Home Media Magazine - November 18-24, 2007 - (Page 28) NEWS West Hills Movies Yes www.homemediamagazine.com Panorama City Yes Long Beach Yes Sony BDP-S300 $488 Foothhill Ranch Yes San Clemente Yes Chula Vista Yes Sony BDP-S300 $488 Philips BDP-9000 $898 Samsung BDP-1000 $698 Yes Walmart.com Yes Sony BDP-S300 $449.54 Philips BDP-9000 $698 Blu-ray Players None None None None PS3 (BD) Yes Yes Yes HD-A3 $298 Yes Yes Yes Toshiba HD-A2 $229.28 HD DVD Players Xbox 360 HD DVD Add-on None None None None Sold Out Yes Yes Yes Sold Out Sold Out Yes Yes Wal-Mart Shopping Mixed Continued from page 1 with the insignia of the new HDNA promotion. When she couldn’t explain the difference between 1080p, 1080i, 720p and 720i, she turned things over to another fellow who exuded confidence in the subject. He proceeded to explain that 1080i was the best resolution (1080p is) and that Bluray players are the best because they play both DVDs and HD movies. He didn’t seem to know much about the format war and was surprised at the suggestion that HD DVDs won’t play in a Blu-ray player. The high-def movie section was extremely small, filled mostly with new releases. Spider-Man 3 on Bluray was well stocked, but the Transformers HD DVD was sold out. A Foothill Ranch location had no standalone players, and the Xbox add-on was sold out. But a clerk suggested an upconverting DVD player would do (it won’t play HD DVDs or Blu-ray Discs). Another clerk suggested going to the Circuit City across the parking lot. The Foothill Ranch location had a 2to-I ratio in favor of Blu-ray movies, but only display copies of high-def movies on shelves, as the clerk said they kept getting stolen. The Santa Ana location has a similar policy. In San Clemente a customer service rep suggested a specialist would be in soon to train the clerks about high-def, and that they’d start stocking standalone players when they fell below $200. She said there were only five or so regulars who come in to buy Blu-ray or HD DVD movies, with most customers not asking about it at all. A clerk in Chula Vista (in San Diego County) seemed generally up to speed on the format war and said most players were sold out after the Nov. 2 secret sale. The player displays also had a lot of helpful information explaining high-def. Several Wal-Marts in the Los Angeles area had no high-def set-top boxes, and employees doubted they would sell anything other than PS3 and Xbox 360s through the holidays. A Panorama City clerk dismissed them as “fancy DVD players” with no difference between the formats. A West Hills clerk had no answers and called a manager. PANEL: FORMAT WAR HELPS ONLINE By Erik Gruenwedel Writers Strike Getting More Contentious Continued from page 1 the Writers Guild of America (WGA) of blacklisting writers it alleged to be engaging in strike-breaking activities or scab writing. The chairman of the WGA’s newly formed strike compliance committee had reportedly warned members they should inform the guild about writers crossing picket lines. The AMPTP reiterated that writers get paid residuals from new media each time a consumer pays to view TV programming or a feature film either as a rental stream or download (electronic sellthrough). The WGA contends the residual rates, when applied to new media and not discounted as promotion, are based on antiquated home video rates. “The WGA is using fear and intimidation to control its membership,” Counter said. “Asking members to inform on each other and creating a blacklist of those who question the tactics of the WGA leadership is as unacceptable today as it was when the WGA opposed these tactics in the 1950s.” The WGA West denied Counter’s charge and called it as “offensive as it is untrue.” The group characterized Counter’s comment as an attempt to divert attention away from his alleged refusal to return to the bargaining table. Wal-Mart’s recent secret sale of an HD DVD player for $99 was a turning point in the ongoing format war, said panelists last week at the Piper Jaffray Global Internet Summit in Laguna Beach, Calif. Ted Sarandos, chief content officer with Netflix Inc., said that move, coupled with Paramount Pictures’ move to exclusively distribute titles in HD DVD, would change the format playing field. “In a Wal-Mart age, the notion that two formats can co-exist with such a huge price disparity doesn’t seem very likely,” he said. Sarandos said the preferable way to solve the format war would be through dual publishing. He said the likelihood the studios will put out dual-format content is very high. He said a little known fact about the 30,000 HD DVD players sold by Wal-Mart was that 30% of the devices were connected to the Internet shortly after purchase. Curt Marvis, CEO of movie download service CinemaNow, said studios’ preoccupation with the format war could goose distribution of standard-def movies on the Web. L ATE FLAS HE S I SONY’S STRINGER: PS3 PRICE CUT BOOSTED SALES Sony Corp. CEO Howard Stringer said the company sold more than 100,000 PlayStation 3 consoles in the week of Nov. 11 after implementing price cuts, according to The Associated Press. Last month Sony cut $100 from the 80GB PS3 while introducing a 40GB unit for $400. “It’s the breakthrough we’ve been anticipating,” Stringer told The AP. “We’ve been holding our breath.” I MOVIE GALLERY GETS FUNDING APPROVAL Bankrupt Movie Gallery Inc. last week received official court backing for a $150 million debtor-in-possession credit (DIP) facility. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court of Virginia said the Dothan, Ala.-based No. 2 video rental chain could use the funds to pay vendors and employees in addition to providing operational and financial stability. — Erik Gruenwedel “The WGA has an offer on the table and is ready and willing to meet with the AMPTP any day, anywhere,” the guild said in a statement. Comedienne Ellen DeGeneres created a stir when she crossed the picket line seeking non-guild writers for her TV talk show a day after pledging support for the WGA. DeGeneres, who is a member of WGA and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), began taping new shows Nov. 6 after producers of the show ordered her back to work. She reportedly declined doing an opening monologue in support of the writers but told reporters she felt caught in the middle. “I’m a host and have 135 staff members depending on me for a paycheck each week,” said DeGeneres, as reported by the Los Angeles Times. In the meantime, studios and production companies continued downsizing staff and personnel with the shutdown of new episodic TV programming. An editor in postproduction of NBC’s scifi serial “Heroes” said Friday was her last day despite the fact she still had episodes No. 12 and No. 13 to work on. The 27-year industry veteran, who weathered the 1988 strike, said many of her co-workers had hoped the WGA would wait until next summer, when studio contracts with the Screen Actors Guild and the Directors Guild of America expired. “We thought they would do it all at once and not now,” she said. Busy Bee on DVD Andy Dick appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Halloween to tout Lionsgate’s DVD release of Danny Roane: First Time Director. This was his directorial debut, and he also starred in the film. HOME MEDIA MAGAZINE (ISSN 1934-9882) is published 51 times per year (weekly except 3 issues in December) by Questex Media Group, Inc., 306 West Michigan Street, Suite 200, Duluth, MN 55802. Subscription rates: $49.99 for one year in the United States and Possessions; $79.99 for one year in Canada and Mexico; all other countries $99.99 for one year (by surface mail). Add $75 annually for air-expedited service. 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