Every war has an aftermath. In the case of the Blu-Ray/HD-DVD format wars, HD-DVD users are now at the first phase of reconstruction. Like the South after the Civil War, it is going to be an uphill climb.

Best Buy, the nation’s largest customer electronics retailer, is trying to ease the transition by offering $50 gift cards to customers who purchased an HD-DVD player or HD-DVD attachment from United States stores before February 23, 2008. They have budgeted $10 million for this endeavor.

In fact, Best Buy plans to mail cards to all customers that the company can positively identify as having purchased an HD-DVD player. That means that many of the grieving will receive a little windfall that will be a breath of fresh air to their normal bills. Of course, some customers will be missed, which is why Best Buy also offers a (888) BEST BUY hotline. All an HD-DVD purchaser has to do is call up and give them their proof of purchase.

The best part about it is that the customer can keep his or her HD-DVD player. However, Best Buy is offering a service for those to get rid of their HD-DVD players with www.bestbuytradein.com. This service will start on March 21, and will provide instant estimates on the value of HD-DVD players, as well as HD-DVD movies.

It’s nice to know that the end of the format war was not the end of hope. By the way, Best Buy isn’t the only one offering this service, as Future Shop, Circuit City, and other stores have similar campaigns. If only stores had done this when Betamax died.

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