[rsaavedra]

Quote:

Blockbuster has been renting both Blu-ray and HD DVD titles in 250 stores since late last year and found that consumers were choosing Blu-ray titles more than 70 percent of the time. "The consumers are sending us a message. I can't ignore what I'm seeing," Matthew Smith, senior vice president of merchandising at Blockbuster, told The Associated Press. Blockbuster will continue to rent HD DVD titles in the original 250 locations and online, the Dallas-based company said. The decision was helped in large part by the lopsided availability of titles in Blu-ray, Smith said. All major studios except one are releasing films in Blu-ray, with several, including The Walt Disney Co., releasing exclusively in Blu-ray. Only Universal Studios, which is owned by General Electric Co., exclusively supports HD DVD.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...MPLATE=DEFAULT

 

[mbriant]

This could be the beginning of the end for HD DVD. Then again, a few years ago it started to look like SACD was winning the HD CD race but it crapped out anyway. I wonder how quickly the public is adopting either of the new DVD formats and will it be fast enough to save them?

 

[Davesrose]

The truth is that none of the major movie studios are moving fast into HD content....I think the main reason why Blu Ray is outselling HD DVD titles is that there are more Blu Ray player owners. Sony has an advantage hooking some people into HD early because of the PS3. For those who aren't into gaming, it then becomes a hard decision if going with a HD format is worth it.

Since overall HD sales numbers are low for both formats, I think HD DVD has a chance if they get sub $200 players out soon. Content wise, there are more titles out on HD DVD that I'd rather own then on Blu Ray. But then maybe I should just wait and see if there is a victor at all....as others have stated, there has to be good reason for upgrading from DVD. I don't think most movie buffs have gotten into HD because the content isn't there. HD DVD at least has been getting some classic movies from Universal. Blu Ray just gets the latest blockbusters. I think its another indication that Blu Ray has gotten its jump start from gamers. We probably would see movie buffs jump on HD DVD if it were more accessible

Anyway, with movie rentals, I don't think they'll be dropping support for HD DVD anytime soon....especially since there is a sales growth in HD DVD players. Rental companies want every costumer they can get....they won't be exclusive to Blu Ray if there's still a HD DVD market (all be it smaller right now).

 

[virometal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mbriant /img/forum/go_quote.gif I wonder how quickly the public is adopting either of the new DVD formats and will it be fast enough to save them?

The word is not very quickly. Discounting the PS3 and Xbox 360 add on, most estimates I've read are a maximum 300,000 dedicated players in the U.S. Considering the sources - Toshiba and Sony, I would bet those figures are inflated.

Call me old fashioned, but I like discs over HD on demand, so I desperately want one of the formats to become the majority...fast.

From that viewpoint, hopefully this is the beginning of the end for HD-DVD, and we can quickly get to a unified format that won't splinter the so far smallish market and encourage quicker adoption.

Christmas should make for interesting format war observing.

 

[TheMarchingMule]

HD DVD for movies

Blu-Ray for data

Wait, but then computers will still need that dual-reading format.

 

[troymadison]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheMarchingMule /img/forum/go_quote.gif HD DVD for movies Blu-Ray for data Wait, but then computers will still need that dual-reading format.

2x

 

[itsborken]

I don't have a dog in this hunt but I am curious how the studios release the HD movies. Have they been spending time cleaning the up/improving the sound etc. or are they just spinning the master to a new format like they did with the CDs?

 

[Davesrose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by itsborken /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't have a dog in this hunt but I am curious how the studios release the HD movies. Have they been spending time cleaning the up/improving the sound etc. or are they just spinning the master to a new format like they did with the CDs?

That's a good question, and AFAIK, it really depends on the age of the film stock. A lot of the old movies have been scanned digitally for DV format. Right before digital HD cameras, movie studios would scan in film at a resolution slightly higher then HD....but after post processing, the resolution would get to DV resolution for DVD release. And it would be printed on 35mm film for the cinemas. Now, of course, new movies would be post processed and mastered in HD.

Now HD will be really ripe for older movies IMO....way back in the golden age of movie making, they were using larger 70mm film. By the 1970s, studios were starting to cut costs by going with 35mm film. And with the popularity of multiplexes, well the screens got smaller and film quality was no longer as important.

Fast forward to now, and apparently we are just now getting film scanners that handle 70mm very well. I would think that for good HD discs, the studios would have to rescan in a lot of the movies. I have 2001 on DVD for example.....I can tell that it was an early scan they have for DVD. It deserves an HD makeover

Quote:

70 mm also has presented a difficulty in recent years for VHS and DVD releases, as telecine machines capable of high-level scanning have only been available in limited quantities until recently. This has unfortunately sometimes meant that films were transferred to video via their 35 mm blown-down elements instead of the high-quality full-gauge intermediates; luckily, more and more DVD releases are using the original-gauge source elements.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/70mm_film

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motion_...e_film_scanner

 

[Edwood]

Looks like Sony wrote a huge check to Blockbuster.

Do people still go to Blockbuster these days? It's been years since I've stepped inside one.

Netflix, FTW!

-Ed

 

[uofmtiger]

I don't understand the choice to stop carrying HD DVD and I am a Blu Ray fan. They say that 70 percent of their high def business is BD, but why give up the 30 percent that are HD DVD owners? Very strange.

If Sony actually wrote a check, it would have to be enough to cover the 30 percent of HD rentals they have had and intend to have (assuming the market does not move at all)....

 

[virometal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uofmtiger /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't understand the choice to stop carrying HD DVD and I am a Blu Ray fan. They say that 70 percent of their high def business is BD, but why give up the 30 percent that are HD DVD owners? Very strange.

For sure, there's an interesting story here.

First, I bet they weren't renting enough HD-DVD's to justify supplying the rest of their chains.

Second, the PS3. I imagine many of the people renting movies in the trial stores were also renting games.

Third, just because the 70% of the rentals were Blu Ray doesn't mean much. How much is 70% out of a hill of beans?

Fourth, as Dave mentioned, Blu Ray has more new releases in the catalog and coming forth. New releases rent/sell much better than catalog.

 

[itsborken]

Thanks for the detailed explanation Davesrose. With most of my DVD collection being circa 70-80s, I don't see a lot of upside in this. I guess I'll sit on the sidelines and see how this works out.

 

[Duggeh]

Well going with the argument that VHS won the tape format war because prawn was published on VHS we had better hope that both HD DVD and Blu-Ray lose this time around. High def prawn would be a little too much for me I think.

 

[Davesrose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edwood /img/forum/go_quote.gif Looks like Sony wrote a huge check to Blockbuster. Do people still go to Blockbuster these days? It's been years since I've stepped inside one. Netflix, FTW! -Ed

Actually, people are starting to go back to Blockbuster....believe it or not!!! Some of my friends switched to Blockbuster when Netflix all of a sudden had some slow delays in my area. I stuck with Netflix (was burned by Blockbuster way too much to ever set foot in a store again)....and Netflix's service is back up to be good in my area. What I'm really digging about Netflix now is their movie on demand service online.

The article left me more confused then anything else. One of the main things that Blockbuster has done is to offer a mail in system like Netflix....they try to offer more flexibility by offering a monthly subscription plan, and you're able to exchange one of your mailer rentals with an in store rental. So if HD DVD and Blu Ray are available via mail....well I don't know how much of an effect this is. With these 1,000 extra stores that are getting Blu Ray rentals, we don't even know how many Blu Ray titles they will get. It would probably be something similar to my local Target....which seems to stock 15 Blu Ray and 15 HD DVD titles. While Blu Ray is enjoying more sales at the moment, this is hardly encouraging for either of the formats. I do think time will tell as to whether one or the other will become the defacto movie format. I do think that the North American HD DVD Promotional Group had a good point in that article: it's still too early to say if HD DVD is dead. I think it's going to be easier to decide if one format will win when we have some substantial sales figures....70% of pitiful sales is still pitiful

 

[virometal]

BTW, lost in all the Blockbuster news, Blu Ray gained another exclusive for content:

http://www.homemediaretailing.com/ne...ticle_ID=10786