Home Media Magazine - July 13-19, 2008 - (Page 24)

NEWS www.homemediamagazine.com Burgeoning Image By Erik Gruenwedel SUPPLIER It doesn’t report financials until August, but the news was so good Image Entertainment Inc. July 9 said net revenue for the fiscal first quarter ended June 30 exceeded $31 million — the highest net revenue for the Chatsworth, Calif.-based distributor in nearly three years. Under the helm of David Borshell, who succeeded founder and former president Martin Greenwald in April, Image is aggressively distancing itself from a challenging fiscal 2008 underscored by a protracted failed merger/ acquisition with BTP Holdings. Last month Image settled “a litany of disputes” with BTP and its affiliates (ThinkFilm), Borshell said, which resulted in the termination of mutual lawsuits and outstanding output deals. Both companies agreed to interim output agreements based on select titles in the future. Image believes pursuing higher-profile, castdriven feature films (from ThinkFilm and other sources) for DVD, television and electronic distribution will pay dividends at the retail level, on the bottom line and for shareholders. To help procure such recent releases as Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead, Numb and The Air I Breathe, among others, Image in January upped industry veteran Bill Bromiley from consultant to chief acquisitions officer. Bromiley, a 20-year home entertainment executive, had been president of First Look Home Entertainment. Image said it expects net revenue for fiscal 2009 will be in the range of $115 million to $125 million. It is not providing specific earnings guidance for the first quarter or the full year but anticipates that it will be profitable for fiscal 2009. 27 Dresses is among the films featured in Fox’s Mali-Blu-ray Screening Room Screenings Aim to Boost Fox Videos Continued from page 4 CLASSIFIED SHOWCASE B R O W S E R D I S P L AY CO M P U T E R S O F T WA R E variety of our DVD and Blu-ray Disc releases in front of them for when they come back home,” said Steve Feldstein, SVP of marketing and corporate communications for 20th Century Fox. “It is terrific visibility for classic releases and smaller titles and, for viewers at the Beach House, we can make their eyes pop out when they experience Blu-ray.” Fox began doing promotional screenings of its upcoming DVDs last summer, when it was one of several studios to participate in a summer movie series, “Show: Me the Movies,” held Sunday nights, outdoors, at the W hotel in Los Angeles. This year Fox signed an exclusive with the W to screen only its films in the series and branched out to the W in New Orleans, with an eye toward expanding further. This month, Fox will screen new Blu-ray Disc releases at the DKNY Jeans Beach House in Malibu, on a 103-inch Panasonic plasma TV screen. The private screenings, for invited house guests, include Batman: The Movie, Point Break, Juno and 27 Dresses, as well as the bulk of Fox’s Blu-ray library. Fox marketers will decorate the room with movie posters and hand out related merchandise, from Batman Frisbees to Point Break surfboard-shaped drink stirrers. Fox also is a flagship sponsor of Silver Screen Selects, a traveling film festival targeting baby boomers who enjoy classic movies. The weekly screenings in such locations as Key West, Fla., and Santa Fe, N.M., will feature Fox films from the recently released Bonneville to movies from collections featuring Tyrone Powers and Alice Faye. Silver Screen Selects is sponsored by Kids First!, the same group that sponsors a traveling children’s film festival that now stops in more than 100 venues nationwide. In partnership with the Tampa Bay Rays, Fox will screen classic family films on Tropicana Field after select baseball games. The program began last week with Ice Age and continues throughout July and August. Threats From Piracy on the Rise Continued from page 4 USED TAPES & DVDS BUSINESS SERVICES REDUCING YOUR INVENTORY? We Buy VHS, and also DVD & Video Games CO M P U T E R S O F T WA R E About 62% of new-release DVD movies copied in the United States (49% in the United Kingdom) had been purchased, compared to 38% of rented movies in the United States (30% in the United Kingdom) and 38% (U.S.) and 28% (U.K.) of borrowed new releases. More than 16% of U.S. respondents admitted to purchasing pirated or potentially pirated fare, compared to 11% in the United Kingdom. When asked if they would have purchased the content if they couldn’t copy it, 63% of U.K. respondents and 77% U.S. respondents said yes. More than 50% of the recent top 40 blockbuster movies had been copied in the United States, compared to 33% in the United Kingdom. Less than 18% of U.S respondents admitted to trying and failing to copy, compared to 8% of U.K. respondents. Separately, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) applauded the recent conviction of Daniel Dove, who operated peer-to-peer site EliteTorrents.org, specializing in pre-release Hollywood movies. “This conviction sends a clear message that when presented with clear-cut evidence, jurors have little tolerance for the willful, deliberate and widespread distribution of protected content,” Dan Glickman, chairman and CEO of the MPAA said in a statement. xtreme deo E 733-7370 (203) Vi I MICROSOFT NAMES DELMAN P E O P LE I FOX TAPS KLOSTER FOR U.K. MANAGING DIRECTOR Anders Kloster has been named managing director of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment’s U.K. division. He will be based in London and will report to Steven Leighton, SVP, Northern Europe. Kloster most recently was managing director for Leapfrog Toys in Europe. — Billy Gil CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT: Kurt Wohlman (714) 338-6749 kwohlman@questex.com www.homemediamagazine.com Microsoft Corp. has named Michael Delman corporate VP of global marketing, interactive entertainment business, in the entertainment and devices division. He will take over that role in August, moving from his role as corporate VP of the global marketing communications group. Delman will report to Don Mattrick, SVP of interactive entertainment business, and will handle marketing strategies for Xbox 360 and games for Windows businesses. 24 Home Media Magazine July 13–19, 2008 http://www.homemediamagazine.com http://www.rapidrental.com http://www.homemediamagazine.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Home Media Magazine - July 13-19, 2008

Home Media Magazine - July 13-19, 2008 Contents News News High-Def News Electronic Delivery News TV DVD Cine Mercado Reviews Pipeline Research Top 20 DVD Sellers Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts Just Announced Christian Entertainment Review - July 2008

Home Media Magazine - July 13-19, 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.