As consumers, we vote with our pocketbooks. I wrote Sony and told them I would never buy another Sony product and I won't even though I want a Sony projector. Not only do they create format wars (you forgot VHS versus Betamax--and Betamax was much much better--I still have one that works great), they have zero customer service. Did you ever talk to a real person at Sony? I'm not sure any real people actually work at Sony. For all I know the company is run by the robots they make. All they have is webpages that don't have the answer you are looking for. They don't care about customers--they are in the business of selling not satisfying. It's really too bad that such great technology is stuck with a company with such lousy policies.

Invention means different. Compatibility is at least partially incompatible with invention. In fact, while incremental change is compatible, quantum change is incompatible (ever put a VHS tape in a DVD player?). There is a tough balancing act between compatibility and original creativity. This is only an issue when two or more divergent products compete for the same market niche. Consumers would like one format (I sure would) but the way free markets work is that we all get to vote on which format survives. If none does as you suggest, then it means none was sufficiently compelling to survive and succeed.