Few people love movies and the industry's annual bacchanal of self-congratulation that culminates with the Oscars more than I do, but there was an alarming note of desperation in this year's festivities. And I think technology is to blame.

Many people commented on the gorgeous stage, designed to look like a large old-time movie house, and multiple presentations served as paeans to the big screen. I'm not using the term metaphorically. The movie industry was, in effect, using its three-hour-plus showcase to drive home the idea that there's no better place to see movies than the "darkened movie theater, sharing it with strangers," blah, blah, blah. Show organizers were clearly stating in words and images that DVDs are nice, but you should want to see movies on the big screen.

The film industry saw a 6 percent drop in box-office returns last year, and though film execs try to paint a cheerful picture, this figure concerns them. Common wisdom holds that home DVD viewing and piracy are eroding the numbers of people going to movie theaters. "Despite increasing competition for consumers' time and entertainment dollars, theater-going remains a satisfying constant in people's lives," cheerfully announced Dan Glickman, chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America, in a recent press release. Of course, even Glickman is not all smiles; he added, "That said, we can't bury our heads in the sand. We have to do more to attract customers and keep regulars coming back. It is no secret that our industry faces new challenges, but with every challenge, there is an exciting opportunity."

Ever-present film piracy is one big challenge, and as I've noted before, consumers aren't exactly concerned about technical quality. So, a pirate DVD that looks like it was shot through a Vaselined lens doesn't bother them.

The film industry knows this, and though its references during the Academy Awards to piracy were opaque at best, the message was still clear: "Movies are better in a theater. Really. They are. We swear. Come back."

Of course, it's not just piracy that has the industry running scared. Glickman mentions some others in his release: DVRs, big-screen televisions, video on demand, and, of course, the DVD player. DVD sales have actually tailed off in recent months, but I think that's more a product of consumers waiting for the industry to make up its mind about a standard (Blu-ray versus HD-DVD). Why buy a player that supports only one format or the wrong one, or buy DVDs that may have the least-supported format choice?

I'm kind of stunned that the HD battle has become such a mess. The movie industry is letting itself become fractured like never before. Some studios are lining up behind Blu-ray, and others behind HD-DVD. The studios are all desperate for a new, more secure format that will reinvigorate the DVD market, but why are they going about it such an ass-backwards way? Part of the problem is that studios are allowing themselves to be led by the nose by tech companies like Microsoft and Toshiba. Wise up, guys; these companies do not have the film industry's best interests at heart. Instead, it's become a pissing contest where nothing less than global optical-format domination will satisfy them. Studios should know better. They've built an industry by satisfying consumer needs. Sell what they'll buy and never confuse them with too many options. Has the industry ever truly supported competing formats? But while studios and the tech companies fight, consumers are steering clear, and they continue to march away from DVDs and movie theaters (maybe to video on demand?). The industry can only help itself by choosing a clear winner now.

What the film industry won't say, but must know is true, is that there is no stopping the slide away from the big screen to the creature comforts of the home theater. Super-large displays, killer 7.1 sound, high-definition visuals, the ability to stop the movie and take a bathroom break, the complete lack of annoying patrons and their equally annoying cell phones, and the absence of sneezers, coughers, criers, yellers, and smellers are but some of the benefits. It's just you, your couch, your big screen, and a bag or two of supersize, supercheap popcorn.

So movie industry, it's true, technology has you on the run, but I suggest you turn around and run into its arms and maybe start exerting a little bit more control. Perhaps you'll all band together and name an HD format leader, and you'll figure out how to make new theaters that function more like living rooms and—if my wishes could come true—automatically silence the most annoying customers. This is all unlikely. I expect that during next year's Oscars, the pitch to the moviegoing public will be even more blatant and desperate. Boy, am I bummed.