Recently, Bill Hunt over at The Digital Bits caught a lot of flack over a piece he wrote on the HD war, and why The Digital Bits was backing Blu-Ray as the ?format to beat?.
Bill?s piece was a response to a post from Harry Knowles over at Ain?t It Cool News where Harry talked about picking up a HD DVD player, and why he had chosen that particular format. Bill decided to respond to the piece primarily because Harry?s piece was full of erroneous information (I know, on Ain?t It Cool News? Surely I jest?). Harry?s piece has since been edited somewhat, but is still far from correct. It is full of fear, uncertainty and doubt, and has several facts flat out wrong. Bill?s piece does a more than adequate job of pointing out the flaws in Harry?s arguments, though, so I won?t get into that here.
I found Bill?s piece thought-provoking, and very well researched. It is a very logically presented argument as to why Blu-Ray will ultimately prevail in the HD DVD/Blu-Ray format war. It also started me on a train of thought related to one of the specific reasons Bill feels Blu-Ray will win; studio support.
I thought it?d be interesting to take some data from Box Office Mojo related to the studios and which format(s) they support, and then amalgamate that data.
I took a look at the top 100 grossing films from 2005, 2006 and 2007 year-to-date, as well as the top 100 films of all time and the top 100 films of all time adjusted for inflation, and then mapped the studios that own them back to the format(s) they support.
For 2007, up to June 28th (I started doing the analysis on June 29th), the top 100 films have grossed a total of $3,693,457,524. Of that, 52.65% of the dollar value gross, or $1,944,471,566 is from studios exclusive to Blu-Ray. 10.07%, or $372,099,319 is exclusive to HD DVD, and 37.28% or $1,376,886,639 is dual-format. The remaining 1.18% ($43,400,114) has not chosen a side.
Of the top 100 2007 (YTD) films, 47 are from Blu-Ray exclusive studios, 14 are HD DVD exclusive studios, 29 are dual-format studios and 10 are not supporting either format currently.
Looking back at 2006, the top 100 films grossed a total of $7,868,951,746. Of that, 60.01%, or $4,722,185,762 was from Blu-Ray exclusive studios. 10.07%, or $792,188,570 was from HD DVD exclusive studios, and 29.92% ($2,354,577,414) was from dual-format studios.
Of the films, 53 were from Blu-Ray exclusive studios, 14 from HD DVD exclusive studios and 33 from dual-format studios. There were no films in the 2006 top 100 from studios that had not declared a format preference.
Going back to 2005, the top 100 films had total grosses of $7,688,897,916. 47.79% ($3,674,562,080) came from Blu-Ray backers, 11.73% ($901,950,973) came from HD DVD backers, and $3,112,384,863 came from dual-format backers. Again, no films in the top 100 came from studios that had not declared an HD preference.
Of the 2005 films, 47 came from Blu-Ray backing studios, 14 from HD DVD backing studios and 39 from dual-format studios.
OK, so when it comes to ?new releases?, things are weighted pretty heavily toward Blu-Ray. Of the top 300 films released from January 1 2005 to present, 147 of them are from studios that are exclusively supporting Blu-Ray currently, and they represent 53.60% of the total grosses. Add in the numbers from the studios that currently support both formats, and you have 248 out of the top 300 films coming out at some point on Blu-Ray, and they represent 89.07% of the total theatrical grosses.
On the HD DVD front, only 42 films are exclusives to the format, representing 10.71% of the total grosses. Add in the dual-format studios, and HD DVD has 143 films, with 46.18% of the total grosses represented. This is the biggest hurdle HD DVD has to overcome, and given that the studios that are Blu-Ray exclusive are steadfastly so, I don?t see how they can (Sony, Fox and Disney are the three biggest Blu-Ray exclusive backers. Sony because they have a vested interest in the technology, and Fox and Disney because they are proponents of heavy copy protection and Blu-Ray has an extra layer of protection (BD+) that HD DVD does not - none of these three studios has a compelling reason to support HD DVD).
New releases represent the overwhelming majority of home video sales, and this is why Universal has been so aggressive in getting newer movies out on HD DVD. This holiday season, however, things will shift even more in Blu-Ray?s favor as many of this summer?s biggest movies like Spider-Man 3, Pirates of the Caribbean 3 and Ratatouille hit Blu-Ray and not HD DVD. Of the summer?s big releases that will be on HD DVD, the vast majority will also be available on Blu-Ray. In fact, of the top 20 movies released year-to-date only two, Knocked Up and Evan Almighty, are HD DVD exclusives.
Still, catalog titles have been huge for DVD and have the potential to do so again for the HD formats. Looking at the top 100 films of all time, 44 are from Blu-Ray exclusive studios (46.68% of total gross), 12 are from HD DVD exclusive studios (12.12% of total gross) and 42 are from dual-format studios (41.2% of gross). The remaining 2 films are from studios that don?t support either format yet (those two films, if you?re interested, are The Passion of the Christ and My Big Fat Greek Wedding).
If we adjust the all-time 100 for inflation, the numbers skew even more in Blu-Ray?s favor, with 57 being Blu-Ray exclusive studios (59.27% of adjusted gross), 11 being HD DVD exclusive (12.24% of adjusted gross) and 30 supporting both (28.49% of adjusted gross). Again, there are two films from studios supporting neither format at this time (1.59% of adjusted gross) - this time, My Big Fat Greek Wedding drops out of the top 100 and is replaced by Duel In The Sun.
All of this seems irrelevant in light of the percentage of home video sales that Blu-Ray and HD DVD represent. A giant slice of a tiny pie is still a small piece of pie. If you stop and consider that standard definition DVD sales have leveled off, and are expected to decline this year, and that the movie studios are going to need to find new revenue streams to continue the growth of the home video market, it becomes obvious that the home video market needs a ?new? DVD to carry it into the next generation. The HD formats are the best bet for that currently. Digital downloads are not ready for prime time (there are no standardized formats, and no standardized players, and the studios have not lined up behind any formats).
In the end, the reality is that no matter what numbers you look at, Blu-Ray has the advantage. Blu-Ray is outselling HD DVD, it has more studio support, it has more consumer electronics manufacturers? support and the library of movies is rapidly overtaking HD DVD. Blu-Ray also has a deeper library of catalog titles to reach into.
It is time for Universal Studios, the Weinstein Company, Toshiba and the few other HD DVD hold outs to face facts and throw their support behind Blu-Ray. The sooner this format war ends, the sooner the general populace will be able to replace those dwindling DVD revenues with a new stream, and that means more HD content for all of us. Everyone wins?well, as long as you consider re-purchasing content you already own ?winning?, but that?s the price you pay for progress.
I'm not going to as far and say that the war is over (that will come after the holidays) but I think the end is well on its way for HD DVD. I thought this piece was well researched and based on many a fact.
Calm down. That's only for undiscriminating, completist Trekkies who salivate at the thought of any smidgen of Trek being released. This is the "remastered" CGI-laden garbage they brought out last year. As with Star Wars, only the latest generation of fans cares for this "Special Edition" over the originals that have been broadcast for decades. You can keep this for HD DVD, as far as I'm concerned. If they really wanted to fix the franchise, they should have re-edited the odd-numbered movies and retconned Enterprise out of existence, not mucked with the classic show. Besides, do you really think that Paramount, which is format-neutral, will keep this as an HD DVD exclusive? The Matrix as a current exclusive couldn't save HD DVD's falling numbers, and Trek can't, either.
I have the SD-DVD version of it and it's not on my HiDef update title list. I got my HD-DVD copy of "The Untouchables", which is one of my favorite, did add the full wow factor to the SD-DVD version. I guess everyone is entitled to have their own favorites.
Now, I have to contemplate between "Heroes - Season1" vs. "Star Trek" when available in HD-DVD.
Calm down. That's only for undiscriminating, completist Trekkies who salivate at the thought of any smidgen of Trek being released. This is the "remastered" CGI-laden garbage they brought out last year. As with Star Wars, only the latest generation of fans cares for this "Special Edition" over the originals that have been broadcast for decades. You can keep this for HD DVD, as far as I'm concerned. If they really wanted to fix the franchise, they should have re-edited the odd-numbered movies and retconned Enterprise out of existence, not mucked with the classic show. Besides, do you really think that Paramount, which is format-neutral, will keep this as an HD DVD exclusive? The Matrix as a current exclusive couldn't save HD DVD's falling numbers, and Trek can't, either.
erm.. I beg to differ!
There have been a number of claims made on thi thread about "WHO" will buy "WHAT" and which "AGE BRACKET" they fit into.
I'm old enough to NOT be one of the "new generation" of fans (thought TNG was a load of arse when it first aired ie "AAARGH its not spock n kirk) I originally bought all TOS on VHS! fer goodness sakes!
but I have been patiently waiting on this remasterd trek, oh so many times I have almost clicked on a basket full of TOS goodness in the last few years, but the thought of eventually getting it in HiDef has held me back and the thought of getting it Remastared fills me with joy.. so there!
obviously I have made my format choice so its relase on HD-DVD doesnt interest me except that it means a BD release is that little bit closer.
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as to Enterprise, I wasn't too impressed, but I found that it was due to the theme tune, the ugly horrible rubbishy theme tune.
I took the plunge and bought the first season on DVD (cost was so low i couldnt pass it up) and to my total delight discovered that just as it begins to play, you can hit the [NEXT CHAPTER] button and skip it completely!
I cannot tell you what a difference that makes to the enjoyment of the episodes, and several of my friends have remarked on this as well, it just makes it a different show!
and now I'm currently waiting on season 3 to arrive!
I agree its not without its clunker episodes, but then... look at TOS!
but I have been patiently waiting on this remasterd trek, oh so many times I have almost clicked on a basket full of TOS goodness in the last few years, but the thought of eventually getting it in HiDef has held me back and the thought of getting it Remastared fills me with joy.. so there!
I agree its not without its clunker episodes, but then... look at TOS!
Have you watched any of the rejiggered episodes? Longtime viewers almost invariably say it's a jarring distraction to see all-new CGI space scenes replacing the familiar stuff. It's not just HD, it's a heavily altered version. And the fact of the matter is that the old film was very grainy. They can't get rid of the grain in the non-space shots, so there's even more distraction as they switch back and forth between 1960s grainy scenes and 21st century spotless CGI scenes. It's been said often that any kind of old programming may not benefit from HD and in fact may look worse in HD because the higher definition shows all the flaws of the old film stock and techniques, which no amount of reprocessing can remove.
Besides, all except the very worst of TOS was worlds better than the best of Enterprise. I'd almost rather watch "And the Children Shall Lead" than Enterprise, except both are equally bad. 40 years later and TOS is still watched and remembered. Two years after Enterprise left the air, it's nearly forgotten by all except the staunchest fans.
Edit: Oh, one more thing I forgot: You'll be getting horizontal letterboxing, too. Remember TV shows through most of the last 50 years (and movies for the 50 years before that) were all shot in 1.33:1 aspect ratio. You won't be able to fill your 16:9 screen with the image. The only other options are to crop off some of the image at top and bottom (bad option) or anamorphically stretching it to fill the screen (worst option yet).
marz the article you posted, #2342, was interesting but I'm not sure it means anything. I can't see Toshiba and Universal giving up anytime soon, they'll soldier on until at least next year hoping that the blu-ray only studios will blink first.
I have the SD-DVD version of it (A Few Good Men) and it's not on my HiDef update title list. I got my HD-DVD copy of "The Untouchables", which is one of my favorite, did add the full wow factor to the SD-DVD version. I guess everyone is entitled to have their own favorites.
Now, I have to contemplate between "Heroes - Season1" vs. "Star Trek" when available in HD-DVD.
I watched "The Untouchables" the other night on B-D and was really impressed with the transfer quality. Of course, the movie is so great that I always end up getting caught up in it and don't really pay that much attention to the PQ. This disc was on sale at Fry's earlier in the week and I was tempted to head for BB and see if they'd price match, but didn't feel like making the trip into Everett.
Bite, you've brought up something I've been wondering about lately. For those of you who actually own a player in one of the two formats, what is your buying plans? Are you buying discs? Renting? A combination of both? How many discs do you own?
Right now I'm in the renting mode, as I haven't seen any discs that I absolutely have to have that I don't already have in DVD. I have 5 discs, those that came with the B-D player. I'll probably pick up The Untouchables later when I can find it on sale and I'll be giving serious consideration to some of the summer blockbusters when they come out.
I'm not planning on replacing my DVDs as they look pretty darn good on an upconverting DVD player. However, it's a different story when it comes to some of the movies that I only have on LD. I have four titles that I'd buy in a heart beat when available: American Grafitti, M*A*S*H, My Fair Lady and Diva; the first three because they were an early LD purchase when only the P&S version was available, the last because it's one of my favorite all-time movies.
Other LD titles I'd probably replace are:
Apollo 13 (from the not so universal Universal)
Back to the Future trilogy (see above)
Casablanca (some laser rot)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Doctor Zhivago
Fiddler on the Roof
Hunt for Red October (coming out on B-D later this year as part of a set. I'm iffy on this one as I don't want the set)
Lawrence of Arabia (hopefully from as much of the 65mm print that's available)
North By Northwest
Star Wars 4, 5 and 6 (the original movie release, please)
Sound of Music (don't laugh)
Titanic
2001, A Space Odyssy
This is a highly individual list of older movies. Given what they've done with the Untouchables as far as PQ, one has to hope they can do the same for other older movies.
What are some of the older titles you're looking forward to.
One final note based on what happened to LD prices when the format went away, if one or both of the HD formats die, there should be some great bargains on remaining titles in stock.
I watched "The Untouchables" the other night on B-D and was really impressed with the transfer quality. Of course, the movie is so great that I always end up getting caught up in it and don't really pay that much attention to the PQ. This disc was on sale at Fry's earlier in the week and I was tempted to head for BB and see if they'd price match, but didn't feel like making the trip into Everett.
Bite, you've brought up something I've been wondering about lately. For those of you who actually own a player in one of the two formats, what is your buying plans? Are you buying discs? Renting? A combination of both? How many discs do you own?
Right now I'm in the renting mode, as I haven't seen any discs that I absolutely have to have that I don't already have in DVD. I have 5 discs, those that came with the B-D player. I'll probably pick up The Untouchables later when I can find it on sale and I'll be giving serious consideration to some of the summer blockbusters when they come out.
I'm not planning on replacing my DVDs as they look pretty darn good on an upconverting DVD player. However, it's a different story when it comes to some of the movies that I only have on LD. I have four titles that I'd buy in a heart beat when available: American Grafitti, M*A*S*H, My Fair Lady and Diva; the first three because they were an early LD purchase when only the P&S version was available, the last because it's one of my favorite all-time movies.
Other LD titles I'd probably replace are:
Apollo 13 (from the not so universal Universal)
Back to the Future trilogy (see above)
Casablanca (some laser rot)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Doctor Zhivago
Fiddler on the Roof
Hunt for Red October (coming out on B-D later this year as part of a set. I'm iffy on this one as I don't want the set)
Lawrence of Arabia (hopefully from as much of the 65mm print that's available)
North By Northwest
Star Wars 4, 5 and 6 (the original movie release, please)
Sound of Music (don't laugh)
Titanic
2001, A Space Odyssy
This is a highly individual list of older movies. Given what they've done with the Untouchables as far as PQ, one has to hope they can do the same for other older movies.
What are some of the older titles you're looking forward to.
One final note based on what happened to LD prices when the format went away, if one or both of the HD formats die, there should be some great bargains on remaining titles in stock.
I like collecting stuff and I really don't mind if neither of the current HiDef optical format do not make it or remains a niche. I get full use of what I own and I enjoy watching and collecting these movies, hence I have not rented a single HD-DVD or Blu-Ray, yet. I current own about 60 or 70 by now, and I do not plan on renting for now. I just finished setting up my HTPC and I may have source of divx downloads in HD contents in the future instead of renting.
It's hard to justify replacing the titles you already have, even when it's in HD. Not all HiDef releases of older films would look as good as The Untouchables. So, I usually wait for a review prior to purchasing older flicks. I use this site for references and PQ rating of the older films:
There are some great examples of fantastic remastering of the older films. I have Casablanca in HD-DVD, and it's in must replace PQ. I also own "Searcher - John Wayne" which is a demo and example of great remastering if the studios can make an effort.
Anyway, your HD replace/upgrade list is similar to mine. Even "The Sound of Music" is on my list along with "Amadeus". I am an audio enthusiast before video, so I still buy many audio/concerts discs on HD-DVD. I'm still waiting for "Hell Freezes Over" transfer to HD-DVD and already own Melbourne concert HD-DVD disc. I recently bought a Bach HD-DVD mix and it's another great example of HiDef media potential. oops..... I'm digressing.....
All in all, it's a fun hobby. As you noted, if both formats die, then we'll have great opportunity to collect the discs at 1/4 of the retail price. However, I wish both format to battle just little bit longer so I can have all the titles I want in HiDef. If both can co-exist for next 3 years, then I'll be more than happy. But it looks like the format war will go on even longer though....... 10 years perhaps?
Star Wars 4, 5 and 6 (the original movie release, please)
Universal has often been appallingly bad with their DVDs. I can't count how many of their DVDs in my library have incorrect flags, murky picture or lack anamorphic widescreen presentation. It's the same attitude they have with HD DVD: "If you don't like the way we release our movies or the format we release them on, go ahead and get them elsewhere. Oh, that's right. You can't. Hahahahah!"
As for Star Wars, don't hold your breath. Lucas has said over and over that he only considers the Special Editions to be the movies he always wanted to make. He also claims he destroyed all the film prints of the original movies after they released the SEs, which is why when they finally did release the original theatrical films on DVD, they weren't anamorphic. All they had to work from were the videos from the laserdiscs, which themselves weren't anamorphic. Unless he lied and has some film reels stashed away in a vault somewhere, you'll never see HD versions of the theatrical prints. The best you can do is upconvert the DVDs.
Have you watched any of the rejiggered episodes? Longtime viewers almost invariably say it's a jarring distraction to see all-new CGI space scenes replacing the familiar stuff. It's not just HD, it's a heavily altered version. And the fact of the matter is that the old film was very grainy. They can't get rid of the grain in the non-space shots, so there's even more distraction as they switch back and forth between 1960s grainy scenes and 21st century spotless CGI scenes. It's been said often that any kind of old programming may not benefit from HD and in fact may look worse in HD because the higher definition shows all the flaws of the old film stock and techniques, which no amount of reprocessing can remove.
Besides, all except the very worst of TOS was worlds better than the best of Enterprise. I'd almost rather watch "And the Children Shall Lead" than Enterprise, except both are equally bad. 40 years later and TOS is still watched and remembered. Two years after Enterprise left the air, it's nearly forgotten by all except the staunchest fans.
Edit: Oh, one more thing I forgot: You'll be getting horizontal letterboxing, too. Remember TV shows through most of the last 50 years (and movies for the 50 years before that) were all shot in 1.33:1 aspect ratio. You won't be able to fill your 16:9 screen with the image. The only other options are to crop off some of the image at top and bottom (bad option) or anamorphically stretching it to fill the screen (worst option yet).
I really dont want to get into a geek fight over Star Trek on the internet on a thread about which optical media is "the true future" I mean, what was wrong with record tapes anyway?
Have you seen any of the restoration work done on old shows like Dr Who? 45 year old episodes that have been (in comparison to TOS Trek) treated like crap for at least the first 20 years of their life, THEY wont be released on HD any time soon (never) as the were shot on video, but the processing that has been done to bring them to DVD is nothing short of amazing, 3/4/5000 plus deblobs per 24 min episode, it IS possible to clean up film in a digital transfare, I'm just not sure if TOS will get the FULL treatment it deserves.
I will of course wait for reviews before I make my mind up.
oh yeah, RE Enterprise being forgotten, didnt the studio abandon the ORIGINAL trek all those years ago too?
I'm by no means a die hard fanatical fan (I actually felt a bit creepy buying the Enterprise Boxsets, I had to convince myself it WASNT turning geeky ) Buying TOS all those years ago on VHS was different, I had grown up with it, it was part of my childhood and I had'nt seen Kirk Spock Bones n' co in years
Anyway, letterboxing aside I'll make my decision once its out and reviewd in a few places.
I guess you wont be going to the new JJ Abrams Trek movie then?
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I now hand our dear readers over to our regular bitchin and moanin thread
Back to the Future trilogy havent bought on DVD so thats likely
Casablanca (some laser rot) OUCH! depends on Extras as my DVD copy is ok
Close Encounters of the Third Kind MAYbe
Doctor Zhivago DAMNIT! {see below for an explination}
Lawrence of Arabia (hopefully from as much of the 65mm print that's available) DAMNIT!
North By Northwest possibly
Star Wars 4, 5 and 6 (the original movie release, please)WON'T happen sadly
Sound of Music (don't laugh)only if you don't laugh that I want Wizard of Oz!
Titanic will the CGI ship get redone? stand up?
2001, A Space OdyssyDAMNIT YES!!
DAMNIT! explained
Along witha HUGE DAMNIT! directed towards bite for mentioning the simply wonderful "Amadeus"
Its cheeseing me off that I'm going to be spending on these movies AGAIN but they should be worth the goodness if they get a great transfare, I guess thats just a love of film
Lawrence of Arabia was one of the first {and therfore COSTLY} DVDs I bought and its in the trailer/intro of Casino Royal, I bit hard on my lip when I saw that on screen!
The Green Mile and the Alien movies will also make my list !
Just FYI, MGS4, Unreal Tournament 3, and Haze were all announced as PS3 exclusive today.
I spent last night (till 3.30am) playing RFOM for the first time! I was pretty immpressed for a 1st gen game! some of the detail was amazing (a partly tiled room even had some cut tiles where the "tiler" haddnt quite managed to get into a corner! well it made me chuckle!)
after seeing the Haze trailer it could be interesting and MGS4 is on my "buy immediately" list, oh and GT5 concept might be a blast and a half
I went to see Harry Potter last night with my nephew. I was expecting great PQ and AQ from this movie since my HD-DVD copy of Goblet of Fire presented all you would expect from the HiDef presentation. However, I was deeply disappointed. It may have been from the set up of the theater I was at. The PQ was merely as good as SD like transfer and AQ was another lacking area even when I was seated at the center of a rectangular room.
Anyway, I think such lack of presentation quality is forcing many to invest in home theater hobbies. IMO, this is why the Hidef formats will not die and will not remain it's niche status too long. I think I'm pretty much done with going to a theater..... Two of us (1 adult and 1 child) spent about $35 for the movie and snacks.......... I could have bought two HD-DVD movies for about $35 from amazon instead.
BTW, the movie was great. It almost reminds me of Star Wars in the message of good and evil. I can't wait to pickup a HD-DVD release in couple of months.... I think the AQ will be out of this world on a properly equipped surround set up.
Like the last deal, it may not last too long before the price flutuate back up again.
This is alot better deal than getting the Xbox360 add on, IMO. Standalone player can process all the HiDef Audio codecs and output in Multi-channel PCM, unlike the gaming consoles. This should benefit those with HDMI equipped AVR.
Hey! You gave up that job! Just kidding. But seriously, one thing I always meant to get done but never got around to while copying and pasting the older posts was correct the spelling of Nielsen. Fix that next week!
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http://blog.pixelperfectproductions.com/?p=54
Recently, Bill Hunt over at The Digital Bits caught a lot of flack over a piece he wrote on the HD war, and why The Digital Bits was backing Blu-Ray as the ?format to beat?.
Bill?s piece was a response to a post from Harry Knowles over at Ain?t It Cool News where Harry talked about picking up a HD DVD player, and why he had chosen that particular format. Bill decided to respond to the piece primarily because Harry?s piece was full of erroneous information (I know, on Ain?t It Cool News? Surely I jest?). Harry?s piece has since been edited somewhat, but is still far from correct. It is full of fear, uncertainty and doubt, and has several facts flat out wrong. Bill?s piece does a more than adequate job of pointing out the flaws in Harry?s arguments, though, so I won?t get into that here.
I found Bill?s piece thought-provoking, and very well researched. It is a very logically presented argument as to why Blu-Ray will ultimately prevail in the HD DVD/Blu-Ray format war. It also started me on a train of thought related to one of the specific reasons Bill feels Blu-Ray will win; studio support.
I thought it?d be interesting to take some data from Box Office Mojo related to the studios and which format(s) they support, and then amalgamate that data.
I took a look at the top 100 grossing films from 2005, 2006 and 2007 year-to-date, as well as the top 100 films of all time and the top 100 films of all time adjusted for inflation, and then mapped the studios that own them back to the format(s) they support.
For 2007, up to June 28th (I started doing the analysis on June 29th), the top 100 films have grossed a total of $3,693,457,524. Of that, 52.65% of the dollar value gross, or $1,944,471,566 is from studios exclusive to Blu-Ray. 10.07%, or $372,099,319 is exclusive to HD DVD, and 37.28% or $1,376,886,639 is dual-format. The remaining 1.18% ($43,400,114) has not chosen a side.
Of the top 100 2007 (YTD) films, 47 are from Blu-Ray exclusive studios, 14 are HD DVD exclusive studios, 29 are dual-format studios and 10 are not supporting either format currently.
Looking back at 2006, the top 100 films grossed a total of $7,868,951,746. Of that, 60.01%, or $4,722,185,762 was from Blu-Ray exclusive studios. 10.07%, or $792,188,570 was from HD DVD exclusive studios, and 29.92% ($2,354,577,414) was from dual-format studios.
Of the films, 53 were from Blu-Ray exclusive studios, 14 from HD DVD exclusive studios and 33 from dual-format studios. There were no films in the 2006 top 100 from studios that had not declared a format preference.
Going back to 2005, the top 100 films had total grosses of $7,688,897,916. 47.79% ($3,674,562,080) came from Blu-Ray backers, 11.73% ($901,950,973) came from HD DVD backers, and $3,112,384,863 came from dual-format backers. Again, no films in the top 100 came from studios that had not declared an HD preference.
Of the 2005 films, 47 came from Blu-Ray backing studios, 14 from HD DVD backing studios and 39 from dual-format studios.
OK, so when it comes to ?new releases?, things are weighted pretty heavily toward Blu-Ray. Of the top 300 films released from January 1 2005 to present, 147 of them are from studios that are exclusively supporting Blu-Ray currently, and they represent 53.60% of the total grosses. Add in the numbers from the studios that currently support both formats, and you have 248 out of the top 300 films coming out at some point on Blu-Ray, and they represent 89.07% of the total theatrical grosses.
On the HD DVD front, only 42 films are exclusives to the format, representing 10.71% of the total grosses. Add in the dual-format studios, and HD DVD has 143 films, with 46.18% of the total grosses represented. This is the biggest hurdle HD DVD has to overcome, and given that the studios that are Blu-Ray exclusive are steadfastly so, I don?t see how they can (Sony, Fox and Disney are the three biggest Blu-Ray exclusive backers. Sony because they have a vested interest in the technology, and Fox and Disney because they are proponents of heavy copy protection and Blu-Ray has an extra layer of protection (BD+) that HD DVD does not - none of these three studios has a compelling reason to support HD DVD).
New releases represent the overwhelming majority of home video sales, and this is why Universal has been so aggressive in getting newer movies out on HD DVD. This holiday season, however, things will shift even more in Blu-Ray?s favor as many of this summer?s biggest movies like Spider-Man 3, Pirates of the Caribbean 3 and Ratatouille hit Blu-Ray and not HD DVD. Of the summer?s big releases that will be on HD DVD, the vast majority will also be available on Blu-Ray. In fact, of the top 20 movies released year-to-date only two, Knocked Up and Evan Almighty, are HD DVD exclusives.
Still, catalog titles have been huge for DVD and have the potential to do so again for the HD formats. Looking at the top 100 films of all time, 44 are from Blu-Ray exclusive studios (46.68% of total gross), 12 are from HD DVD exclusive studios (12.12% of total gross) and 42 are from dual-format studios (41.2% of gross). The remaining 2 films are from studios that don?t support either format yet (those two films, if you?re interested, are The Passion of the Christ and My Big Fat Greek Wedding).
If we adjust the all-time 100 for inflation, the numbers skew even more in Blu-Ray?s favor, with 57 being Blu-Ray exclusive studios (59.27% of adjusted gross), 11 being HD DVD exclusive (12.24% of adjusted gross) and 30 supporting both (28.49% of adjusted gross). Again, there are two films from studios supporting neither format at this time (1.59% of adjusted gross) - this time, My Big Fat Greek Wedding drops out of the top 100 and is replaced by Duel In The Sun.
All of this seems irrelevant in light of the percentage of home video sales that Blu-Ray and HD DVD represent. A giant slice of a tiny pie is still a small piece of pie. If you stop and consider that standard definition DVD sales have leveled off, and are expected to decline this year, and that the movie studios are going to need to find new revenue streams to continue the growth of the home video market, it becomes obvious that the home video market needs a ?new? DVD to carry it into the next generation. The HD formats are the best bet for that currently. Digital downloads are not ready for prime time (there are no standardized formats, and no standardized players, and the studios have not lined up behind any formats).
In the end, the reality is that no matter what numbers you look at, Blu-Ray has the advantage. Blu-Ray is outselling HD DVD, it has more studio support, it has more consumer electronics manufacturers? support and the library of movies is rapidly overtaking HD DVD. Blu-Ray also has a deeper library of catalog titles to reach into.
It is time for Universal Studios, the Weinstein Company, Toshiba and the few other HD DVD hold outs to face facts and throw their support behind Blu-Ray. The sooner this format war ends, the sooner the general populace will be able to replace those dwindling DVD revenues with a new stream, and that means more HD content for all of us. Everyone wins?well, as long as you consider re-purchasing content you already own ?winning?, but that?s the price you pay for progress.
I'm not going to as far and say that the war is over (that will come after the holidays) but I think the end is well on its way for HD DVD. I thought this piece was well researched and based on many a fact.
Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! "Set phasers to stun"
Calm down. That's only for undiscriminating, completist Trekkies who salivate at the thought of any smidgen of Trek being released. This is the "remastered" CGI-laden garbage they brought out last year. As with Star Wars, only the latest generation of fans cares for this "Special Edition" over the originals that have been broadcast for decades. You can keep this for HD DVD, as far as I'm concerned. If they really wanted to fix the franchise, they should have re-edited the odd-numbered movies and retconned Enterprise out of existence, not mucked with the classic show. Besides, do you really think that Paramount, which is format-neutral, will keep this as an HD DVD exclusive? The Matrix as a current exclusive couldn't save HD DVD's falling numbers, and Trek can't, either.
But "A Few Good Men" is storming the nation!
YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!!!!
I have the SD-DVD version of it and it's not on my HiDef update title list. I got my HD-DVD copy of "The Untouchables", which is one of my favorite, did add the full wow factor to the SD-DVD version. I guess everyone is entitled to have their own favorites.
Now, I have to contemplate between "Heroes - Season1" vs. "Star Trek" when available in HD-DVD.
Calm down. That's only for undiscriminating, completist Trekkies who salivate at the thought of any smidgen of Trek being released. This is the "remastered" CGI-laden garbage they brought out last year. As with Star Wars, only the latest generation of fans cares for this "Special Edition" over the originals that have been broadcast for decades. You can keep this for HD DVD, as far as I'm concerned. If they really wanted to fix the franchise, they should have re-edited the odd-numbered movies and retconned Enterprise out of existence, not mucked with the classic show. Besides, do you really think that Paramount, which is format-neutral, will keep this as an HD DVD exclusive? The Matrix as a current exclusive couldn't save HD DVD's falling numbers, and Trek can't, either.
erm.. I beg to differ!
There have been a number of claims made on thi thread about "WHO" will buy "WHAT" and which "AGE BRACKET" they fit into.
I'm old enough to NOT be one of the "new generation" of fans (thought TNG was a load of arse when it first aired ie "AAARGH its not spock n kirk) I originally bought all TOS on VHS! fer goodness sakes!
but I have been patiently waiting on this remasterd trek, oh so many times I have almost clicked on a basket full of TOS goodness in the last few years, but the thought of eventually getting it in HiDef has held me back and the thought of getting it Remastared fills me with joy.. so there!
obviously I have made my format choice so its relase on HD-DVD doesnt interest me except that it means a BD release is that little bit closer.
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as to Enterprise, I wasn't too impressed, but I found that it was due to the theme tune, the ugly horrible rubbishy theme tune.
I took the plunge and bought the first season on DVD (cost was so low i couldnt pass it up) and to my total delight discovered that just as it begins to play, you can hit the [NEXT CHAPTER] button and skip it completely!
I cannot tell you what a difference that makes to the enjoyment of the episodes, and several of my friends have remarked on this as well, it just makes it a different show!
and now I'm currently waiting on season 3 to arrive!
I agree its not without its clunker episodes, but then... look at TOS!
but I have been patiently waiting on this remasterd trek, oh so many times I have almost clicked on a basket full of TOS goodness in the last few years, but the thought of eventually getting it in HiDef has held me back and the thought of getting it Remastared fills me with joy.. so there!
I agree its not without its clunker episodes, but then... look at TOS!
Have you watched any of the rejiggered episodes? Longtime viewers almost invariably say it's a jarring distraction to see all-new CGI space scenes replacing the familiar stuff. It's not just HD, it's a heavily altered version. And the fact of the matter is that the old film was very grainy. They can't get rid of the grain in the non-space shots, so there's even more distraction as they switch back and forth between 1960s grainy scenes and 21st century spotless CGI scenes. It's been said often that any kind of old programming may not benefit from HD and in fact may look worse in HD because the higher definition shows all the flaws of the old film stock and techniques, which no amount of reprocessing can remove.
Besides, all except the very worst of TOS was worlds better than the best of Enterprise. I'd almost rather watch "And the Children Shall Lead" than Enterprise, except both are equally bad. 40 years later and TOS is still watched and remembered. Two years after Enterprise left the air, it's nearly forgotten by all except the staunchest fans.
Edit: Oh, one more thing I forgot: You'll be getting horizontal letterboxing, too. Remember TV shows through most of the last 50 years (and movies for the 50 years before that) were all shot in 1.33:1 aspect ratio. You won't be able to fill your 16:9 screen with the image. The only other options are to crop off some of the image at top and bottom (bad option) or anamorphically stretching it to fill the screen (worst option yet).
...
I have the SD-DVD version of it (A Few Good Men) and it's not on my HiDef update title list. I got my HD-DVD copy of "The Untouchables", which is one of my favorite, did add the full wow factor to the SD-DVD version. I guess everyone is entitled to have their own favorites.
Now, I have to contemplate between "Heroes - Season1" vs. "Star Trek" when available in HD-DVD.
I watched "The Untouchables" the other night on B-D and was really impressed with the transfer quality. Of course, the movie is so great that I always end up getting caught up in it and don't really pay that much attention to the PQ. This disc was on sale at Fry's earlier in the week and I was tempted to head for BB and see if they'd price match, but didn't feel like making the trip into Everett.
Bite, you've brought up something I've been wondering about lately. For those of you who actually own a player in one of the two formats, what is your buying plans? Are you buying discs? Renting? A combination of both? How many discs do you own?
Right now I'm in the renting mode, as I haven't seen any discs that I absolutely have to have that I don't already have in DVD. I have 5 discs, those that came with the B-D player. I'll probably pick up The Untouchables later when I can find it on sale and I'll be giving serious consideration to some of the summer blockbusters when they come out.
I'm not planning on replacing my DVDs as they look pretty darn good on an upconverting DVD player. However, it's a different story when it comes to some of the movies that I only have on LD. I have four titles that I'd buy in a heart beat when available: American Grafitti, M*A*S*H, My Fair Lady and Diva; the first three because they were an early LD purchase when only the P&S version was available, the last because it's one of my favorite all-time movies.
Other LD titles I'd probably replace are:
Apollo 13 (from the not so universal Universal)
Back to the Future trilogy (see above)
Casablanca (some laser rot)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Doctor Zhivago
Fiddler on the Roof
Hunt for Red October (coming out on B-D later this year as part of a set. I'm iffy on this one as I don't want the set)
Lawrence of Arabia (hopefully from as much of the 65mm print that's available)
North By Northwest
Star Wars 4, 5 and 6 (the original movie release, please)
Sound of Music (don't laugh)
Titanic
2001, A Space Odyssy
This is a highly individual list of older movies. Given what they've done with the Untouchables as far as PQ, one has to hope they can do the same for other older movies.
What are some of the older titles you're looking forward to.
One final note based on what happened to LD prices when the format went away, if one or both of the HD formats die, there should be some great bargains on remaining titles in stock.
I watched "The Untouchables" the other night on B-D and was really impressed with the transfer quality. Of course, the movie is so great that I always end up getting caught up in it and don't really pay that much attention to the PQ. This disc was on sale at Fry's earlier in the week and I was tempted to head for BB and see if they'd price match, but didn't feel like making the trip into Everett.
Bite, you've brought up something I've been wondering about lately. For those of you who actually own a player in one of the two formats, what is your buying plans? Are you buying discs? Renting? A combination of both? How many discs do you own?
Right now I'm in the renting mode, as I haven't seen any discs that I absolutely have to have that I don't already have in DVD. I have 5 discs, those that came with the B-D player. I'll probably pick up The Untouchables later when I can find it on sale and I'll be giving serious consideration to some of the summer blockbusters when they come out.
I'm not planning on replacing my DVDs as they look pretty darn good on an upconverting DVD player. However, it's a different story when it comes to some of the movies that I only have on LD. I have four titles that I'd buy in a heart beat when available: American Grafitti, M*A*S*H, My Fair Lady and Diva; the first three because they were an early LD purchase when only the P&S version was available, the last because it's one of my favorite all-time movies.
Other LD titles I'd probably replace are:
Apollo 13 (from the not so universal Universal)
Back to the Future trilogy (see above)
Casablanca (some laser rot)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Doctor Zhivago
Fiddler on the Roof
Hunt for Red October (coming out on B-D later this year as part of a set. I'm iffy on this one as I don't want the set)
Lawrence of Arabia (hopefully from as much of the 65mm print that's available)
North By Northwest
Star Wars 4, 5 and 6 (the original movie release, please)
Sound of Music (don't laugh)
Titanic
2001, A Space Odyssy
This is a highly individual list of older movies. Given what they've done with the Untouchables as far as PQ, one has to hope they can do the same for other older movies.
What are some of the older titles you're looking forward to.
One final note based on what happened to LD prices when the format went away, if one or both of the HD formats die, there should be some great bargains on remaining titles in stock.
I like collecting stuff and I really don't mind if neither of the current HiDef optical format do not make it or remains a niche. I get full use of what I own and I enjoy watching and collecting these movies, hence I have not rented a single HD-DVD or Blu-Ray, yet. I current own about 60 or 70 by now, and I do not plan on renting for now. I just finished setting up my HTPC and I may have source of divx downloads in HD contents in the future instead of renting.
It's hard to justify replacing the titles you already have, even when it's in HD. Not all HiDef releases of older films would look as good as The Untouchables. So, I usually wait for a review prior to purchasing older flicks. I use this site for references and PQ rating of the older films:
http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/reviews.html
There are some great examples of fantastic remastering of the older films. I have Casablanca in HD-DVD, and it's in must replace PQ. I also own "Searcher - John Wayne" which is a demo and example of great remastering if the studios can make an effort.
Anyway, your HD replace/upgrade list is similar to mine. Even "The Sound of Music" is on my list along with "Amadeus". I am an audio enthusiast before video, so I still buy many audio/concerts discs on HD-DVD. I'm still waiting for "Hell Freezes Over" transfer to HD-DVD and already own Melbourne concert HD-DVD disc. I recently bought a Bach HD-DVD mix and it's another great example of HiDef media potential. oops..... I'm digressing.....
All in all, it's a fun hobby. As you noted, if both formats die, then we'll have great opportunity to collect the discs at 1/4 of the retail price. However, I wish both format to battle just little bit longer so I can have all the titles I want in HiDef. If both can co-exist for next 3 years, then I'll be more than happy. But it looks like the format war will go on even longer though....... 10 years perhaps?
Other LD titles I'd probably replace are:
Apollo 13 (from the not so universal Universal)
...
Star Wars 4, 5 and 6 (the original movie release, please)
Universal has often been appallingly bad with their DVDs. I can't count how many of their DVDs in my library have incorrect flags, murky picture or lack anamorphic widescreen presentation. It's the same attitude they have with HD DVD: "If you don't like the way we release our movies or the format we release them on, go ahead and get them elsewhere. Oh, that's right. You can't. Hahahahah!"
As for Star Wars, don't hold your breath. Lucas has said over and over that he only considers the Special Editions to be the movies he always wanted to make. He also claims he destroyed all the film prints of the original movies after they released the SEs, which is why when they finally did release the original theatrical films on DVD, they weren't anamorphic. All they had to work from were the videos from the laserdiscs, which themselves weren't anamorphic. Unless he lied and has some film reels stashed away in a vault somewhere, you'll never see HD versions of the theatrical prints. The best you can do is upconvert the DVDs.
Have you watched any of the rejiggered episodes? Longtime viewers almost invariably say it's a jarring distraction to see all-new CGI space scenes replacing the familiar stuff. It's not just HD, it's a heavily altered version. And the fact of the matter is that the old film was very grainy. They can't get rid of the grain in the non-space shots, so there's even more distraction as they switch back and forth between 1960s grainy scenes and 21st century spotless CGI scenes. It's been said often that any kind of old programming may not benefit from HD and in fact may look worse in HD because the higher definition shows all the flaws of the old film stock and techniques, which no amount of reprocessing can remove.
Besides, all except the very worst of TOS was worlds better than the best of Enterprise. I'd almost rather watch "And the Children Shall Lead" than Enterprise, except both are equally bad. 40 years later and TOS is still watched and remembered. Two years after Enterprise left the air, it's nearly forgotten by all except the staunchest fans.
Edit: Oh, one more thing I forgot: You'll be getting horizontal letterboxing, too. Remember TV shows through most of the last 50 years (and movies for the 50 years before that) were all shot in 1.33:1 aspect ratio. You won't be able to fill your 16:9 screen with the image. The only other options are to crop off some of the image at top and bottom (bad option) or anamorphically stretching it to fill the screen (worst option yet).
I really dont want to get into a geek fight over Star Trek on the internet on a thread about which optical media is "the true future"
Have you seen any of the restoration work done on old shows like Dr Who? 45 year old episodes that have been (in comparison to TOS Trek) treated like crap for at least the first 20 years of their life, THEY wont be released on HD any time soon (never) as the were shot on video, but the processing that has been done to bring them to DVD is nothing short of amazing, 3/4/5000 plus deblobs per 24 min episode, it IS possible to clean up film in a digital transfare, I'm just not sure if TOS will get the FULL treatment it deserves.
I will of course wait for reviews before I make my mind up.
oh yeah, RE Enterprise being forgotten, didnt the studio abandon the ORIGINAL trek all those years ago too?
I'm by no means a die hard fanatical fan (I actually felt a bit creepy buying the Enterprise Boxsets, I had to convince myself it WASNT turning geeky
Anyway, letterboxing aside I'll make my decision once its out and reviewd in a few places.
I guess you wont be going to the new JJ Abrams Trek movie then?
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I now hand our dear readers over to our regular bitchin and moanin thread
Other LD titles I'd probably replace are:
Apollo 13 Meh not fussed
Back to the Future trilogy havent bought on DVD so thats likely
Casablanca (some laser rot) OUCH! depends on Extras as my DVD copy is ok
Close Encounters of the Third Kind MAYbe
Doctor Zhivago DAMNIT! {see below for an explination}
Lawrence of Arabia (hopefully from as much of the 65mm print that's available) DAMNIT!
North By Northwest possibly
Star Wars 4, 5 and 6 (the original movie release, please)WON'T happen sadly
Sound of Music (don't laugh)only if you don't laugh that I want Wizard of Oz!
Titanic will the CGI ship get redone? stand up?
2001, A Space OdyssyDAMNIT YES!!
DAMNIT! explained
Along witha HUGE DAMNIT! directed towards bite for mentioning the simply wonderful "Amadeus"
Its cheeseing me off that I'm going to be spending on these movies AGAIN but they should be worth the goodness if they get a great transfare, I guess thats just a love of film
Lawrence of Arabia was one of the first {and therfore COSTLY} DVDs I bought and its in the trailer/intro of Casino Royal, I bit hard on my lip when I saw that on screen!
The Green Mile and the Alien movies will also make my list !
Just FYI, MGS4, Unreal Tournament 3, and Haze were all announced as PS3 exclusive today.
I spent last night (till 3.30am) playing RFOM for the first time! I was pretty immpressed for a 1st gen game! some of the detail was amazing (a partly tiled room even had some cut tiles where the "tiler" haddnt quite managed to get into a corner! well it made me chuckle!)
after seeing the Haze trailer it could be interesting and MGS4 is on my "buy immediately" list, oh and GT5 concept might be a blast and a half
Anyway, I think such lack of presentation quality is forcing many to invest in home theater hobbies. IMO, this is why the Hidef formats will not die and will not remain it's niche status too long. I think I'm pretty much done with going to a theater..... Two of us (1 adult and 1 child) spent about $35 for the movie and snacks.......... I could have bought two HD-DVD movies for about $35 from amazon instead.
BTW, the movie was great. It almost reminds me of Star Wars in the message of good and evil. I can't wait to pickup a HD-DVD release in couple of months.... I think the AQ will be out of this world on a properly equipped surround set up.
I've watch Searchers on B-D and agree about the quality.
Bite, thanks for the link for reviews. I've been using the tier thread on avsforum which is kind-of iffy.
I've watch Searchers on B-D and agree about the quality.
You're very welcome.
Here's another $199 shipped deal on HD-A2 HD-DVD player via Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000IJV4BC/
Like the last deal, it may not last too long before the price flutuate back up again.
This is alot better deal than getting the Xbox360 add on, IMO. Standalone player can process all the HiDef Audio codecs and output in Multi-channel PCM, unlike the gaming consoles. This should benefit those with HDMI equipped AVR.
http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/ques...1507/index.php
WE: BD-66% HDD-34% YTD: BD-67% HDD-33% SI: BD-60% HDD-40%