Home Media Magazine - January 13-19, 2007 - (Page 23)

www.homemediamagazine.com NEWS after May 2008 gives Blu-ray a decided advantage, since the format now enjoys the exclusive support of four of the six major studios — Warner, Walt Disney Studios, Sony Pictures and 20th Century Fox — as well as mini-majors Lionsgate and, now, New Line and HBO. The exodus mitigates any momentum HD DVD might have gained last fall when Paramount Home Entertainment and DreamWorks abandoned its dual-format strategy and began releasing titles only in HD DVD. After that, the format war everyone expected would be long over appeared to be headed toward a stalemate. Subsequently, at the Blu-ray Disc Festival in Hollywood, a Warner executive said the studio would reevaluate its dual-format strategy at the end of the fourth quarter, after monitoring sales, and throw its support behind only one. Warner said its decision to go exclusively with Blu-ray was based on consumer demand. In a statement, Warner Bros. chairman and CEO Barry Meyer called it “a strategic decision focused on the longterm and the most direct way to give consumers what they want.” “The window of opportunity for high-definition DVD could be missed if format confusion continues to linger,” Meyer said. “We believe that exclusively distributing in Blu-ray will further the potential for mass-market success.” While Warner isn’t pulling the plug on HD DVD releases immediately, the studio will issue forthcoming titles on HD DVD “after a short window following their standard DVD and Blu-ray releases,” according to a statement. How long that window is, the studio wouldn’t say. “Unless one format drops out, it’s business as usual,” said Brian Lucas, a spokesperson for Best Buy, which reportedly is the largest retailer of HD packaged media. Lucas said the studios’ defections from HD DVD to Blu-ray do not change the retailer’s agnostic approach toward either format. “As far as we’re concerned, there are still two formats,” Lucas said. “The format war is not really over.” He said as long as studios release content in HD DVD and there is a market for the format, Best Buy will continue to carry it. The chain will continue telling customers about the two formats and not take sides, he said. As more BD titles are released the stores will offer increased shelf space for them, Lucas said. In contrast, Jim Litwak, president and COO of Trans World Entertainment Corp., showed little hesitation in applauding Warner Bros.’ decision to exclusively support Blu-ray Disc (see story, page 24). “Finally, the customer has an understanding of where this business is going to go and will not be confused,” Litwak said. “Blu-ray becomes the new DVD format, which is particularly exciting. We like that a lot.” While Warner in the past has said its dual-format strategy allows it to maximize sales in the nascent HD media market, consumer confusion ultimately became a bigger issue. “A two-format landscape has led to consumer confusion and indifference toward high-definition, which has kept the technology from reaching mass adoption and becoming the important revenue stream that it can be for the industry,” said Kevin Tsujihara, president of the Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group. “Consumers have clearly chosen Blu-ray.” Toshiba, which developed HD DVD and originally partnered with Warner a decade ago to create DVD, was clearly taken aback. In a statement, the consumer electronics manufacturer said it was “quite surprised by Warner Bros.’ decision to abandon HD DVD in favor of Bluray, despite the fact that there are various contracts in place between our companies concerning the support of HD DVD. “As central members of the DVD Forum, we have long maintained a close partnership with Warner Bros.,” the statement said. “We worked closely together to help standardize the firstgeneration DVD format as well as to define and shape HD DVD as its next-generation successor. We were particularly disappointed that this decision was made in spite of the significant momentum HD DVD has gained in the U.S. market as well as other regions in 2007. … We remain firm in our belief that HD DVD is the format best suited to the wants and needs of the consumer.” A leading research firm says Warner’s decision brings “much-needed clarity” to the market and could lead to swifter adoption by consumers of high-def media. Understanding & Solutions’ Jim Bottoms predicts the format war will be over before the end of the year, and the market for HD media can only grow, as the percentage of U.S. households with at least one HDTV is expected to grow from the current 34% to more than 90% by 2011. Additional reporting by Erik Gruenwedel Warner Spawns Blu Moves Continued from page 1 Electronics Show when it announced that after May it will no longer support the HD DVD platform, which for nearly two years has been engaged in a bitter format war with Blu-ray Disc to become the high-definition disc standard. Similarly to Warner, New Line and HBO had been supporting both formats, although New Line’s HD DVD releases lagged behind its standard DVD and Blu-ray releases. HBO has released season six of one of the most popular TV DVD sellers of all time, “The Sopranos,” on both Bluray Disc and HD DVD. The Warner move had been both widely expected and publicly denied. With a market share of more than 20%, Warner is the biggest Hollywood player in the home entertainment industry. Warner also had been the only major studio to release titles on both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD. The decision to ditch HD DVD JUST ANNOUNCED A Weekly Product Update* Bee Movie STREET DATE Into the Wild BOX OFFICE (MILLIONS) Things We Lost in the Fire TITLE PREBOOK GENRE PRICE Bee Movie 3/11 1/29 $125.2 Animated DVD $19.95, HD DVD $39.99 Paramount/DreamWorks. 2007. Voices of Jerry Seinfeld, Renée Zellweger, Kathy Bates, Matthew Broderick, John Goodman, Chris Rock. A young bee ventures out of the hive in search of an alternate vocation to making honey. Also available in a two-DVD special edition for $39.99. Into the Wild 3/4 1/22 $17.3 Adventure DVD $29.99, HD DVD $39.99 Blockbuster to Go Digital Continued from page 1 DATE CHANGE. Paramount. 2007. Emile Hirsch, Vince Vaughn, Hal Holbrook, Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt. Based on the true story of Christopher McCandless, a college graduate who walked out on his life of privilege to seek adventure. Also available in a two-DVD set $39.99. Things We Lost in the Fire 3/4 1/22 $3.3 Drama DVD $29.99, HD DVD $39.99 DATE CHANGE. Paramount. 2007. Halle Berry, Benicio Del Toro. A woman who is dealing with the sudden death of her husband invites his best friend to live with her and her children, hoping that he can help them cope with the loss. Sleuth 3/11 2/7 $0.36 Mystery DVD $29.96, BD $38.95 Sony Pictures. 2007. Michael Caine, Jude Law. A man confronts his wife’s lover about the affair, and a deadly game of cat and mouse ensues. Includes commentaries, a behind-the-scenes featurette and a featurette on makeup secrets. Tin Man 3/11 1/29 TV Sci-Fi DVD $24.95 Genius/Weinstein. 2007. Zooey Deschanel, Alan Cumming, Richard Dreyfuss. Originally aired as a miniseries on Sci Fi Channel, this two-DVD set retells The Wizard of Oz with a modern twist. Includes a making-of featurette, blooper reel and interviews with the cast. 12 Angry Men: 50th Anniversary 3/4 2/6 Re-release Drama DVD $19.98 Fox/MGM/UA. 1957. Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Jack Warden, Martin Balsam, Ed Begley. An intense look at a jury of 12 men who deliberate the verdict in a murder trial. Includes the featurettes “Beyond A Reasonable Doubt: The Making of 12 Angry Men” and “Inside the Jury Room.” The Bette Davis Collection Vol. 3 4/1 2/26 Re-release Classic DVD $59.92 Warner. 1939-46. Includes the films The Old Maid; All This, and Heaven Too; The Great Lie; In This Our Life; Watch on the Rhine; and Deception. Special features include commentaries, vintage news reels, shorts, classic cartoons and more. * In order of box office, then prebook date “The studios, distribution companies and retailers are all struggling with so much change so quickly,” Keyes said. “I hope the studios see this as [an] … opportunity to increase consumption of entertainment.” The executive also said it appeared likely Blockbuster would meet its first-quarter debt covenants. Keyes eyes electronic distribution as a venue to elevate Blockbuster beyond what he believes is a narrow DVD rental niche. Keyes was asked whether the online movie rental market had reached maturity. He said he wasn’t ready to characterize by-mail rental that way yet. “We do think the [online DVD rental] business has slowed,” Keyes said, adding that he felt the rental market had been relatively flat and stable for several years. He said online DVD rental has stood up well against competition from VOD, streaming and electronic sellthrough. While Redbox reportedly aims to operate more U.S. kiosks by the end of the year than Blockbuster has stores, Keyes said he has been hesitant to pursue kiosks more aggressively. “We don’t want to be too aggressive with vending if it has an earlier maturity curve compared to the download,” he said. “It is basically vending — a very sophisticated Coke machine.” Finally, the CEO said the company has failed to properly communicate to consumers recently implemented external and in-store pricing plans. “Our in-store pricing is horrifically complicated,” he said. Ultimately, Keyes said he wants customers to see Blockbuster as more than a DVD rental store. At the same time, he told investors he wants to “chase profitable growth, not just revenue growth through a new distribution channel.” Home Media Magazine January 13–19, 2008 http://www.homemediamagazine.com

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Home Media Magazine - January 13-19, 2007

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