The high-def format war appears over — maybe.

Toshiba Corp. will give up on its HD DVD format for high definition DVDs and give in to rival Blu-ray, a technology developed by Sony Corp., a source with Toshiba has told news services.

So ends the battle that has lasted most of this decade between two tech-oriented camps led by Toshiba and Sony vying to set the standard for the next-generation DVD and compatible video equipment.

The format battle — compared to the Betamax-VHS battle in the 1980s, which Sony lost — has confused consumers unsure of which DVD or player to buy, slowing the development what is expected to be a multibillion-dollar industry.

Toshiba lost significant ground in the battle in recent weeks, the latest hit coming Friday when giant retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced it was switching to Blu-ray for its movie stock.

A source at Toshiba confirmed an earlier report by public broadcaster NHK in Japan that it was getting ready to pull the plug.

“We have entered the final stage of planning to make our exit from the next generation DVD business,” the source, who asked not to be identified, according to Reuters news service. He added that an official announcement could come as early as next week.

Toshiba is expected to lose billions of dollars just trying to discontinue production of HD DVD players and recorders and and step back from the business. For a while, some effort was made with Hollywood’s support to develop playback devices incorporating both technologies, but high cost kept them from selling well.

The beginning of the end for HD DVD appeared to come last month when Time Warner Inc’s Warner Bros studio said it would release high-definition DVDs only in Blu-ray format, putting three quarters of that industry in Blu-ray’s camp. Toshiba tried deflecting some of the impact by discounting HD DVD players.

And Microsoft Corp. injected doubt into HD DVD’s future by saying it would consider supporting Blu-ray technology for its Xbox 360 video game console, which currently has a periperal HD DVD drive. Just a few days ago, the company dropped the price of the drive $50 to help boost sales.

The rival PlayStation 3 console, made by Sony, has built-in Blu-ray technology.

More recently, consumer electronics chain Best Buy and online video rental company Netflix also recently signed up with Blu-ray.

The Toshiba source said the experience would not be a total loss for the company, whose products range from refrigerators to power plants, and serve as a valuable lesson.

Albeit an extremely costly one.

Editor’s note: Several news services contributed to this report