Blu-ray U.S. disc sales have tripled in the past year, according to The Digital Entertainment Group, but there's a slight problem -- Blu-ray sales are still lower than where film studios would like them to be, and there's no indication that Blu-ray sales will can top DVD sales anytime soon. The studios blame Blu-ray's performance on the economy, and claim that if we were enjoying better economic times, the format's sales would be higher. But there's one person, Bill Mechanic, a film producer and former Fox Filmed Entertainment chief, who believes there's more to this story. "I think it's one part recession, but there are bigger factors," Mechanic told The Wrap in an interview. "That's a misreading of consumer behavior as well as a misreading of the economic environment. It's devalued the libraries." "If you can buy 'Titanic' for $4.99," Mechanic continued, "[consumers will say] 'Well, wait a minute...'" when they consider buying another film on Blu-ray at a substantially higher price. "There's no rhyme or reason of what I see in the market place in terms of pricing," Mechanic said. He has a point. Even on Amazon.com, where Blu-ray movies are usually priced at their cheapest level, there's a major difference between DVD pricing and Blu-ray pricing. In fact, an older film like "Independence Day" is currently being offered on DVD for $14.99 and on Blu-ray for $25.99. A DVD of a new film, "The Dark Knight," is retailing for $14.99 on the site, while its Blu-ray counterpart is going for $23.99. It sure looks like DVD pricing is holding Blu-ray back. There's no debating that Blu-ray is a superior format to DVD. But as Mechanic told The Wrap, studios are expecting consumers to replace their DVD collections with Blu-ray, so they're dropping the prices on DVDs to get every last dime out of the format. All the while, they're doing their best to to keep Blu-ray prices higher to capitalize on what they expect will be high consumer demand for the high-def format. Maybe the plan is starting to backfire. Last week, Viacom released its quarterly earnings and reported that its home entertainment sales dropped 6 percent in the last quarter. Fox Filmed Entertainment DVD sales fell 15 percent last quarter, while Time Warner's Warner Bros. division reported a 24 percent decline in DVD sales over the same period. Those aren't reassuring figures. They also underscore another issue: Blu-ray may not be the savior the film studios are looking for. So far, the market has grown and each week, more Blu-ray films are hitting store shelves. But at some point, the DVD pricing conundrum will need to be addressed. After all, why should I buy the same film on Blu-ray for $24.99 when I can get it on DVD for $14.99? Sure, it's only $10 and I'm getting a superior format, but is the difference so great that it would make me want to switch? Based on my testing with an upconverting DVD player and PlayStation 3 on my 50-inch Panasonic plasma, I'm hard-pressed to pick Blu-ray at such a drastic price difference. Sure, I get better quality, but is it worth $10 to me? Maybe once. But that difference starts piling up quickly and an entire library of Blu-ray films would cost me hundreds more than if I bought them on DVD. That's an issue. Even rentals are more expensive
But it doesn't just end with sales. Rentals are also more expensive. In fact, Redbox, the rental company that puts kiosks in stores around the country and allows customers to rent a film for $1 per day, announced last week that its current Blu-ray pricing model of $1 per day isn't working and it would be forced to raise the price of Blu-ray rentals. The company's executives wouldn't say how much more the company would charge for Blu-ray. Worse, Netflix, which adds a $1 monthly charge to its subscription plans for those who want to add Blu-ray rentals, announced in its earnings call last month that its online streaming service is outpacing Blu-ray rentals. According to Reed Hastings, the company's CEO, Blu-ray subscriptions grew 40 percent since September to about 700,000, but in the same period, "millions" of subscribers have started using the company's streaming offering. Is that a response to convenience or to price? One thing is certain: there is a pricing issue in the space. How much longer can Blu-ray be priced more than $10 higher than DVD before movie studios wake up and realize that the closer Blu-ray is priced to DVDs, the more value consumers will see in the format? Maybe they've already woken up to that reality. Just last week, a report from Josh Dreuth at Blu-ray.com, explained that movie studios have quietly started dropping the prices of Blu-ray discs and some films can be purchased at a price that's within $5 of their DVD counterparts. In fact, Blu-ray versions of "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" and "Iron Man" are currently on sale at Amazon for $14.99 and $18.99, respectively. The DVD versions of "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" is priced at $9.99, while "Iron Man" on DVD is on sale for $17.99. Unfortunately, those two films are more the exception than the norm. Based on my research, there are a select few films that are priced so closely to their DVD counterparts, but I should note that each day, more Blu-ray films are being reduced in price. In fact, Tuesday, I received a list of 55 Blu-ray films from Amazon that it just lowered prices on. Some are priced as low as $14.99. About time
To me, it's all about value. Am I getting more value out of a respective Blu-ray film that I'm paying more for than its DVD alternative? At a $10 difference, the film better be a blockbuster hit with outstanding visuals. If it doesn't have both, I'll choose the DVD. But if the price difference is nominal and rentals are priced just $1 apart, I'll pick Blu-ray every time. Maybe my rationalization is all wrong, but I do put a price on value and so far, Blu-ray pricing is outrageous. The film studios would be right to drop prices quickly and bring them down to a level that's more consistent with DVDs. I realize Blu-ray is a superior format, but let's face it -- it's not so superior that we can justify spending $10 more per film just to have it. Especially with HD streaming looming.
[Via: cnet.com ]
Is DVD movie pricing holding Blu-ray back?
VUDU permanently cuts retail price of movie set-top-box in half
We had a sinking feeling those promotional prices over the holidays wouldn't stick once Santa had done his duties, but rather than ratcheting price tags back up entirely, it has decided to permanently reduce the retail price on its standard VUDU movie set-top-box by half. As of now, prospective buyers can snag a box for $149 (down from $299), while the more capacious VUDU XL is dropping from $999 to $499 (and that'll include a gratis home theater connectivity software package). Also of note, the rack-mountable VUDU XL2 is stooping from $1,299 to $799 for those who prefer that form factor. So, these stickers low enough for you? Or are you really planning to wait 'til Christmas 2009 to score an even more special deal?
[Via: Engadget ]
Some stations still plan early digital-TV transition
Over a quarter of all full-power broadcast TV stations could cut off their analog TV service on or before February 17 even though the official deadline has been extended another four months, according to the Federal Communications Commission.
[Via: cnet.com ]
Report: Pioneer to exit TV business
Pioneer will no longer manufacture televisions and plans to spin off its DVD player business into a joint venture with Sharp, according to a report in Japan's Nikkei newspaper. The company is reportedly exiting the tv business rather than continue to incur losses in that division. This latest report comes a few months after Pioneer announced it anticipated huge losses at the end of its fiscal year in March and plans to lay off 2,000 workers. Pioneer had built itself into a widely respected maker of plasma televisions, but last March said it would not make the plasma panels anymore because of skyrocketing costs and mounting losses in its TV division. It tapped Panasonic to provide the panels instead, but that deal appears now short-lived. Another clue this was coming: Pioneer showed no specific models of TVs at CES last month. Pioneer is not alone among TV makers losing money. Everyone from Panasonic to Samsung to Sony is facing layoffs and large quarterly losses. Update: Pioneer said it won't comment on the rumor, but released this statement: "We have publicly announced that we are actively evaluating our business. We started announcing changes in March 2008 to increase efficiencies of our business operations. We are still in that process but do not have any further announcements at this time."
[Via: cnet.com ]
Optoma delivers 1080p ThemeScene HD82 projector to the UK
'Tis a shame Optoma's reserving its latest 1080p beamer for the overseas crowd, but we'll set aside our envy for a tick and just join in the across-the-pond-excitement. The ThemeScene HD82 sports a native 1,920 x 1,080 resolution, 1,300 nits of brightness, a 20,000:1 maximum contrast ratio and a DLP engine. Britons will also enjoy a 1.5x zoom, PureMotion / PureShift technologies, twin HDMI ports and a DVI socket to boot. Of course, enjoying that ?2,999 ($4,382) price tag may not be as easy, but it's still comparatively affordable in the grand scheme of things.
[Via: AboutProjectors ]
Why $100 is the perfect Blu-ray player price
Lite-On might be releasing a $150 Blu-ray player at some point in 2009, recent rumors suggest. There's not much more information available now, but I don't think it seems out of the question to expect Lite-On or another firm like Memorex to release a player for that price sometime during the year. But is $150 the sweet spot for Blu-ray players? For those who want Blu-ray anyway they can have it, that might be perfect. But for others, $150 is still a steep price tag for a device that would conceivably offer less quality than other, more expensive Blu-ray players on the market. And as I consider a $150 Blu-ray player, I find myself in the latter grouping. It's not that a $150 Blu-ray player doesn't appeal to me. But for that price, I'm not getting enough that would make me want to spend the money. For me, the perfect price tag for a Blu-ray player at this juncture, given the economy and the format's shortcomings, is $100. $100 is the ideal price for media players that are trying to gain traction in the market. Until DVD players came down to that price, the format wasn't even close to ubiquity. But in just a few short months after the $100 DVD players started hitting store shelves, I remember finding one in almost every home I visited. It was astounding. My issue with the admittedly low Blu-ray player price of $150 goes far beyond the cash I'd dole out. Blu-ray itself is still a question mark to me. Do I really want to spend $150 on an underwhelming player when the jump from DVD to Blu-ray isn't that great on good players and a high-quality HDTV? I have a PlayStation 3 and Sony Blu-ray player. I've used both to compare the same films on Blu-ray and DVD. I've evaluated them on my Panasonic 50-inch 1080p calibrated HDTV. From The Dark Knight to Eastern Promises, I've found that Blu-ray provides nominally better picture quality. Worse, Blu-ray movies still cost about $30 when they're first released and considering the same film is available for $20 or less on DVD, I don't think I'm the only one wondering why I should pay an extra $10 per film just to have slightly better quality.
[Via: cnet.com ]
- Verizon Hub goes on sale for $1 99 .99 on contract
Why $100 is the perfect Blu-ray player price
Lite-On might be releasing a $150 Blu-ray player at some point in 2009, recent rumors suggest. There's not much more information available now, but I don't think it seems out of the question to expect Lite-On or another firm like Memorex to release a player for that price sometime during the year. But is $150 the sweet spot for Blu-ray players? For those who want Blu-ray anyway they can have it, that might be perfect. But for others, $150 is still a steep price tag for a device that would conceivably offer less quality than other, more expensive Blu-ray players on the market. And as I consider a $150 Blu-ray player, I find myself in the latter grouping. It's not that a $150 Blu-ray player doesn't appeal to me. But for that price, I'm not getting enough that would make me want to spend the money. For me, the perfect price tag for a Blu-ray player at this juncture, given the economy and the format's shortcomings, is $100. $100 is the ideal price for media players that are trying to gain traction in the market. Until DVD players came down to that price, the format wasn't even close to ubiquity. But in just a few short months after the $100 DVD players started hitting store shelves, I remember finding one in almost every home I visited. It was astounding. My issue with the admittedly low Blu-ray player price of $150 goes far beyond the cash I'd dole out. Blu-ray itself is still a question mark to me. Do I really want to spend $150 on an underwhelming player when the jump from DVD to Blu-ray isn't that great on good players and a high-quality HDTV? I have a PlayStation 3 and Sony Blu-ray player. I've used both to compare the same films on Blu-ray and DVD. I've evaluated them on my Panasonic 50-inch 1080p calibrated HDTV. From The Dark Knight to Eastern Promises, I've found that Blu-ray provides nominally better picture quality. Worse, Blu-ray movies still cost about $30 when they're first released and considering the same film is available for $20 or less on DVD, I don't think I'm the only one wondering why I should pay an extra $10 per film just to have slightly better quality.
[Via: cnet.com ]
- Verizon Hub goes on sale for $1 99 .99 on contract
Congress approves delay of digital-TV transition
With less than two weeks left before the scheduled national transition to digital broadcasting, Congress on Wednesday approved a delay of the DTV switchover. The House of Representatives voted 264 to 158 to push the transition back from February 17 to June 12. The Senate unanimously approved the delay last week. House Republicans blocked an earlier attempt at delaying the transition, saying pushing back the date would create confusion for consumers and burden television stations that would have to continue broadcasting both analog and digital signals. The initial vote on the measure required a two-thirds majority to pass under "fast-track" rules, but Wednesday's House vote required only a simple majority. The bill now awaits the president's signature. Democrats, including President Obama, were concerned that consumers were not prepared for the transition and that millions of people would be left without television service if it were not postponed. Nielsen reports that more than 6.5 million U.S. households are still not prepared for the transition. Furthermore, millions of consumers are still waiting for coupons for digital converter boxes from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which ran through the $1.3 billion allocated for the coupons. A Senate panel on Tuesday approved an additional $650 million for the coupon program as part of its so-called stimulus package. "It is unfortunate that Congress had to take additional action on this issue, but the prospect of leaving millions of consumers in the dark was simply unacceptable," Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a senior member of a congressional Internet panel, said in a statement after Wednesday's vote. "This was a foreseeable problem and should have been anticipated and acknowledged by the Bush administration long ago. However, the Bush administration simply left us with insufficient time to make the needed adjustments on a national basis without this short, one-time delay." The bill allows television stations to switch from analog to digital signals before the June 12 deadline if they are ready to do so. The vacated analog spectrum will be allocated to public safety services. "I know we will do all that we can to minimize the inevitable disruption and confusion this transition will cause," said Federal Communications Commissioner Robert McDowell. "In the meantime, if you need a converter box, get it today and hook it up today and start enjoying the benefits of digital television today."
[Via: cnet.com ]
Congress approves delay of digital-TV transition
With less than two weeks left before the scheduled national transition to digital broadcasting, Congress on Wednesday approved a delay of the DTV switchover. The House of Representatives voted 264 to 158 to push the transition back from February 17 to June 12. The Senate unanimously approved the delay last week. House Republicans blocked an earlier attempt at delaying the transition, saying pushing back the date would create confusion for consumers and burden television stations that would have to continue broadcasting both analog and digital signals. The initial vote on the measure required a two-thirds majority to pass under "fast-track" rules, but Wednesday's House vote required only a simple majority. The bill now awaits the president's signature. Democrats, including President Obama, were concerned that consumers were not prepared for the transition and that millions of people would be left without television service if it were not postponed. Nielsen reports that more than 6.5 million U.S. households are still not prepared for the transition. Furthermore, millions of consumers are still waiting for coupons for digital converter boxes from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, which ran through the $1.3 billion allocated for the coupons. A Senate panel on Tuesday approved an additional $650 million for the coupon program as part of its so-called stimulus package. "It is unfortunate that Congress had to take additional action on this issue, but the prospect of leaving millions of consumers in the dark was simply unacceptable," Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a senior member of a congressional Internet panel, said in a statement after Wednesday's vote. "This was a foreseeable problem and should have been anticipated and acknowledged by the Bush administration long ago. However, the Bush administration simply left us with insufficient time to make the needed adjustments on a national basis without this short, one-time delay." The bill allows television stations to switch from analog to digital signals before the June 12 deadline if they are ready to do so. The vacated analog spectrum will be allocated to public safety services. "I know we will do all that we can to minimize the inevitable disruption and confusion this transition will cause," said Federal Communications Commissioner Robert McDowell. "In the meantime, if you need a converter box, get it today and hook it up today and start enjoying the benefits of digital television today."
[Via: cnet.com ]
HD NVD is China's home grown answer to Blu-ray, but does it have a chance?
It's Monday, which apparently means time for yet another Blu-ray fighting Chinese high definition disc format, this time NVD. With China Blue hd barely out the door and EVD conspicuous only in its absence, hd NVD players apparently went on sale today in Wuhan, featuring 12GB of storage on a red laser disc format that -- unlike the Toshiba technology backed CBHD / HD DVD variant -- is not only Made in China, but Created in China, with the hope that owning their own IP can net 4-5 times the profit for its manufacturers. 80% of the world's DVDs and players are reportedly produced in China, so now production lines can switch to NVD HD cheaply -- stop us if you've heard this before. It's clear that these companies are chafing under the royalties of foreign tech, but until we hear something about content support in any major way, it's hard to believe this format war is even worth fighting. Us? We're still holding out for VCDHD.
[Via: Engadget ]
Digital distribution not expected to rule packaged media anytime soon
Whoa, vaquero -- calm your jets. This is just a projection, which may or may not prove to be indicative of reality. That said, there's still quite a lot here to discuss, particularly since we've been hearing so much hubbub over the supposed explosion of digital distribution. Media Control GfK International has forecast that sales of Blu-ray Discs will increase some 150 percent to $2.9 billion, up from $1.1 billion in 2008. For those keeping count, digital distribution only generated $1.5 billion last year, and that's including every penny made from VOD and broadband services. In-Stat analyst Michael Paxton was quoted as saying that the "bandwidth required to stream any type of HD video is way beyond what most households have," and he continued by noting that the "convenience factor is still not there for streaming media." You owe it to yourself to hit up the read link for the full report before blasting your opinion in comments below, but we suppose we can't stop you either way.
[Via: Engadget ]
Philips' 56-inch Cinema 21:9 HDTV: not for Americans
Oh, bollocks! If one particular spokesman who opened up to ZDnet today is accurate, Philips' totally sweet 56-inch Cinema 21:9 hdtv won't ever be sold on American soil. Quite frankly, we're wondering what's up with Philips and its apparent disdain for the US market. It farmed out its Blu-ray / DVD and TV operations in North America to Funai, it didn't even bother showing up in Vegas for CES, and anything even remotely swank that it produces seems to be reserved for those overseas. What happened to the worldwide love, Philips? Did someone give you the impression that Yanks wouldn't buy one of these completely mesmerizing new panels? Sigh.
[Via: Engadget ]
DISH Network's DTVPal DVR unboxed and previewed
For the longest while, we couldn't figure out who let the standalone HD DVR die. To this day, we're still scrambling to find an answer, but thankfully DISH network has stepped in to revive the niche while the search continues. The outfit's DTVPal DVR has been circulating for almost a century now (okay, just a year and change, but there's hardly a difference in the grand scheme of things), and Mr. Dave Zatz has done us the honors of unboxing one and setting it up. The unit actually doubles as a dtv converter box and an HD DVR, and Zatz found setup to be almost too painless. Everything seemed to be humming along just fine at last check, so feel free and have a look at the gallery in the read link below before pulling the trigger.
[Via: Engadget ]
