Now that would be sweet...give me a Blu-ray drive in the higher end iMac...I'd be selling mine in a heartbeat if this was the case, but I think the iMac would be a lot higher than $1799 if it was to include one of those bad boys...maybe a bto option would be nice. If they only offered bto Blu-ray drive, I think that would succinctly state where Apple stands in the format war. And of course you'd get a lot of spin, thrashing, sqeaming from HD DVD fanatics, that would be mildly entertaining.
Now that would be sweet...give me a Blu-ray drive in the higher end iMac...I'd be selling mine in a heartbeat if this was the case, but I think the iMac would be a lot higher than $1799 if it was to include one of those bad boys...maybe a bto option would be nice. If they only offered bto Blu-ray drive, I think that would succinctly state where Apple stands in the format war. And of course you'd get a lot of spin, thrashing, sqeaming from HD DVD fanatics, that would be mildly entertaining.
I can almost see the post now, HD-DVD owners (posting on a Mac forum) claiming that Macs account for ONLY 4% of the market, so therefore BDs inclusion (BTO or not) don't count. The implication being that they also believe Macs don't count.. I'd nearly lay money on murch flip flopping into saying that at SOME point, that is if he hasn't done so already? or dear old bite saying something like "ahh but the bx771 mark 2 of that drive is 2.1% more likely to read a disc than the 778xC4 version that was first shipped on the 32nd of the 14th" which would be picking holes just to miss answering the point, as I believe someone else pointed out already.
I can't believe murchs latest flip RE: 300, I mean its not like he hasn't been reminded about it over and over again, so it must be somthing he does on purpose, which really makes you wonder.
But, whatever. I'm really looking forward to new iMac updates {only half an hour to go at this point} no matter what optical drives are in them I hope we get a nice surprise
I spent a bunch of money yesterday because I didn't want to order one immediately, despite waiting and waiting and waiting. Really though I'm underwhelmed with the new iMac it really is "Meh!" might be better in person though? iLife and iWork look like cool updates and I think at last i'll be ordering a family pack of iWork.
However, my actual point as it relates to this thread while busily refreshing the various news sites, did anyone else get the impression that steve was trying hard not to mention Hi-Def formats while demoing iMovie and iDVD ? cos I sure as hell got that impression! -- SOMETHINGS COMING! I'd almost swear it
I might get a new upgraded mini in the interim and wait for the iMacs to go 4 core
I spent a bunch of money yesterday because I didn't want to order one immediately, despite waiting and waiting and waiting. Really though I'm underwhelmed with the new iMac it really is "Meh!" might be better in person though? iLife and iWork look like cool updates and I think at last i'll be ordering a family pack of iWork.
However, my actual point as it relates to this thread while busily refreshing the various news sites, did anyone else get the impression that steve was trying hard not to mention Hi-Def formats while demoing iMovie and iDVD ? cos I sure as hell got that impression! -- SOMETHINGS COMING! I'd almost swear it
I might get a new upgraded mini in the interim and wait for the iMacs to go 4 core
I think those new iMacs are sexy. However, I really want two things with a new iMac...
1) A Blu-ray SuperDrive
2) OS X Leopard
I think this is a great start, however, I get the sneakin suspicion we'll be seeing Blu-ray equipped ones in the not to distant future, so I think I'm with ya Walter, I'm holding out until the above are met as my current iMac will suit me just fine in the interim.
Off topic, but awesome! Looks like they finally released iWork '08 with "Numbers." Maybe now, we can make beautiful tables of how Blu-ray is pwning HD DVD in the "Numbers" department.
Off topic, but awesome! Looks like they finally released iWork '08 with "Numbers." Maybe now, we can make beautiful tables of how Blu-ray is pwning HD DVD in the "Numbers" department.
Numbers has made that bundle a must buy for me, been holding off for an age.
I don't "need" a BD drive, wouldn't complain if there was one in the next update - can anyone remember which year it was that Steve said was the year of HD? BD writing and ripping would be cool though
Leopard I might hold out on as well, unless I get it with a new mini (gotta love the new mini C2D) by the time theres a quad core in the iMac leopard should be rock solid
Speaking of the new iMacs, I too have been waiting (forever) for this release and now I'm torn between the 20 and the 24, seeing as how they have exactly the same GPU, HDD, RAM, etc. I'd be more inclined to go with the 24 if it had an HD optical drive (of either format), but...
What would I need to get the Xbox HD DVD drive to work with the 24-inch iMac? It connects via USB, and I think I recall reading that OS X recognizes the drive, but is there anything that will actually PLAY discs? Or do we have to wait for Leopard?
Speaking of the new iMacs, I too have been waiting (forever) for this release and now I'm torn between the 20 and the 24, seeing as how they have exactly the same GPU, HDD, RAM, etc. I'd be more inclined to go with the 24 if it had an HD optical drive (of either format), but...
What would I need to get the Xbox HD DVD drive to work with the 24-inch iMac? It connects via USB, and I think I recall reading that OS X recognizes the drive, but is there anything that will actually PLAY discs? Or do we have to wait for Leopard?
As far as I know, you need to bootcamp to windows xp/vista and use third party HiDef video softwares .... PowerDVD 7.3 Ultra or AnyDVD HD.
I'm not aware of any HiDef video playback software running on OS X right now ... perhaps, the pro-apps?
Earlier this week, Warner Home Video announced that their high definition releases of '300' sold a combined total of 250,000 units during its first week of sale. At that time, it was not revealed how many of those were Blu-ray and how many were HD DVD. Today, a blog post by USA Today writer Mike Snider indicates that the sales ratio was 65-to-35 in favor of Blu-ray, indicating around 163,000 copies of '300' on Blu-ray were sold.
This mirrors the over all 2-to-1 sales ratio advantage Blu-ray has maintained since the beginning of the year. While the HD DVD version of the film boasted extras not available on the Blu-ray, consumers overwhelming chose the Blu-ray version with its PCM audio track and scratch-resistant coating. While the percentages only represents initial estimates, it is a good indication as to the success of the Blu-ray format.
Ouch. Doesn't look good for HD DVD, no matter how Warner attempts to sugar coat it by just releasing the combined sales total. So, 163,000 Blu-ray copies sold to HD DEAD's 87,000. Wow, its going to be a slaughter once Fox and MGM get fully in the game.
Now if only Blu-ray's release lineup for the next six months didn't look so sucktastic.
I have to admit, at this point, that it looks like Universal is trying a hell of a lot harder to release great movies for its own floundering format than Sony is. I mean, come on, where's my HD anime, Sony? You've released Paprika and the Ghost in the Shell movies on Blu-ray in Japan and Europe, why can't I buy them here? Instead I get Are We Done Yet? and Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. Who needs Hot Fuzz when I can own Wild Hogs in HD? I think the only titles I'll be picking up before 2008 are (MAYBE) the third Pirates of the Caribbean movie and Wings of Honneamise.
My God. It's like some weird bizarro world.
Quote:
Originally Posted by marzetta7
Wow, its going to be a slaughter once Fox and MGM get fully in the game.
Maybe you should get fully in the game and finally purchase a player. ;P
I mean, come on, where's my HD anime, Sony? You've released Paprika and the Ghost in the Shell movies on Blu-ray in Japan and Europe, why can't I buy them here?
Hmmm...I though Japan and US were in the same region?
True. I'm just annoyed that fully half the movies I want to see in HD are only on HD-DVD right now.
Neither format has a particularly golden roster in the upcoming months, but at the moment the selection on HD-DVD has a few more choice titles in general.
Speaking exclusively with HiHD's Scott Hettrick, Universal president Craig Kornblau admitted that his studio is in favor of the format war continuing, despite the negative effects it has on consumer adoption. While its hard to argue that this war has driven down hardware prices and increased quality of releases much faster than if there was only a single format, consumers have mostly stayed away from buying either until a victor can be decided.
Kornblau now believes that HD DVD's existence is so fragile, that if Universal were to decide to go neutral and start releasing on Blu-ray, HD DVD would cease to exist. In fact, they are so dedicated to HD DVD, that Universal has walked away from additional financial incentives to release Blu-ray content, besides the additional revenue they would make by releasing on the more consumer adopted format.
There is hope, however, that this war could soon be over. Kornblau admits that once players reach $200, consumers will begin making their decisions about which format to adopt, and that is when Universal will decide who to support. As we march towards the forth quarter, it is very realistic that Toshiba will slash the price of their players for a third time this year (in yet another act of desperation), paving way for a $200 player. If that happens, there is no reason Universal couldn't monitor the holiday sales and announce Blu-ray releases at CES 2008.
Here is the real link though, with all the goodies...
There's no longer any question as to who's keeping the hi-def format war alive, or why.
It's Universal Studios and the top home entertainment exec, by his own admission.
I had been hearing over the last few days that various Blu-ray Disc manufacturers have been offering Universal plenty of incentives to join the parade but that Universal was walking away from the table every time without any reasonable objection.
Now we know why.
Universal president Craig Kornblau told me this week that the studio actually wants the format war to continue.
He also said Universal is getting financial incentives to create exclusive HD DVD features such as the Xbox Live component for the upcoming "Heroes" release.
"I’m not going to tell you that we don’t cut financial deals with people every day," he says.
But he has rationale for all of the above.
Kornblau says Universal does the same as every other studio in cutting deals to utilize another company's technologies and services.
But Kornblau says Universal's position is not driven by deals but by a long-term and consumer-focused strategy that is supported by Universal parent NBC and corporate owner GE. Universal never initially wanted a war, he says, which is why the studio made a decision years ago to back only one format.
Of course, that's the same position taken by Disney as well as Fox; the only difference being they individually chose the opposing format for a number of their own reasons, not the least of which is that each independently told me from the beginning that they believe that Blu-ray will ultimately offer the most consumer satisfaction and that the technology represents a full step forward in technology -- not a half-step -- to ensure the longest-term value for consumers. And, most importantly to Fox from the outset and now others as well, an extra layer of protection against piracy.
However, now that the market has evolved as it has, Kornblau says the hi-def format war has been "the very best thing that ever happened for consumers, retailers, and, frankly, studios" -- everyone except consumer electronics manufacturers -- because it has driven prices down further and far more quickly than would have been the case if there had been only one format in the market. (CE manufacturers are no small exception since they were among the primary groups driving the introduction of hi-def discs in order to restore the profit into their business that long ago evaporated with $49 DVD players from China. The format war has already forced some manufacturers to start subsidizing their hi-def players.)
Without the format war, Kornblau believes that even after more than a year in the market, the lowest-priced players would still be priced out of reach of most consumers at more than $1,000 and they would only drop to $800 or $900 over the next year or two.
Of course, that's impossible to know for sure and it's a bit of a faulty premise if you consider that PlayStation 3's, which play Blu-ray Discs and are by far the top-selling hi-def disc player of either format, were introduced last November at $600. As for the cause and rate of price declines in players, 10 years ago the cost of DVD players dropped about 20% in the first year and another 30% in the second year without any format war, according to "CE Historical" at the Consumer Electronics Assoc. web site www.ce.org.
With Universal the only holdout in sticking with HD DVD exclusively, Kornblau reluctantly concedes that HD DVD's position is just fragile enough that if Universal decided to release in Blu-ray now, it would have a serious, if not life-threatening impact on the future of HD DVD. So in addition to weighing how his decision will impact the studio, he now must also factor in the potential demise of the HD DVD format entirely if Universal would opt to release its movies in Blu-ray.
For now, that's not something Kornblau is willing to risk. He says Universal chose HD DVD initially because it offered the least expensive hardware and software manufacturing costs and immediate across-the-board interactivity and connectivity in all HD DVD players. "To this date, nothing's changed," he suggests.
Kornblau believes interactive and connected features are essential for the success of any hi-def disc platform, especially as more and more consumers realize that they can buy a DVD player for $129 that upconverts their DVDs to near-hi-def quality.
"DVD would not have grown to a $16 billion market if all we did was put movies on a disc," he said. Enhanced features are even more critical for the success of hi-def discs, which do not offer as many revolutionary distinctions from DVD as did DVD over VHS.
In fact, Kornblau says the lack of comparable interactivity and connectivity in Blu-ray as compared with HD DVD at this point is why Universal refuses to go the same route as Warner and Paramount in releasing in both formats but being forced to offer less interactive and connected features on the Blu-ray versions, such as Warner's new "300."
Hmmm, with the notable exception of the "U-Control" interactive feature that Universal introduced on several titles last year, the studio hasn't exactly been blazing many trails of innovation with content that couldn't be delivered on Blu-ray Discs and even DVDs in many cases. Warner has been leading that charge with web-enabled features introduced on "Blood Diamond" and continuing through last week's "300." After about a year-and-a-half in the market, Universal's first web-enabled feature will come courtesy of Microsoft on the Aug. 28 release of "Heroes."
And, not for nothing, but early results of "300," at a record 250,000 copies sold in the first week, show that at least 65% of those sales went to Blu-ray. Some expected the numbers to skew even further in favor of Blu-ray given it's appeal to the PlayStation 3 demographic.
Meanwhile Blu-ray promises even more dynamic connectivity features with its new "BD Live" component in Blu-ray players and titles coming as early as this fall, as well as further enhancements to its "BD-J" interactive technology.
[B]Kornblau, who was kind enough to speak with me very frankly in the midst of a hectic time, also conceded that Universal could not have picked a worse time to be carrying the torch for HD DVD in terms of strong releases to help support its position and the platform.
Although Kornblau referred to his studio's weak movies over the past 9 months, Universal's release slate has been pretty dismal for the last several years. The studio had only two theatrical films in the top 30 at the domestic box-office in 2005 and it's lone top 20 title last year was 18th-ranked "The Break-Up," with $119 million, according to Boxofficemojo.com. After suffering through the first six months of this year with its biggest hits being the sleeper romantic comedy "Knocked Up" and the financial disaster "Evan Almighty," Universal is finally enjoying a solid franchise hit with last weekend's "The Bourne Ultimatum" opening with $69 million.[B]
Kornblau sees all that as setting up a big fourth-quarter for his studio on the home entertainment and hi-def fronts, starting with "Heroes," followed by four $100 million-plus titles, "Knocked Up," "Evan Almighty," "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" ($92 million after 3 weeks), and "Bourne Ultimatum."
But that's pretty much the highlight for the rest of the year as far as programs available exclusively on HD DVD.
Almost everything else will be on Blu-ray, either exclusively or along with HD DVD, including everything from Steven Spielberg's first hi-def disc release, "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," exclusively on Blu-ray, to most of the top-grossing movies of the year, such as "Spider-Man 3," "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (both only on Blu-ray) "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (not announced as yet); "300," "Blades of Glory," "Ratatouille," and "Wild Hogs" (the latter two only on Blu-ray). And as soon as Fox rejoins the BD party with its MGM distribution in tow -- which everyone hopes will be soon -- that studio could release its trio of summer hits exclusively on Blu-ray, "The Simpsons Movie," "Live Free or Die Hard," and "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer."
Even if, for the sake of argument, you go along with Universal's belief that the format war is driving prices down more quickly, Kornblau admits that there is only a limited window of time for which this situation can be interpreted as beneficial for consumers, retailers, and studios. He says that window will start to close when players drop to a price of $200 and consumers start making their choice, which is what will guide Universal's ultimate course.
So that’s the story. Universal did not want the format war and Kornblau believes the studio did not initiate the war, but he and the studio are now intentionally and strategically keeping the format war alive for what they believe is for the good of the consumer, retailers and studios while awaiting a clear consumer preference for Blu-ray or HD DVD once prices drop to $200. Universal chose HD DVD because costs were lower and it had about a year’s head-start on some interactive features and web connectivity.
Okay, Kornblau has always been straight with me so I have no reason to believe he doesn’t truly believe most, if not all of that.
But if consumers are already showing a 2-1 Blu-ray preference for every movie released in both formats months before Blu-ray introduces its more sophisticated web-connected and interactive features and even while HD DVD is riding a low-price advantage of about $150 - $200, it’s difficult to envision consumers becoming less interested in Blu-ray when all those features debut amid a flurry of the year’s biggest movies exclusively on Blu-ray.
When that point comes, on behalf of those of us who don’t believe that prolonging the format war is a good thing, I hope that Kornblau and Universal are quick to respond to the will of consumers and end this war.
In the meantime, I guess those customers who are already choosing Blu-ray will have to live without hi-def versions of "Knocked Up," "Evan Almighty" and "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" for awhile.
So there you have, it. Even Universal knows it is going to lose, and yet they put the consumer through this format war...for what? So that they can continue to get Microsoft & Toshiba incentives under the guise of "for the good of the consumer." Please. I feel sorry for you HD DVD buyers, really. You are nothing but a pawn in a losing chess match and are being used by Universal for their own gain, as little as that is, considering the losses Universal is taking in terms of sales.
Anyhow, this doesn't compute with me. If you're Universal, and you know the other format is going to win,...why continue down the path of self destruction?
True. I'm just annoyed that fully half the movies I want to see in HD are only on HD-DVD right now.
Neither format has a particularly golden roster in the upcoming months, but at the moment the selection on HD-DVD has a few more choice titles in general.
True, indeed. As I would think you are in the minority in terms of your not-suprising Universal taste...
Quote:
Kornblau, who was kind enough to speak with me very frankly in the midst of a hectic time, also conceded that Universal could not have picked a worse time to be carrying the torch for HD DVD in terms of strong releases to help support its position and the platform.
Although Kornblau referred to his studio's weak movies over the past 9 months, Universal's release slate has been pretty dismal for the last several years. The studio had only two theatrical films in the top 30 at the domestic box-office in 2005 and it's lone top 20 title last year was 18th-ranked "The Break-Up," with $119 million, according to Boxofficemojo.com. After suffering through the first six months of this year with its biggest hits being the sleeper romantic comedy "Knocked Up" and the financial disaster "Evan Almighty," Universal is finally enjoying a solid franchise hit with last weekend's "The Bourne Ultimatum" opening with $69 million.
But whatever. I guess that's why Blu-ray continues to rule in disc sales...ya know, because "the selection on HD-DVD has a few more choice titles in general"...pfffft!
Comments
Steve suppose to put an end to this thread!
Here comes HD-DVD or Bly-Ray on apple today!!!
Now that would be sweet...give me a Blu-ray drive in the higher end iMac...I'd be selling mine in a heartbeat if this was the case, but I think the iMac would be a lot higher than $1799 if it was to include one of those bad boys...maybe a bto option would be nice. If they only offered bto Blu-ray drive, I think that would succinctly state where Apple stands in the format war. And of course you'd get a lot of spin, thrashing, sqeaming from HD DVD fanatics, that would be mildly entertaining.
Now that would be sweet...give me a Blu-ray drive in the higher end iMac...I'd be selling mine in a heartbeat if this was the case, but I think the iMac would be a lot higher than $1799 if it was to include one of those bad boys...maybe a bto option would be nice. If they only offered bto Blu-ray drive, I think that would succinctly state where Apple stands in the format war. And of course you'd get a lot of spin, thrashing, sqeaming from HD DVD fanatics, that would be mildly entertaining.
I can almost see the post now, HD-DVD owners (posting on a Mac forum) claiming that Macs account for ONLY 4% of the market, so therefore BDs inclusion (BTO or not) don't count. The implication being that they also believe Macs don't count.. I'd nearly lay money on murch flip flopping into saying that at SOME point, that is if he hasn't done so already? or dear old bite saying something like "ahh but the bx771 mark 2 of that drive is 2.1% more likely to read a disc than the 778xC4 version that was first shipped on the 32nd of the 14th" which would be picking holes just to miss answering the point, as I believe someone else pointed out already.
I can't believe murchs latest flip RE: 300, I mean its not like he hasn't been reminded about it over and over again, so it must be somthing he does on purpose, which really makes you wonder.
But, whatever. I'm really looking forward to new iMac updates {only half an hour to go at this point} no matter what optical drives are in them I hope we get a nice surprise
Ouch...I guess the only thing that got pwned is you...
Yup.. I whiffed that one. Won't be the first or the last.
Yup.. I whiffed that one. Won't be the first or the last.
Who cares? New iMacs today.
Who cares? New iMacs today.
I spent a bunch of money yesterday because I didn't want to order one immediately, despite waiting and waiting and waiting. Really though I'm underwhelmed with the new iMac it really is "Meh!" might be better in person though? iLife and iWork look like cool updates and I think at last i'll be ordering a family pack of iWork.
However, my actual point as it relates to this thread
I might get a new upgraded mini in the interim and wait for the iMacs to go 4 core
I spent a bunch of money yesterday because I didn't want to order one immediately, despite waiting and waiting and waiting. Really though I'm underwhelmed with the new iMac it really is "Meh!" might be better in person though? iLife and iWork look like cool updates and I think at last i'll be ordering a family pack of iWork.
However, my actual point as it relates to this thread
I might get a new upgraded mini in the interim and wait for the iMacs to go 4 core
I think those new iMacs are sexy. However, I really want two things with a new iMac...
1) A Blu-ray SuperDrive
2) OS X Leopard
I think this is a great start, however, I get the sneakin suspicion we'll be seeing Blu-ray equipped ones in the not to distant future, so I think I'm with ya Walter, I'm holding out until the above are met as my current iMac will suit me just fine in the interim.
Off topic, but awesome! Looks like they finally released iWork '08 with "Numbers." Maybe now, we can make beautiful tables of how Blu-ray is pwning HD DVD in the "Numbers" department.
Numbers has made that bundle a must buy for me, been holding off for an age.
I don't "need" a BD drive, wouldn't complain if there was one in the next update - can anyone remember which year it was that Steve said was the year of HD?
Leopard I might hold out on as well, unless I get it with a new mini (gotta love the new mini C2D) by the time theres a quad core in the iMac leopard should be rock solid
Sorry for the detour
What would I need to get the Xbox HD DVD drive to work with the 24-inch iMac? It connects via USB, and I think I recall reading that OS X recognizes the drive, but is there anything that will actually PLAY discs? Or do we have to wait for Leopard?
Speaking of the new iMacs, I too have been waiting (forever) for this release and now I'm torn between the 20 and the 24, seeing as how they have exactly the same GPU, HDD, RAM, etc. I'd be more inclined to go with the 24 if it had an HD optical drive (of either format), but...
What would I need to get the Xbox HD DVD drive to work with the 24-inch iMac? It connects via USB, and I think I recall reading that OS X recognizes the drive, but is there anything that will actually PLAY discs? Or do we have to wait for Leopard?
As far as I know, you need to bootcamp to windows xp/vista and use third party HiDef video softwares .... PowerDVD 7.3 Ultra or AnyDVD HD.
I'm not aware of any HiDef video playback software running on OS X right now ... perhaps, the pro-apps?
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=390
Earlier this week, Warner Home Video announced that their high definition releases of '300' sold a combined total of 250,000 units during its first week of sale. At that time, it was not revealed how many of those were Blu-ray and how many were HD DVD. Today, a blog post by USA Today writer Mike Snider indicates that the sales ratio was 65-to-35 in favor of Blu-ray, indicating around 163,000 copies of '300' on Blu-ray were sold.
This mirrors the over all 2-to-1 sales ratio advantage Blu-ray has maintained since the beginning of the year. While the HD DVD version of the film boasted extras not available on the Blu-ray, consumers overwhelming chose the Blu-ray version with its PCM audio track and scratch-resistant coating. While the percentages only represents initial estimates, it is a good indication as to the success of the Blu-ray format.
Ouch. Doesn't look good for HD DVD, no matter how Warner attempts to sugar coat it by just releasing the combined sales total. So, 163,000 Blu-ray copies sold to HD DEAD's 87,000. Wow, its going to be a slaughter once Fox and MGM get fully in the game.
I have to admit, at this point, that it looks like Universal is trying a hell of a lot harder to release great movies for its own floundering format than Sony is. I mean, come on, where's my HD anime, Sony? You've released Paprika and the Ghost in the Shell movies on Blu-ray in Japan and Europe, why can't I buy them here? Instead I get Are We Done Yet? and Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. Who needs Hot Fuzz when I can own Wild Hogs in HD? I think the only titles I'll be picking up before 2008 are (MAYBE) the third Pirates of the Caribbean movie and Wings of Honneamise.
My God. It's like some weird bizarro world.
Wow, its going to be a slaughter once Fox and MGM get fully in the game.
Maybe you should get fully in the game and finally purchase a player. ;P
As far as I know, you need to bootcamp to windows xp/vista and use third party HiDef video softwares .... PowerDVD 7.3 Ultra or AnyDVD HD.
I'm not aware of any HiDef video playback software running on OS X right now ... perhaps, the pro-apps?
I believe Leopard is going to have both Blu-ray and HD-DVD playback, but I could be wrong.
Now if only Blu-ray's release lineup for the next six months didn't look so sucktastic.
I guess that depends on taste.
I mean, come on, where's my HD anime, Sony? You've released Paprika and the Ghost in the Shell movies on Blu-ray in Japan and Europe, why can't I buy them here?
Hmmm...I though Japan and US were in the same region?
Hmmm...I though Japan and US were in the same region?
From what I can tell they've intentionally left out English subtitles on those releases.
I guess that depends on taste.
True. I'm just annoyed that fully half the movies I want to see in HD are only on HD-DVD right now.
Neither format has a particularly golden roster in the upcoming months, but at the moment the selection on HD-DVD has a few more choice titles in general.
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=391
Speaking exclusively with HiHD's Scott Hettrick, Universal president Craig Kornblau admitted that his studio is in favor of the format war continuing, despite the negative effects it has on consumer adoption. While its hard to argue that this war has driven down hardware prices and increased quality of releases much faster than if there was only a single format, consumers have mostly stayed away from buying either until a victor can be decided.
Kornblau now believes that HD DVD's existence is so fragile, that if Universal were to decide to go neutral and start releasing on Blu-ray, HD DVD would cease to exist. In fact, they are so dedicated to HD DVD, that Universal has walked away from additional financial incentives to release Blu-ray content, besides the additional revenue they would make by releasing on the more consumer adopted format.
There is hope, however, that this war could soon be over. Kornblau admits that once players reach $200, consumers will begin making their decisions about which format to adopt, and that is when Universal will decide who to support. As we march towards the forth quarter, it is very realistic that Toshiba will slash the price of their players for a third time this year (in yet another act of desperation), paving way for a $200 player. If that happens, there is no reason Universal couldn't monitor the holiday sales and announce Blu-ray releases at CES 2008.
Here is the real link though, with all the goodies...
http://www.hollywoodinhidef.com/blog_detail.php?id=107
There's no longer any question as to who's keeping the hi-def format war alive, or why.
It's Universal Studios and the top home entertainment exec, by his own admission.
I had been hearing over the last few days that various Blu-ray Disc manufacturers have been offering Universal plenty of incentives to join the parade but that Universal was walking away from the table every time without any reasonable objection.
Now we know why.
Universal president Craig Kornblau told me this week that the studio actually wants the format war to continue.
He also said Universal is getting financial incentives to create exclusive HD DVD features such as the Xbox Live component for the upcoming "Heroes" release.
"I’m not going to tell you that we don’t cut financial deals with people every day," he says.
But he has rationale for all of the above.
Kornblau says Universal does the same as every other studio in cutting deals to utilize another company's technologies and services.
But Kornblau says Universal's position is not driven by deals but by a long-term and consumer-focused strategy that is supported by Universal parent NBC and corporate owner GE. Universal never initially wanted a war, he says, which is why the studio made a decision years ago to back only one format.
Of course, that's the same position taken by Disney as well as Fox; the only difference being they individually chose the opposing format for a number of their own reasons, not the least of which is that each independently told me from the beginning that they believe that Blu-ray will ultimately offer the most consumer satisfaction and that the technology represents a full step forward in technology -- not a half-step -- to ensure the longest-term value for consumers. And, most importantly to Fox from the outset and now others as well, an extra layer of protection against piracy.
However, now that the market has evolved as it has, Kornblau says the hi-def format war has been "the very best thing that ever happened for consumers, retailers, and, frankly, studios" -- everyone except consumer electronics manufacturers -- because it has driven prices down further and far more quickly than would have been the case if there had been only one format in the market. (CE manufacturers are no small exception since they were among the primary groups driving the introduction of hi-def discs in order to restore the profit into their business that long ago evaporated with $49 DVD players from China. The format war has already forced some manufacturers to start subsidizing their hi-def players.)
Without the format war, Kornblau believes that even after more than a year in the market, the lowest-priced players would still be priced out of reach of most consumers at more than $1,000 and they would only drop to $800 or $900 over the next year or two.
Of course, that's impossible to know for sure and it's a bit of a faulty premise if you consider that PlayStation 3's, which play Blu-ray Discs and are by far the top-selling hi-def disc player of either format, were introduced last November at $600. As for the cause and rate of price declines in players, 10 years ago the cost of DVD players dropped about 20% in the first year and another 30% in the second year without any format war, according to "CE Historical" at the Consumer Electronics Assoc. web site www.ce.org.
With Universal the only holdout in sticking with HD DVD exclusively, Kornblau reluctantly concedes that HD DVD's position is just fragile enough that if Universal decided to release in Blu-ray now, it would have a serious, if not life-threatening impact on the future of HD DVD. So in addition to weighing how his decision will impact the studio, he now must also factor in the potential demise of the HD DVD format entirely if Universal would opt to release its movies in Blu-ray.
For now, that's not something Kornblau is willing to risk. He says Universal chose HD DVD initially because it offered the least expensive hardware and software manufacturing costs and immediate across-the-board interactivity and connectivity in all HD DVD players. "To this date, nothing's changed," he suggests.
Kornblau believes interactive and connected features are essential for the success of any hi-def disc platform, especially as more and more consumers realize that they can buy a DVD player for $129 that upconverts their DVDs to near-hi-def quality.
"DVD would not have grown to a $16 billion market if all we did was put movies on a disc," he said. Enhanced features are even more critical for the success of hi-def discs, which do not offer as many revolutionary distinctions from DVD as did DVD over VHS.
In fact, Kornblau says the lack of comparable interactivity and connectivity in Blu-ray as compared with HD DVD at this point is why Universal refuses to go the same route as Warner and Paramount in releasing in both formats but being forced to offer less interactive and connected features on the Blu-ray versions, such as Warner's new "300."
Hmmm, with the notable exception of the "U-Control" interactive feature that Universal introduced on several titles last year, the studio hasn't exactly been blazing many trails of innovation with content that couldn't be delivered on Blu-ray Discs and even DVDs in many cases. Warner has been leading that charge with web-enabled features introduced on "Blood Diamond" and continuing through last week's "300." After about a year-and-a-half in the market, Universal's first web-enabled feature will come courtesy of Microsoft on the Aug. 28 release of "Heroes."
And, not for nothing, but early results of "300," at a record 250,000 copies sold in the first week, show that at least 65% of those sales went to Blu-ray. Some expected the numbers to skew even further in favor of Blu-ray given it's appeal to the PlayStation 3 demographic.
Meanwhile Blu-ray promises even more dynamic connectivity features with its new "BD Live" component in Blu-ray players and titles coming as early as this fall, as well as further enhancements to its "BD-J" interactive technology.
[B]Kornblau, who was kind enough to speak with me very frankly in the midst of a hectic time, also conceded that Universal could not have picked a worse time to be carrying the torch for HD DVD in terms of strong releases to help support its position and the platform.
Although Kornblau referred to his studio's weak movies over the past 9 months, Universal's release slate has been pretty dismal for the last several years. The studio had only two theatrical films in the top 30 at the domestic box-office in 2005 and it's lone top 20 title last year was 18th-ranked "The Break-Up," with $119 million, according to Boxofficemojo.com. After suffering through the first six months of this year with its biggest hits being the sleeper romantic comedy "Knocked Up" and the financial disaster "Evan Almighty," Universal is finally enjoying a solid franchise hit with last weekend's "The Bourne Ultimatum" opening with $69 million.[B]
Kornblau sees all that as setting up a big fourth-quarter for his studio on the home entertainment and hi-def fronts, starting with "Heroes," followed by four $100 million-plus titles, "Knocked Up," "Evan Almighty," "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" ($92 million after 3 weeks), and "Bourne Ultimatum."
But that's pretty much the highlight for the rest of the year as far as programs available exclusively on HD DVD.
Almost everything else will be on Blu-ray, either exclusively or along with HD DVD, including everything from Steven Spielberg's first hi-def disc release, "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," exclusively on Blu-ray, to most of the top-grossing movies of the year, such as "Spider-Man 3," "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (both only on Blu-ray) "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (not announced as yet); "300," "Blades of Glory," "Ratatouille," and "Wild Hogs" (the latter two only on Blu-ray). And as soon as Fox rejoins the BD party with its MGM distribution in tow -- which everyone hopes will be soon -- that studio could release its trio of summer hits exclusively on Blu-ray, "The Simpsons Movie," "Live Free or Die Hard," and "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer."
Even if, for the sake of argument, you go along with Universal's belief that the format war is driving prices down more quickly, Kornblau admits that there is only a limited window of time for which this situation can be interpreted as beneficial for consumers, retailers, and studios. He says that window will start to close when players drop to a price of $200 and consumers start making their choice, which is what will guide Universal's ultimate course.
So that’s the story. Universal did not want the format war and Kornblau believes the studio did not initiate the war, but he and the studio are now intentionally and strategically keeping the format war alive for what they believe is for the good of the consumer, retailers and studios while awaiting a clear consumer preference for Blu-ray or HD DVD once prices drop to $200. Universal chose HD DVD because costs were lower and it had about a year’s head-start on some interactive features and web connectivity.
Okay, Kornblau has always been straight with me so I have no reason to believe he doesn’t truly believe most, if not all of that.
But if consumers are already showing a 2-1 Blu-ray preference for every movie released in both formats months before Blu-ray introduces its more sophisticated web-connected and interactive features and even while HD DVD is riding a low-price advantage of about $150 - $200, it’s difficult to envision consumers becoming less interested in Blu-ray when all those features debut amid a flurry of the year’s biggest movies exclusively on Blu-ray.
When that point comes, on behalf of those of us who don’t believe that prolonging the format war is a good thing, I hope that Kornblau and Universal are quick to respond to the will of consumers and end this war.
In the meantime, I guess those customers who are already choosing Blu-ray will have to live without hi-def versions of "Knocked Up," "Evan Almighty" and "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" for awhile.
So there you have, it. Even Universal knows it is going to lose, and yet they put the consumer through this format war...for what? So that they can continue to get Microsoft & Toshiba incentives under the guise of "for the good of the consumer." Please. I feel sorry for you HD DVD buyers, really. You are nothing but a pawn in a losing chess match and are being used by Universal for their own gain, as little as that is, considering the losses Universal is taking in terms of sales.
Anyhow, this doesn't compute with me. If you're Universal, and you know the other format is going to win,...why continue down the path of self destruction?
True. I'm just annoyed that fully half the movies I want to see in HD are only on HD-DVD right now.
Neither format has a particularly golden roster in the upcoming months, but at the moment the selection on HD-DVD has a few more choice titles in general.
True, indeed. As I would think you are in the minority in terms of your not-suprising Universal taste...
Kornblau, who was kind enough to speak with me very frankly in the midst of a hectic time, also conceded that Universal could not have picked a worse time to be carrying the torch for HD DVD in terms of strong releases to help support its position and the platform.
Although Kornblau referred to his studio's weak movies over the past 9 months, Universal's release slate has been pretty dismal for the last several years. The studio had only two theatrical films in the top 30 at the domestic box-office in 2005 and it's lone top 20 title last year was 18th-ranked "The Break-Up," with $119 million, according to Boxofficemojo.com. After suffering through the first six months of this year with its biggest hits being the sleeper romantic comedy "Knocked Up" and the financial disaster "Evan Almighty," Universal is finally enjoying a solid franchise hit with last weekend's "The Bourne Ultimatum" opening with $69 million.
But whatever.
From what I can tell they've intentionally left out English subtitles on those releases.
http://us.yesasia.com/en/PrdDept.asp...id-1004710306/