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[rubso]

Some great horror classics with confirmed dates on the way.

http://www.imagefilez.com/out.php/i128841_bdjt8.jpg

Dawn Of The Dead
Halloween (double dipping)
Evil Dead 2 (douple dipping)
MINE!

yeah, nice movies from Starz, but I'm interested in "Dawn of the Dead" which I'm going to pick up on HD-DVD next August.

 

[ManaByte]

$99 HDVD?

WHAT happened here?

People are paying $100-$500 to get into a HT convention -> Toshiba does a promo only for them -> people overreact.

 

[VanMardigan]

I like how a poster at high def digest put it:

Eh?? EACH and EVERY time that Toshiba does something to reduce prices, blu-faced Sony fans come out and claim its "desperate" or "embarrassing" and so on and so forth. Yet virtually each and every time, the blu-ray companies follow virtually the exact same path mere months later.

Example:
-----> 1
Toshiba drops their player entry level price from $499 to $399 and finally - after one year mind you - to $299. Blu-ray fans cries of "desperate" are heard thoughout the online forums.

Then, Sony and Panasonic A MERE 6 MONTHS AFTER LAUNCH, drop their players by a full 50%!!! That's 50% after half a year compared to Toshiba's 40% after a year. Suddenly its not "desperate", its "competitive" and "good for the market" and such nonsense.

-----> 2
Toshiba expands its rebate program and starts offering 5 free movies with an HD DVD player. Oh yes, here come the blu-rays with calls of "desperate", "clearance sale", "Maybe they'll give away a player with every 5 movies you buy" "LOL", blah blah etc...

A few months later and - oh looky - the superior forces at blu-ray that supposedly don't need to compete on price (not sure why the 50% price slashes.. whatever) offer a - surprise!!! - 5 movie rebate with the purchase of any blu-ray player or PS3.


Now Toshiba offers a special deal at a show and you jump right in with the blu-faced rhetoric. Its ridiculous. This little special at a show is designed to give a little positive buz, maybe get mentioned for free in some "news" articles and maybe bring some new fans into the fold. In all likelyhood this entire promotion will cost less then Sony spends in a day on endcaps at a couple of stores.

Aside from the dumb comments about fanboys (only partially true), I think he makes a good point.

 

[rubso]

I like how a poster at high def digest put it:

:lol :lol OMG so true.

 

[Petrarca]

Universal is under pressure to release Blu-ray

Universal is a bad boy, a party pooper

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117968570.html?categoryid=20&cs=1

Pressure mounts on U to turn Blu
Blu-ray selling twice as many titles as HD DVD
By DANIEL FRANKEL


While it certainly didn't help the HD DVD camp, Blockbuster's announcement last month that it will exclusively support rival Blu-ray in 1,700 of its stores probably won't do much to end the high-definition disc format battle.
No major retailer seems intent on abandoning HD DVD right now, even though its titles are being outsold by Blu-ray at a ratio of about 2-to-1, according to numerous estimates.

"I don't see any resolution (to the format battle) coming until at least the end of the year," Envisioneering Group tech guru Richard Doherty says.

However, that projection could change quickly, he adds, if Universal -- the only major not supporting Blu-ray -- were to suddenly adopt the same dual-format approach as Warner and Paramount.

Universal officials haven't revealed anything at this point that would hint of a change in their exclusive allegiance to HD DVD.

But if U did agree to release all or part of its high-def catalog on Blu-ray, "that could shift the dynamics (of the format war) overnight," Doherty says.

Consumers who had been waiting on the sidelines for assurance that the purchase of a $499 Sony Blu-ray drive would give them access to play Blu-ray movies from every major supplier would suddenly pony up.

"So much consumer interest would open up this summer and fall that every studio would be smiling and wondering why they've been jousting all this time," he notes. "Universal may continue to place its bets (on HD DVD). But if you want revenue, you put out what consumers want. And right now consumers want Blu-ray."

So what would make U change its mind?

"We understand there is a lot of persuading going on right now," notes Doherty, who explains that as U execs make their summer travels to destinations including investment banker Herb Allen's Sun Valley media confab, counterparts on the Blu-ray side are likely saying, 'OK, let's talk.'"

For their part, U officials continue to dismiss the notion that Blu-ray has a significant market advantage, with Ken Graffeo, executive VP of HD strategic marketing for Universal Studios Home Entertainment, noting that Toshiba's HD DVD players have a 70% share of the set-top market right now (most of Blu-ray's traction has come from drives built into Sony PlayStation 3 game consoles).

He adds that the overall high-def disc market is still too underdeveloped for U -- which has spent a lot of money and time developing HD DVD bonus features -- to consider a Blu-ray shift.

"We're still at such an early stage that it's hard to gauge how (selling Blu-ray, too) would have any impact," Graffeo says. "When you sell 6 million standard-definition units of a title, and you're selling only about 70,000 in hi-def, it's hard to say, 'Wow, look at what we're leaving on the table.' "

Still, more than a year after both technologies were introduced, and with victory prognostications -- at least early on -- favoring Blu-ray, U could be pressured by factors other than consumer sales and the pushings of rival execs in Sun Valley.

"If I'm a filmmaker, and I'm going to make a movie that's going to make half of its money in home entertainment, would I want to make it at Universal, and be with the wrong format?" Doherty wonders.

 

[VanMardigan]

"If I'm a filmmaker, and I'm going to make a movie that's going to make half of its money in home entertainment, would I want to make it at Universal, and be with the wrong format?" Doherty wonders.

That's so ridiculously absurd. "I could've sold 7,000 more copies if I hadn't chosen Universal" :lol :lol

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Double post

 

[brandonh83]

Ah man Halloween is a must-have. Not that it's a gorgeous movie to look at or anything, it just kicks ass.

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Van, no there was no proof, but we aren't a court of law here. Do you think there's any basis for the allegation, or do you suppose it's a tactic? How would you bet, if you had to? It irks me becuase I believe Moore knows this and wants to use it in the short term to paint public perception. If I am wrong and there is some significance to the allegations, then I'm wrong. But if I'm right, then Moore is making some hay out of what he knows is a puffed-up allegation, and that's a lot more disingenuous than trumpeting your lead and predicting the downfall of your opponent, a la Sony. No moral equivelance there.

And that Hi-def guy is making a rhetorical mistake of lumping comments by different people into a general pot. Did I not just say above that this is *not* a desperation move? If I have the bias you talk about, would that not put me in the camp with the people who scream "desperate" at every turn?

 

[VanMardigan]

People are paying $100-$500 to get into a HT convention -> Toshiba does a promo only for them -> people overreact.

Turns out: Toshiba is NOT involved in this promotion. "It turns out that the Home Media Expo (with no support from Toshiba) is offering this promotion to attendees as a bonus during their registration process.

But of course, that won't stop the "fire sale", "desperate" cries anyway.


edit:

If I have the bias you talk about, would that not put me in the camp with the people who scream "desperate" at every turn?

I know you're not petrarca or crayon or the rest of that overzealous group that make this thread borderline unreadable at times and hinder rational discussion (imo). They are the type addressed by the high def post. The bias comment was meant more as a reflection on which side of the format war you stand on. In other words, because you're a blu ray supporter (as opposed to the type addressed above and in this post, the rabid fanboys), you'll take more umbrage at petah's comments.

Do you think there's any basis for the allegation, or do you suppose it's a tactic?
See, I don't know either way, but I won't assume like you did. And I have no reason to assume, and nobody in this thread has given me a reason to assume it's a "tactic" as opposed to there being a very good reason to bring up the complaints. I may end up being wrong as well, but I haven't read anything to push me in the "tactic" direction so I'll take the complaint at face value and assume there are issues there for the commission to look into.

 

[jjasper]

I didn't see it mentioned but Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Halloween and Evil Dead II will have uncompressed PCM 5.1 audio and "identical supplements ported over from the standard-definition DVD releases."

 

[VanMardigan]

'Planet Earth' Goes All-American in New HD DVD, Blu-ray Release from high def digest:

Can't get enough 'Planet Earth' on High-Def? Now there's a new edition of the groundbreaking series bound for Blu-ray and HD DVD.

The series first hit both next-gen formats back in April from the BBC, featuring the original narration by legendary nature documentarian David Attenborough. That edition went on to break High-Def sales records, generating more revenue than any other HD DVD/Blu-ray release to date.

Now a second version of 'Planet Earth' is hitting both HD DVD and Blu-ray -- the version that was presented in the series' US television run, which replaced Attenborough's narration with the decidedly less British actress/conservationist Sigourney Weaver.

This new version is being released by The Discovery Channel (which aired 'Planet Earth' in the US), although it would seem that the cable network's distribution rights to the series are limited to direct sales.

As such, the channel recently listed three separate box set editions of its version of the series at Discovery Channel Store. While the standard DVD version ($69.95) is already available, the next gen editions ($99.95 each) show an an estimated ship date of July 30, 2007.

The Discovery Channel has also been advertising a separate website (pedvd.com) that's selling the first three episodes of 'Planet Earth' on a single disc at $14.95 on both next-gen formats. It wasn't immediately clear whether additional episodes will be available as standalone discs at some point in the future.

There's no word yet on specs or supplemental features for newly configured next-gen editions of the series. Here's hoping that the various featurettes and the bonus doc that were unceremoniously dropped from the BBC high-def editions get their due this time around. (Discovery has included them in its companion standard-def edition, but they appeared on the standard-def BBC edition as well, so that's no great indicator.)

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

The HDD rant is basically just hypocritically calling out biased fanboys only on one side. I've been very consistent that player prices on both sides will drop a lot, and quickly. Happened with DVD as well, for similar reasons-- the fab cost is a lot, lot less than R&D for an optical media player. The guy is a whiner. If you want to take shots at "blu boys" or "blu faced Sony fans" there will always be a petrarca to build you case on. But if you look at this thread, the majority of posters (on either side) are very reasonable. Still, you have Mana pop up every now and then to play the victim and act as if everyone who supports a one-format resolution to this battle a "fanboy."


Edit: Who besides Petrarca and Crayon make up "the rest" you are talking about?

 

[Oni Jazar]

This format war is SO FRUSTRATING.

Evil Dead 2 in Blu Ray. Army of Darkness in HD DVD.
Kill Bill 1 & 2 in Blu-ray. Kill Bill the Whole Bloody Affair in HD DVD.
Dawn of the Dead in Blu Ray. Dawn of the Dead remake in HD DVD.

END NOW.

 

[kaching]

Oh crap, I've been holding off on getting the Planet Earth set, this better not lead to a discontinuation of the original BBC version in the US. One more month 'til my birthday...

 

[captive]

Oh crap, I've been holding off on getting the Planet Earth set, this better not lead to a discontinuation of the original BBC version in the US. One more month 'til my birthday...

The other version is Warner i dont see them discontinuing it. Just now there are two versions the original with David Attenborough the new Discovery one with Sigourney Weaver.

 

[ManaByte]

The other version is Warner i dont see them discontinuing it. Just now there are two versions the original with David Attenborough the new Discovery one with Sigourney Weaver.

And the Discovery one can't be sold in stores (other than Discovery channel stores)

 

[StoOgE]

I might be a huge dork.. but I wish Warner/BBC would release the "Treasures of the Trust" series on HDDVD/BRD.

I think Discover got caught with their pants down on this one. WB made a ton of money on the BRD/HDDVD release, and now Discover is trying to get in on that market. Probably too late.

 

[Petrarca]

Blu-ray is even winning the smaller distributors war

GalleryPlayer Inks Exclusive Distribution Deal with Image Entertainment to Bring the World's Finest High Definition Art and Photography to Blu-ray Discs

http://people.broadcastnewsroom.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=161961

EATTLE, BUSINESS WIRE -- GalleryPlayer, best known for having one of the largest libraries of rights-protected high definition image programming in the world, has inked an exclusive distribution deal with leading independent home entertainment distributor Image Entertainment, Inc., to release four new titles exclusively on Blu-ray disc this fall. The deal marks the debut of high definition lifestyle imagery on Blu-ray disc, a new category of high definition program content pioneered by GalleryPlayer in which the world's finest art and photography transform any screen into a stunning, personalized showcase. The one-hour-plus programs slated to be released this fall include 1000 Places to See Before You Die: 50 Favorite Destinations, The Amazing World of National Geographic, Art Wolfe: Vanishing Act and 50 Paintings from the Museum of Modern Art.

Blu-ray disc is the newest platform available to GalleryPlayer viewers, who can already access an unrivaled array of rights-protected fine art and photography images via the GalleryPlayer website (www.galleryplayer.com); on Comcast and other cable operators; in select hotels and on HD memory cards, in partnership with Panasonic, for viewing across their entire line of 2007 Plasma and HD TVs.

"GalleryPlayer's move into the Blu-ray disc market underscores the Company's focus on providing consumers with easy access to the world's finest high definition art and photography," said Paul Brownlow, President of GalleryPlayer. "HD Lifestyle Imagery demands the highest quality visual presentation and consumer experience, which Blu-ray discs deliver. Blu-ray discs are clearly the preferred choice, currently outselling HD-DVDs, and we're launching our most popular content on the most popular platform. It's a winning combination for GalleryPlayer, Blu-ray and millions of consumers."

 

[drohne]

wait, bandai is going with an $80 msrp for honneamise in the us? are they ****ing kidding? netflix until they come to their senses

 

[RichP]

One year after launch, neither format is doing the numbers were you can call the winner. In fact, so far I think you could call them BOTH losers.

I have and like both formats, but neither one is going to have legs at the current rate of sales. Even some of the so-called exclusive studios such as Fox have done little more than give their format lip service. Universal, on the other hand, is at least releasing HD-DVDs at an appreciable clip.

My guess is in late '08 combo players will see mass-market pricing but still will not come close to DVD-like levels of penetration. The HDTV adoption level just isn't there quite yet, and to your average home video customer the improvement in picture/sound quality doesn't justify the higher price.

 

[M3wThr33]

One year after launch, neither format is doing the numbers were you can call the winner. In fact, so far I think you could call them BOTH losers.

I have and like both formats, but neither one is going to have legs at the current rate of sales. Even some of the so-called exclusive studios such as Fox have done little more than give their format lip service. Universal, on the other hand, is at least releasing HD-DVDs at an appreciable clip.

My guess is in late '08 combo players will see mass-market pricing but still will not come close to DVD-like levels of penetration. The HDTV adoption level just isn't there quite yet, and to your average home video customer the improvement in picture/sound quality doesn't justify the higher price.

*sigh*

 

[Chemo]

One year after launch, neither format is doing the numbers were you can call the winner. In fact, so far I think you could call them BOTH losers.

I have and like both formats, but neither one is going to have legs at the current rate of sales. Even some of the so-called exclusive studios such as Fox have done little more than give their format lip service. Universal, on the other hand, is at least releasing HD-DVDs at an appreciable clip.

My guess is in late '08 combo players will see mass-market pricing but still will not come close to DVD-like levels of penetration. The HDTV adoption level just isn't there quite yet, and to your average home video customer the improvement in picture/sound quality doesn't justify the higher price.

What a THOUGHT-PROVOKINGLY ORIGINAL post!

I really want to see your sales data with numbers that don't show a winner, by the way.

 

[M3wThr33]

What a THOUGHT-PROVOKINGLY ORIGINAL post!

I really want to see your sales data with numbers that don't show a winner, by the way.

 

[rubso]

the original theme to welcome new comers to this thread (see posts above)
*BAAAAAAAAAH :'(*

 

[VanMardigan]

What a THOUGHT-PROVOKINGLY ORIGINAL post!

I really want to see your sales data with numbers that don't show a winner, by the way.

It would be nice if one of these newcomers at least came in with a pacman showing dvd completely swallow Blu Ray as Blu Ray tries to swallow HD DVD. Perspective at least.

 

[djkimothy]

http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/shooter.html

The Audio: Rating the Sound


Forgive the rant, but at this point Paramount should really be offering high-resolution audio (PCM, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-MA -- take your pick) across the board on its high-def new releases. Instead, the studio continues to offer unequal standard audio specs across its dual-format releases, giving this Blu-ray edition of 'Shooter' a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround track at a measly 640kbps, while the HD DVD gets a 1.5mbps Dolby Digital-Plus mix.
Although the extra bits for the HD DVD do result in a slightly improved sense of envelopment and power, neither next-gen version blew me away.

A strange amalgam of genres, surround presence in 'Shooter' tends to vary scene-to-scene. Action sequences (such as the opener and the pivotal assassination scene) are generally first-rate. Gunshots, crowd noise, score bleed, etc., fill the rears nicely, while imaging is tight and defined, and placement of discrete effects is achieved with pin point accuracy.

The rest of 'Shooter' is a bit more dull. Ambiance

Paramount better not do this to Transformers.

 

[kaching]

The other version is Warner i dont see them discontinuing it. Just now there are two versions the original with David Attenborough the new Discovery one with Sigourney Weaver.

I know, I just figured I'd share my kneejerk panic attack with everyone of a world where the only version of PE saved for posterity is the one with Sigourney's lame one-liners.

 

[Chemo]

It would be nice if one of these newcomers at least came in with a pacman showing dvd completely swallow Blu Ray as Blu Ray tries to swallow HD DVD. Perspective at least.

Why put all that work on a newbie? You have a computer and a mouse. I made my own Pac-Pictures. Come on VanMardigan, I am sure you are better at Paint than I am.

 

[distantmantra]

wait, bandai is going with an $80 msrp for honneamise in the us? are they ****ing kidding? netflix until they come to their senses

I'm waiting for the next DDD 20% off sale.

 

[VanMardigan]

Why put all that work on a newbie? You have a computer and a mouse. I made my own Pac-Pictures. Come on VanMardigan, I am sure you are better at Paint than I am.

Yeah, I was going to give it a shot, but photobucket and a bunch of other sites are blocked here at work. Just use the pac man you have, and add a HUGE, scary looking pac man ready to swallow them both. These HD formats are what, 2 percent of the overall market? So make the dvd pac man 98 times bigger than your blu ray pacman, then for giggles, draw a line from your tiny blu ray pacman saying "see, blu ray is absolutely MURDERING HD DVD" while ignoring the monster dvd pacman behind it.

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Deja Vu.

Whenever all the counter-arguments to "Blu Ray is beating HD-DVD" are overturned, out comes the "But DVD is killing them both" chant.

In 1999, two years after DVDs release, VHS was killing it, too. The battle isn't DVD vs HD right now, it's the primary for who will be HD's candidate as HDTVs take off.

/tired

 

[Petrarca]

It would be nice if one of these newcomers at least came in with a pacman showing dvd completely swallow Blu Ray as Blu Ray tries to swallow HD DVD. Perspective at least.

:lol :lol

Typical HD-DVD fanboys bullshit

...both formats are losing....

...both formats can co-exist....

....dual format future.....

....DVD is the winnah....

 

[VanMardigan]

I would say both of you guys have your sarcasm detectors broken, but at least for petrarca, he's just a broken poster anyway, so no surprise there.

chemo and I are looking at ways to improve how the noobs post in here when they post the typical "dvd is killine ur formats" post. These are suggestions for them.

 

[mollipen]

That's so ridiculously absurd. "I could've sold 7,000 more copies if I hadn't chosen Universal" :lol :lol

Well, then, why not extend it to "why make the mistake of working to put it on an HD format period, only 14,000 copies sold lol."

Either you realize that ANY sales of HD discs at this point matter, so an extra 7,000 copies is a big deal, or you think the whole thing is trivia and there's no point in the new formats.

One year after launch, neither format is doing the numbers were you can call the winner. In fact, so far I think you could call them BOTH losers.

Would you like to dig up first-year DVD sales? I don't know what they are exactly, but from having followed DVD from the start, and remembering he sales numbers that I did see, I'm quite confident that you'll find something rather surprising.

That's what is funny about comments like these... either you people weren't around for the start of DVD, or you just weren't paying attention. First year HD-DVD/Blu-ray is way beyond where DVD was.

 

[VanMardigan]

Well, then, why not extend it to "why make the mistake of working to put it on an HD format period, only 14,000 copies sold lol."

Either you realize that ANY sales of HD discs at this point matter, so an extra 7,000 copies is a big deal, or you think the whole thing is trivia and there's no point in the new formats.

The whole argument that you wouldn't put your film through Uni because of the HD format wars is absurd. I don't know what the hell you're arguing about, but studios aren't making a dime on either format yet, it's all an investment. So whatever it is you're trying to say........yeah.

edit:

just to clarify: HD sales matter, but not to the point of making high level decisions like choosing a movie studio. Is that clear enough for you?

 

[captive]

I know, I just figured I'd share my kneejerk panic attack with everyone of a world where the only version of PE saved for posterity is the one with Sigourney's lame one-liners.

:lol

 

[mollipen]

The whole argument that you wouldn't put your film through Uni because of the HD format wars is absurd.

Is it? If I'm a film maker, and I can go with a studio that'll only put my movie out on HD-DVD, or one that will do both, there's no way I'd choose the former. And if I was a big enough film maker to have the choice, and I had to choose between HD-DVD and Blu-ray, I'd choose Blu-ray, because the fact is, it is currently the better seller, and I'd want my movie the sell the most copies possible.

Now, I get the point you were trying to make, but you statement was clearly targeting at the issue of sales numbers. Thus my reply.

 

[VanMardigan]

Is it? If I'm a film maker, and I can go with a studio that'll only put my movie out on HD-DVD, or one that will do both, there's no way I'd choose the former.

Nope, the HD DVD/Blu Ray part wouldn't even be in your thought process? Why would it? That's probably the smallest possible factor out of a million or so to consider.

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Van, I was addressing Rich more than you, but the pattern exists regardless of the sarcasm.

 

[mollipen]

Nope, the HD DVD/Blu Ray part wouldn't even be in your thought process? Why would it? That's probably the smallest possible factor out of a million or so to consider.

Because, if I were a film maker (which I'd love to be), I'd give a damn about the exprerience people would have with my movie when they purchase it. Smallest possible factor? You do realize that movies are made for people to watch them, correct? And that in this point in time, the biggest market for watching movies is the home?

What are you even talking about? Have you missed the countless DVDs we now have where the director, from the very beginning, is planning what the home release will be like?

 

[RichP]

What a THOUGHT-PROVOKINGLY ORIGINAL post!

I really want to see your sales data with numbers that don't show a winner, by the way.

The sales for HD-DVD/Blu Ray movies are MINISCULE compared to standard DVD; declaring a "winner" in the high def "war" is a lot like two death row inmates arguing about who has better chicken, KFC or Church's. At the end of the day it just doesn't matter.

The fact that fans of these formats divide themselves into camps is hilarious, it's like the Allendale Ants vs. the Standale Microbes. Evangelize to the SD-DVD buyers and not piss-take the "other" format on a forum is the best way to help popularize HD movies. I've inadvertently sold BOTH BD and HD-DVD players based on friends just watching 'em at my place.

My gut tells me HD downloads will be the true successor to DVD, but we'll see.

And thanks for the warm welcome.

 

[VanMardigan]

Because, if I were a film maker (which I'd love to be), I'd give a damn about the exprerience people would have with my movie when they purchase it. Smallest possible factor? You do realize that movies are made for people to watch them, correct? And that in this point in time, the biggest market for watching movies is the home?

What are you even talking about? Have you missed the countless DVDs we now have where the director, from the very beginning, is planning what the home release will be like?

And how does HD DVD/Blu Ray play into that? At this stage, both formats are in their infancy, and really are niche. When you're trying to negotiate with a movie studio, how the hell does such a niche market enter into your mindset? You're going to sell millions on dvd, are you honestly concerned with the HD disc market? And if you are anal about reaching EVERY customer as you put it, wouldn't you then decide on a format neutral studio? Again, I just think that in the midst of a dizzying array of factors, the HD disc format would be relatively trivial. There are going to be dozens of financial factors that will result in more revenue than your HD disc format. Do you think Disney/Sony/Fox use Blu Ray as a selling point against Universal, or do you believe that there are tons of other negotiating terms that are orders of magnitude more important?

 

[Mandoric]

wait, bandai is going with an $80 msrp for honneamise in the us? are they ****ing kidding? netflix until they come to their senses

They put out a $90 test release of Gunbuster -completely untranslated distributed exclusively through Kinokuniya-, and it was apparently rather profitable by industry standards. As long as they don't run out of S-class classics that the hardcore will crumble and buy in on "just this one", I expect they'll keep going.

 

[captive]

The sales for HD-DVD/Blu Ray movies are MINISCULE compared to standard DVD; declaring a "winner" in the high def "war" is a lot like two death row inmates arguing about who has better chicken, KFC or Church's. At the end of the day it just doesn't matter.

The fact that fans of these formats divide themselves into camps is hilarious, it's like the Allendale Ants vs. the Standale Microbes. Evangelize to the SD-DVD buyers and not piss-take the "other" format on a forum is the best way to help popularize HD movies. I've inadvertently sold BOTH BD and HD-DVD players based on friends just watching 'em at my place.

My gut tells me HD downloads will be the true successor to DVD, but we'll see.

And thanks for the warm welcome.

Oh god, have we gone back 4-5 months in time?

 

[Chemo]

My gut tells me HD downloads will be the true successor to DVD, but we'll see.

And thanks for the warm welcome.

Another decade, minimum, before HD downloads are even viable on a large scale.

And anytime! Feel free to make some Pac-Mans of your own -- I don't have the monopoly on them or anything.

Oh god, have we gone back 4-5 months in time?

Hahah, for real.

 

[mollipen]

The sales for HD-DVD/Blu Ray movies are MINISCULE compared to standard DVD; declaring a "winner" in the high def "war" is a lot like two death row inmates arguing about who has better chicken, KFC or Church's. At the end of the day it just doesn't matter.

RichP, Junior Member... answer the question I asked you before. Were you around for the start of DVD? You weren't, were you?

You're going to sell millions on dvd, are you honestly concerned with the HD disc market?

I've said yet to this a few times now.

And if you are anal about reaching EVERY customer as you put it, wouldn't you then decide on a format neutral studio?

Yes... exactly as I said in my previous post.

Do you think Disney/Sony/Fox use Blu Ray as a selling point against Universal, or do you believe that there are tons of other negotiating terms that are orders of magnitude more important?

I'm not arguing that, at this point, which HD format your movie will end up on is really a huge deal. However, if a director doesn't care about how their movie is going to end up for the home market, that's a director that shouldn't be making movies. As small as the HD market is currently at this point, it absolutely should be a big deal to the director when it comes to how their movie ends up and what formats it is on.

 

[RichP]

Would you like to dig up first-year DVD sales? I don't know what they are exactly, but from having followed DVD from the start, and remembering he sales numbers that I did see, I'm quite confident that you'll find something rather surprising.

That's what is funny about comments like these... either you people weren't around for the start of DVD, or you just weren't paying attention. First year HD-DVD/Blu-ray is way beyond where DVD was.

Oh, I was around, and I was paying attention. Remember the "FOX IS IN" and anti-Divx vitriol going 'round the net?

I wholeheartedly agree that HD-DVD and Blu Ray are outdoing DVD in the early stages. However, the problem is...DVD. The hi def formats are going to hit a brick wall as soon as they saturate people's homes who are interested in high definition anything. The people like us who love HD movies tend to buy quite a few of them (the attach rates are fairly impressive, if you discount the PS3 which you really have to to get an accurate reading).

Unfortunately, I fear the picture and sound quality of DVD is "good enough" for the mass market. If this is true, it would inhibit the growth of the hi def formats just long enough for HD downloads to take off. Both Apple and Microsoft seem to think this is the future based on what they've been doing (and Microsoft's half-hearted support of HD-DVD). With Microsoft instantly becoming one of the top PPV providers in the USA, second only to Apple, I'm inclined to think they may be right.

 

[RichP]

Oh god, have we gone back 4-5 months in time?

Hey, a lot has happened in 4-5 months! The pitiful first week sales of the Matrix box set (18k) and the Pirates movies(~50k?), for starters. Then, the massive price drop of HD-DVD standalones and Blu Ray players which helped, but hardly kicked off a maelstrom of hi def buying.

Fellas, I LOVE my HD players, but sometimes I feel like I'm fighting a losing battle when my friends and family do things like hook up their DVD players using the pack-in composite cables on their 50" Panasonic Plasma. These are people who will never, ever, for any reason buy $30 HD-DVDs to play on $300 players. Even when the price drops, because standard DVD will ALWAYS be cheaper.

 

[Mustaphadamus]

The sales for HD-DVD/Blu Ray movies are MINISCULE compared to standard DVD; declaring a "winner" in the high def "war" is a lot like two death row inmates arguing about who has better chicken, KFC or Church's. At the end of the day it just doesn't matter.

The fact that fans of these formats divide themselves into camps is hilarious, it's like the Allendale Ants vs. the Standale Microbes. Evangelize to the SD-DVD buyers and not piss-take the "other" format on a forum is the best way to help popularize HD movies. I've inadvertently sold BOTH BD and HD-DVD players based on friends just watching 'em at my place.

My gut tells me HD downloads will be the true successor to DVD, but we'll see.

And thanks for the warm welcome.

HD downloads have one problem. HDD space is exhaustible and it will NEVER be enough space. Someone can not build up a movie collection only on HDD (Hard drive) because they will run out of space and not to mention hard drive failures (they do happen).

Just not going to happen, people will always want/need physical media. I remember when my uncle had a 3 GB HDD when those first came out. I was like dag, you will never ever need another HDD. Some years later and now 3 GB is a joke. So the download thing while I think will have a place in the market (maybe video rentals) it is not viable for purchases and collecting a library.