Posted on 02/17/2009 6:25:38 AM PST by gymbeau
Movie Studios Offer Consumers Win-Win Way to go Blu-ray By Jim Bray February 14, 2009
It looks as if there may be an outbreak of consumer-friendly common sense coming from a couple of the big Hollywood studios.
This particular anomaly is a way to help people transition to the Blu-ray format by marketing "combination" disc packages that include both DVD and BD versions, so those who don't yet have a Blu-ray player (which is most people) can watch their favorite titles on DVD now, with the BD version waiting patiently in the package for the day when they do eventually buy a Blu-ray player.
I think this is a great idea, and it carries the added benefit of giving Blu-ray consumers a copy of their movie that'll play in their car system, portable device, or computer.
What a concept! Now, at least with selected titles initially, people will be able to buy the movie (or whatever the title might be) instead of worrying about the format. And doesn't that just make sense?
If memory serves, Warner Brothers embraced a similar type of initiative briefly during the Blu-ray versus HD DVD format war. Warners released some "Total Hi-Def" hybrid discs that offered HD-DVD on one side of a disc and Blu-ray on the other, though I don't believe a DVD was included in the package. It was an excellent way to give consumers a break during the high def disc format war, but it was made moot by the welcome death of HD DVD and adoption of Blu-ray as the single HD disc format.
Double sided discs are nothing new; DVD's have been released for years that have the widescreen version of the movie on one side and Pan&Scan on the other. In fact, Warner Brothers tells me they still release some titles this way. But packaging completely different formats in a single box is a newer phenomenon.
The first such Blu-ray/DVD "Combo Pack" I saw was for the Walt Disney studio's spectacular Blu-ray release of Sleeping Beauty in the fall of 2008. The "50th Anniversary Platinum Edition" disc was supposedly only available in limited markets, undoubtedly to test the waters, but the Blu-ray release included the feature film on a standard definition DVD as well, offering consumers a way to “future proof” their collections or merely expand their playback options.
Disney announced recently that their Combo Packs will be extended across a new slate of Disney-branded theatrical and Platinum titles releasing on Blu-ray between February and October, 2009. Upcoming Combo Pack titles include the "teen phenomenon" High School Musical 3: Senior Year, the animated classic Pinocchio (the 70th Anniversary Platinum Edition, available March 10) and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Platinum Edition, which the studio will unveil in October.
It isn't just a Blu-ray/DVD thing, either. Various studios have begun releasing titles that include a digital copy suitable for playing on a computer or digital device. I've tried a couple of these digital files and haven't been impressed with their quality, but at least the choice is there for people who prefer portability to ultimate audio/video quality.
Disney North America will also package 14 of its new Blu-ray titles with a DisneyFile digital copy which in both iTunes and Windows Media file formats. Digital Files are planned for such titles as High School Musical 3: Senior Year, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, Monsters Inc., and A Bugs Life.
Digital file or not, I can't wait to see Monster's Inc. and A Bugs Life on Blu-ray. Both are excellent Pixar titles that began life digitally and so should look spectacular on Blu-ray.
20th Century Fox is also jumping on the "Combi-pak" bandwagon – and then some! Its pending release of Marley and Me, which features Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston in a "tail" about a family that learns important life lessons from their "adorable, but naughty and neurotic dog", is being released in three versions: as a single DVD, a "Bad Boy” Two-Disc Special Edition DVD (that includes the aforementioned Digital Copy as well as common features such as deleted scenes, featurettes and the like), and the “Bad Boy” Three-Disc Blu-ray that adds the high definition Blu-ray Disc to the "Bad Boy" DVD version – as well as exclusive Blu-ray content.
Including DVD's with the Blu-ray also adds portability to the mix: there aren't a lot of portable Blu-ray players out there yet, but there are plenty of hand held or vehicle-mounted DVD players, so by including the DVD in the package families can play a version of the title in their minivan or SUV, at a friend's house, on an airplane, or anywhere else.
And that, apparently, is part of the rationale behind Disney's move toward offering multiple format packages. “These unique Combo Packs provide the opportunity for consumers around the world to take advantage of the quality of Blu-ray with the portability of a DVD disc in a single package," says Bob Chapek, President of Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. “As always, we are committed to offering our consumers exceptional quality and value when purchasing our products.”
That's a delicious irony considering how hard Disney fought the advent of home video back when videocassettes were the new kid on the block. If memory serves, they were part of a group of studios that actually sued Sony for having invented the betamax! Now, they rake in a lot of their profits from the home video market and are probably glad they lost that case.
I've complained for years about the shabby treatment of the consumers who give Hollywood its profits, whether it be via insulting FBI warnings that treat you like a criminal (even if you've bought the title legitimately) or ramming through a digital copy protection scheme (with the HDMI standard) that can lead to problems during playback. But I must give credit where it's due, and if I wore a hat I'd take it off to the studios who are offering consumers the most flexible bang for their after-tax buck.
The cynic in me wonders if this is a deliberate break for consumers or a way for the manufacturers to cut down on packaging costs. But regardless of the reason, the consumer wins and that's a good thing.
Well done!
Copyright 2009 Jim Bray TechnoFile.com
I guess it’s good, if there’s a movie you want to buy and watch.
I don’t buy movies, and barely rent them. Not because I don’t like movies, I just don’t like the crap they try to pass for movies now.
Yep. I haven't been to a theater since 1990, and haven't rented a movie in years. I did buy a few movies some years ago, and relatives give me documentary stuff for Christmas and such. Otherwise, what I have is stuff I taped to DVD off TV (when I had the Westerns Channel some years ago).
I'm obviously pretty limited in what excites me...
Yeah, I see what you mean. I love movies and review Blu-rays, but despite getting about five per week there’s usually little I want to watch - and if I haven’t requested a title I don’t feel bound to review unsolicited stuff. There’s just so much crap out there!
But it sure looks and sounds great!
cheers
Amen
I watched Appaloosa last night on Blu-Ray and it was of spectacular quality, like just about all of the Blu-Ray titles I've seen.
Every now and then you'll see one that's sub-par, but Blu-Ray compared to regular DVD is like night and day.
Toshiba tried this with HD-DVDs. The combo HD-DVD/standard DVDs were priced higher than regular HD-DVDs, and never were a success. Basically, the folks who wanted regular DVDs weren’t going to pay twice as much for a combo DVD, and the folks who already had a HD-DVD player naturally bought the regular HD-DVD at the lower price, leaving the combo DVD/HD-DVD stranded in no man’s land.
Sony needs to push Blu-Ray prices lower, both for the players and the discs.
Agreed. They’re moving that way, but aren’t there yet.
I bought King Kong (the Peter Jackson one) and a Who concert for twenty bucks Canadian each, which I find fairly reasonable for Canadian pricing.
cheers
As a complete movie geek, I can’t see any future in blu-ray, in spite of this fan-boy article.
Do they look better? Yes. Does that matter if the medium fails and you won’t be able to play them on anything in a couple of years? You bet. Is there any sign the medium’s going to take off and replace standard DVD? No. In fact, I’d say the sluggish sales figures, mixed with the economy, suggests that blu-ray will go the way of SACD and DVD-Audio - both high-end audio formats that fizzled out due to lack of consumer interest.
The PS3 is connected using HDMI. The TV is 1080p and the HD cable channels we get all look spectacular. It could also be the movie itself. I still buy Blu-Ray titles when they are ridiculously cheap so I have some others I can try. But unless every movie is spectacular, Blu-Ray is a non-starter.
One additional thing that comes into play with Blu-Ray is the new audio formats. Both True-HD & DTS Master Audio (often seen as DTS-MA) provide lossless soundtracks that are bit-for-bit duplicates of the original master soundtracks. The older Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks are very good, but they use compression algorithms that squeeze out parts of the soundtrack in order to conserve space on the DVD. Blu-Ray has sufficient space for both the HD movie, and the original soundtrack.
I bit the bullet and bought a Blu-Ray disk player to go with my Hi-Def tv. And cannot see enough difference in picture quality between Blu-Ray DVDs and standard DVDs.
Now if you're talking sound, then yes there is a difference, but as far as picture quality, the added cost of the Blu-ray disks just isn't worth it.
Probably the two best Blu-Rays I've ever seen are Casino Royale and The Queen (the QE2 biopic with Helen Mirren).
If you haven't seen either of those I highly recommend them. The picture quality is probably 5 times better than DVD.
Really? It’s probably just me, but I can’t stand how standard def DVDs look on an HDTV. I’m very picky about picture quality though.
Lots of talk on another forum I visit about how blu-ray will be the last format you can physically own. The future, they debate, is in pay-per-view.
It does make some sense. I love watching movies but, for the most part, I've stopped buying them. I looked into my DVD case and saw dozens of movies I've only watched once and started renting instead of purchasing.
No thanks, I’d rather pay the electric bill.
It does make sense, you’re right!
However, I’m one of those types who likes to own the things – I see having a library of films no differently than having a library of my favorite books. The movie companies have been trying to move us into pay-per-view for years (divx, anyone?) with their greedy, teeny little minds having wet dreams about pay-per-listen for audio.
Amen brownsfan.
I belong to one of the movie mail-views clubs and I get one decent movie out of 10. It's almost like going to a Browns game. (Couldn't resist - just kidding with you)
It is gonna take years to switch to BR. They have to do something.
“It’s almost like going to a Browns game. (Couldn’t resist - just kidding with you)”
No offense taken on that one. At this point, my nickname is a misnomer. Randy Lerner, (nickname: Slow), is the worst owner in the league. The Browns will never win with him as owner.
The lesson was taught to us in 95, the team belongs to the owner, not the community. Therefore, I don’t consume a defective product. There are no issues with fan loyalty, I’m as loyal to them as they are to me. I instructed Mrs. Brownsfan that there were to be no brown and orange Christmas gifts. I will admit to being a little bitter, (obviously).
I enjoy watching the Steelers, Heinz Ward is fun to watch, there’s the Ohio connection to Big Ben, and the OSU connection with Holmes. I like football, but only if it’s competitive. And honestly, the Browns really, really suck.
Ok, my rant is over. :)
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