Home Media Magazine - June 8-14, 2008 - (Page Cover1)

JUNE 8–14, 2008 Home A R C H Media RESE MAR KET S HAR E 10% as of 6/1/08 I Blu-ray I DVD Consumers spent $129.37 million on DVDs for the week Blu-ray vs. DVD Sales* Consumers spent $10.05 million on Blu-ray Discs for the week Down 13.11% from the previous week. * Top 20 unit volume 90% Down 18.80% from the previous week. Source: Home Media Research >> HIGH-DEF BRINGING DIGITAL ENTERTAINMENT TO YOU THE BIG PICTURE Retailers Up Used DVD By Erik Gruenwedel RETAIL At the Second Spin in Costa Mesa, Calif., back walls once lined with eclectic music CDs are quietly being replaced with DVD and Blu-ray movies. The Trans World Entertainment Corp. subsidiary, which predominantly sells used CDs, is following a company-wide mandate aimed at replacing money-losing CDs with DVD as quickly as possible. Trans World, which also operates the f.y.e. Suncoast and Wherehouse brands, reported an $11.8 million quarterly loss primarily due to a 23% decline in same-store music sales. The company said sales of new and used DVDs, which represented 41% of revenue, compared to 38% during the prior-year period, will account for an even greater slice of revenue going forward. See USED, Page 28 Wal-Mart BD Players Come With Gift Card By Erik Gruenwedel when it bowed INSIDE RETAIL Wal-Mart is boost$39 DVD players >> Robots Go ing Blu-ray. on Black Friday Blu On the heels of bowing — the day after Transformers the cheapest Blu-ray player Thanksgiving hits Blu-ray Disc. at retail, the market-moving when retailers entice >> ‘Boys’ in Blu chain announced from June 8 shoppers with special deals. Lost Boys and DTV through June 14 it will include a “We are excited to be the destina- sequel on BD. $100 gift card with the purchase of tion for families looking to create a PAGE 10 any Blu-ray player in its stores. high-quality, affordable home enterThe promotion, which coincides See WAL-MART, Page 28 with the completion of a major renovation of the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer’s consumer electronics department in 1,200 stores nationBy Erik Gruenwedel wide, also includes select Blu-ray new consumer study said 45% of HDTV owners movies for $15 while supplies last. claim to be familiar with next-generation packaged Titles include Liongate’s 3:10 to media Blu-ray Disc, up from 35% in June 2007. Yuma and War, Paramount Home The study by Port Washington, N.Y.-based The NPD Entertainment’s Shooter, Warner Group said 6% of consumers surveyed intended to purHome Video’s 300 and Sony Picchase a Blu-ray player. tures Home Entertainment’s The “With HDTV now in approximately 40 million U.S. Fifth Element, among others. households, that percentage translates to a pool of Wal-Mart in 2003 helped jumpstart See REPORT, Page 28 mass consumer adoption of DVD REPORT: HALF KNOW BLU-RAY A Fire Destroys Uni’s Film Library But main vault contains negatives; disc schedule not affected By Chris Tribbey SUPPLIER UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. — A massive fire that broke out at Universal Studios early June 1 destroyed several sets and a building holding tens of thousands of digital and film copies of movies and TV shows. Universal said none of its DVD or Blu-ray Disc street dates will be affected. Ten people suffered minor injuries, and the blaze took a dozen hours to extinguish. County fire officials said they believed workers putting shingles on a roof started the fire. Up to 50,000 films were damaged, said NBC Universal president and COO Ron Meyer, but copies of everything are stored in a different location. Content includes virtually every film >> ELECTRO N IC DELIVERY No More Cable ‘Free Lunch’ on Web? By Erik Gruenwedel and John Latchem ime Warner Cable is considering charging its Internet subscribers for excessive Web use and is testing a metering program in Beaumont, Texas, according to The Associated Press. Service tiers range from $29.95 per month for 768 kilobits per second T Universal has produced and footage from dozens of TV series. Many were old movie prints circulated among movie theaters. None of the original negatives were on site. See FIRE, Page 26 and a 5GB monthly cap, to $54.90 per month for 15 megabits per second and a 40GB limit. Those who go over will be charged $1 per GB. Casual Internet users would have little reason to fear the cap, as 1GB constitutes about 3,000 Web pages or 15,000 e-mails without attachments. Those who download movies or TV See TIME WARNER, Page 28 INSIDE >> Plasmas Connect Panasonic shows off the Viera. >> Akimbo Done VOD service shuts down. PAGE 12 NEWS Nearly 30% of Indiana Jones moviegoers recently watched one of the first three installments on DVD, according to a study. PRODUCT Screenwriter Daniel Waters talks Heathers, returning on the 20th High School Reunion Edition DVD, from Anchor Bay. RESEARCH Lionsgate blasted onto the charts with Rambo, topping rentals and coming in at No. 2 on sales, behind National Treasure: Book of Secrets. Page 6 Page 23 Page 24

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Home Media Magazine - June 8, 2008 Contents News News High-Def News Electronic Delivery News TV DVD Extreme Sports KidVid Reviews Pipeline Research Top 20 DVD Sellers Top 20 Rentals and Top 10 Charts Just Announced

Home Media Magazine - June 8-14, 2008

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