time Warner, said it developed the dual-format disc to get consumers interested in high definition DVDs.

"The Total High-Definition Disc allows consumers to fully embrace high-definition viewing," Ron Sanders, the president of Warner Home Video, said in a statement Thursday.

"Warner Bros. was a force in creating the current market dominance of the standard DVD, and we hope that THD will make it easier for the average consumer to enjoy this next level of technology."

Details of the disc and LG's dual-format player are both expected to be revealed at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The event runs from Jan. 8 to 11.

The format war harks back to the 1980s home videocassette battle between Sony's Betamax tapes and the competing VHS standard. Sony lost that fight.

With files from the Associated Press