Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - (Page 22) NEWS PS3 in 3rd Continued from page 1 www.homemediamagazine.com Analyst Projects Movie Income Surge at News Corp. By Erik Gruenwedel SUPPLIER There appears to be light at the end of the recessionary tunnel for News Corp.’s filmed-entertainment division, which includes 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, according to one analyst. Spurred by favorable theatrical (and likely Blu-ray Disc and catalog DVD) releases through the end of fiscal 2009 (ending June 30), Pali Capital analyst Rich Greenfield said The PS3 is getting strong competition from its predecessor PS2, which despite its last-generation status sold 410,000 units in December. “The record for single-month console system sales still belongs to the PS2, which sold 2.7 million units in December 2002,” Frazier said. Despite the poor economy, the game industry is growing. “While industry growth has not continued at the blistering pace we saw during the second and third quarters, December’s 9% increase over last December brings the year in 19% ahead of last year, and sets a new record for total industry sales,” Frazier said. “Thirty-eight months into this generation of hardware, the three new systems have sold a combined 38.2 million units, whereas at the same point last generation, in December 2003, the three systems had sold 36.9 million units.” 20th Century Fox would realize $823 million in operating income, up $58 million from a previous estimate. The projection nonetheless represents a 33.9% decline from fiscal 2008. Studio revenue will top $5.7 billion, down 13.4% from last year. Greenfield forecasts a 40% surge in filmed-entertainment operating income to $1.15 billion in fiscal 2010, with revenue surging 9.7% to $6.3 billion. The analyst said a strong slate, which includes Marley & Me, Bride Wars, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Australia and upcoming theatrical releases Taken (Jan. 30), Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li (Feb. 27), All About Steve (March 6), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (May 1) and Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (May 22), contributed to the revised projection. Not mentioned was the probable multimillion-dollar settlement Fox reportedly is ironing out with Warner Bros., regarding the latter’s March 6 tentpole release of Watchmen from director Zack Snyder. Warner optioned the $130 million superhero film — based on the 1980’s comic book series — apparently unaware Fox may have controlled the rights. The studio and Synder have several related “Watchmen” DVDs in the works as well. Blockbuster Links With Sonic in Digital Arena Continued from page 1 SAG’s Strife Continued from page 1 authorization. Success hinges on 75% membership approval, which many consider a longshot in the current economy. Actors and producers have been working under the previous contract, which expired June 30, 2008. “After analyzing the document, Screen Actors Guild’s in-house and outside counsel have concluded that the document does not constitute a valid written assent, for several reasons, including a lack of sufficient signatures and the absence of any language on the document demonstrating the intent of the signers to grant their assent to the proposal,” Rosenberg said, in a statement. Rosenberg said Allen and the negotiating committee remained committed to advancing the cause of actors and “our crucial contract negotiations.” Actors are seeking greater compensation from Internet distribution, in addition to revamping the 20-year-old home video residual agreement, which studios have steadfastly refused to address. The agreement originally applied to VHS, but the subsequent arrival of DVD and Blu-ray Disc made potential residuals a more lucrative and contentious prospect. sellthrough. Sonic’s software development kit would complement Blockbuster’s nascent entry into digital distribution via downloads and streaming on CE devices and PCs. “Through this alliance with Sonic, we plan to become a ubiquitous presence in the digital world,” said Jim Keyes, Blockbuster chairman and CEO. “Our goal is to offer consumers the most digital content, the most accessibility, via the most devices, both in and out of the home.” The move also marks a countersurge against rival Netflix’s burgeoning network of streaming partners, which include select LG and Samsung Blu-ray players, Tivo and Microsoft’s Xbox 360, according to analysts. “This largely remains a battle between Netflix and Blockbuster at the moment, and it is clear both parties are taking no prisoners,” said independent analyst Rob Enderle. He said that regardless of who wins, the consumer is getting better entertainment delivery choices and increased content. Phil Leigh, president of Inside Digital Media in Tampa, Fla., said Sonic is enabling Blockbuster to emulate Netflix’s digital strategies by getting its brand embedded into consumer appliances that will be entering the market in the next few years. He said Sonic’s digital rights management also allows consumers to legally burn copyrighted content, which he said is an added value to the alliance. “Blockbuster feels compelled to compete on that front,” Leigh said. Analysts said 2009 would mark an important transition year for TVs, with the advance of Internet-enabled units. Proliferation of HDMI inputs in PCs and TVs, combined with wireless connectivity, will see an increase of tech-savvy consumers watching content on the TV from Hulu.com and other online sources. “This is certainly an important trend to watch,” Enderle said. “We are seeing the accelerated end of packaged media as digital distribution continues to ramp sharply into the market.” Edward Woo, analyst with Wedbush Morgan Securities in Los Angeles, countered that demise of packaged media is largely overstated due to its commodity status and the ubiquitous presence of DVD players in U.S. homes. “This is a salvo for digital distribution, but packaged media has a number of years left,” Woo said. “In a couple of years, this might not be the case, but thanks to slow adoption and the economy, transitions can take a while.” Gallery Reports Loss in Q1 Continued from page 1 on revenue of $647 million during the prioryear period ended April 1, 2007. Gallery issued the statement as the first of sequential belated quarterly reports required of publicly traded companies by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Last month the company said it would not be able to file quarterly financial results for the period ended Oct. 8, 2008. In the statement Gallery reported $414.6 million in movie and video game rental revenue, and $141 million in sales revenue. Same-store Gallery revenue declined 10.1%, compared to a 16.4% comp-store decline for Hollywood Video and Game Crazy locations open at least 12 months. Gallery executives cited market saturation of DVD titles, emergence of online subscription and DVD-rental kiosks, and slow adoption of Blu-ray for the decline. The chain ended the period with $1.2 billion in outstanding debt. It operated 3,485 Gallery, Hollywood Video and Game Crazy store locations during the period. As of Jan. 4, 2009, Gallery said it had $30 million in available cash and $40 million in a revolving credit facility. Diesel’s Double L A T E FL A SH ES I HAWAII GOES DIGITAL Hawaii was the first state to make the complete switch to all-digital TV Jan. 15, doing so without any major technological hitches, but with thousands of residents still unprepared for the analog shut down, according to reports. State officials told The Associated Press that as many as 20,000 Hawaii residents were still getting their TV via analog. A message reportedly told those residents that TV stations servicing the islands were now digital. Residents who need to buy a digital converter box have plenty of options for now. A call to a Circuit City on the island of Oahu found them stocked with “a couple hundred,” an employee said. I CRACKLE.COM DEBUTS LUCY LAWLESS SERIES Forget TV. “Angel of Death” will only be online before it sees a DVD release. The 10-episode thriller with Lucy Lawless and Zoe Bell will premiere March 2 on Crackle.com, Sony Pictures Entertainment’s online video network. A new 8- to 10-minute episode will be available each weekday through March 13, and the DVD will treat the episodes as one full-length feature. — Chris Tribbey Pro snowmobiler Paul Thacker of the Slednecks promoted Babylon A.D., now available on Blu-ray Disc and DVD from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, at the Monster Energy Slednecks Invasion Tour outside Minneapolis Jan. 9. Thacker appears in the film as Vin Diesel’s stunt double and on the DVD’s “Arctic Escape” featurette, in which he Photo by: HansonImages.com takes viewers behind the scenes of the film. HOME MEDIA MAGAZINE (ISSN 1934-9882) is published weekly 52 times per year 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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Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 Contents News News News News Commentary Reviews Research Top 20 DVD Sellers Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts Just Announced Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 (Page 1) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 (Page 2) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Contents (Page 3) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - News (Page 4) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - News (Page 5) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - News (Page 6) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - News (Page 7) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - News (Page 8) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - News (Page 9) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Commentary (Page 10) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Commentary (Page 11) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Reviews (Page 12) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Reviews (Page 13) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Reviews (Page 14) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Reviews (Page 15) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Top 20 DVD Sellers (Page 16) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Top 20 DVD Sellers (Page 17) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts (Page 18) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts (Page 19) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Just Announced (Page 20) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Just Announced (Page 21) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Just Announced (Page 22) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Just Announced (Page 23) Home Media Magazine - January 19-25, 2009 - Just Announced (Page 24)
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