Re: Important Announcement: Warner Home Video Tom & Jerry Replacement Program
Hi Everyone,
I just wanted to pass on an update I received regarding the Tom and Jerry: Spotlight Collection Vol. 1 issue.
In addition to myself and you folks here at the HTF, several friends of mine also received the exact same original censored pressing (both discs 1 & 2) as a replacement.
I spoke with an acquaintance/contact with Warner late this afternoon on a separate issue, and brought this matter to his attention. Here's the gist of that conversation (i.e., "What I found out…"):
First off, above everything else, you should all know that Warner is absolutely aware of this problem, and will be rectifying it as soon as is possible. There is no need to call in to report the problem -- everyone will have to be reserviced with the correct uncensored disc. (More shortly…)
As I'm sure most of you have already figured out, everyone who called in to request a replacement copy of Tom and Jerry: Spotlight Collection Vol. 1 unfortunately received the original censored pressing of Disc 1 rather than then the uncensored edition.
Additionally, even though only Disc 1 was problematic, everyone also received a replacement copy of Disc 2. This has lead to speculation that the original Disc 2 also contained some censored material, or had some other previously-unknown problem. (Which isn't the case… the original Disc 2 is perfectly fine!)
For those of you who aren't aware of this, Warner utilizes an outside fulfillment company to handle all their disc replacement/exchange programs. (Warner simply does not have the internal resources necessary to handle thousands of phone calls, mailings, exchanges, etc. In fact, nearly all the studios utilize such a fulfillment company to handle recalls and similar replacement/exchange programs.)
When the fulfillment company received their shipment of the Tom and Jerry: Spotlight Collection Vol. 1 replacement discs (which if I understood correctly, was shipped directly to them from the pressing facility), they were listed as the corrected uncensored version. In addition, instead of receiving just Disc 1, their shipment contained both Discs 1 AND 2.
The fulfillment company was originally told that only Disc 1 was censored and would be replaced. However, when they received both Discs 1 & 2 -- and both were listed as the uncensored replacement discs for the Tom and Jerry Vol. 1 exchange program -- they simply assumed there was a previously-unmentioned problem with Disc 2, and subsequently began shipping out both of these replacement discs as they were contracted to do.
Unfortunately, the fulfillment company has no way of knowing (or checking) for themselves whether the replacement discs they've received are indeed the "corrected" versions. Although they have a general knowledge of what the problem is (from what Warner tells them), they don't know the EXACT specifics -- in this case what footage was censored, where the censored material occurs in the shorts (i.e. timecode), or even which shorts were affected. They simply handle the actual consumer exchanges/replacements -- they take the phone calls, arrange for the exchange(s), and ship out the replacement discs they've received from the studio and/or pressing facility. As such, they can only assume that the materials they've received for replacements are the proper corrected pressings as listed.
In any event, as I stated earlier, both Warner and the fulfillment facility are absolutely aware of the problem, and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. As I hope you all know, this was simply due to an unfortunate error that occurred "somewhere" along the line, and was not done intentionally. As of this afternoon they are still looking into the cause of the problem -- since both "censored" and "uncensored" versions now exist, they must first track down what happened before they can "fix" the issue. (If it was something as simple as a warehouse employee mistakenly marking and/or shipping out the wrong discs to the fulfillment facility -- this would be fairly quick and easy to correct. However, if the problem is tracked back to the pressing facility, and the wrong master was utilized for the repressing, it'll take longer to fix since this would require another repressing. But remember… until they actually track the cause down, it's all just conjecture at this point.)
Again, Warner will be rectifying this problem as soon as they can, so that the fulfillment facility can ship out the proper uncensored copies of Disc 1. As I stated earlier, there is also no need to call in to report the problem as EVERYONE who requested a replacement will be reserviced -- i.e., when the proper replacement discs are received, you will automatically be sent the corrected uncensored discs.
Further, if you've already received the incorrect replacement discs, hold onto them for now -- there is no need to return them just yet. It's probable that you will need to return these with your original Disc 1 as soon as the fulfillment facility receives and ships you the correct uncensored disc.
If there are any other specific details regarding this exchange, I'm sure it will be listed on the letter enclosed with your replacement-of-the-replacement disc.
And that's basically where Tom and Jerry Vol. 1 stands right now. It's certainly a shame that it occurred, but at least the problem was quickly identified and Warner is working hard to correct this as soon as possible. We all just need to be patient for a little while longer…
Lastly, should any of you decide to call up the fulfillment facility anyway about this issue, don't be surprised if the operators or customer service reps don't have any information regarding this -- most of what I've told you above is not yet known by them (so kindly cut 'em some slack if they don't have the answers you are looking for just yet… they're good people over there).
Should I find out any additional information, I'll be sure to post an update if I'm able…
Regards,
