Between-Release Nervousness (1 Viewer)

[Chris:L]

This is what I was talking about.

 

[Chris:L]

n/a

 

[Gord Lacey]

All the martket research in the world can change once the DVD has been released.

While I was working on Kids in the Hall season 1 I asked my friends if they would buy the set. I told them all about it, how many discs, the bonus materials...everything. 5 of them said they would buy it "for sure" but only 1 of them has done so.

Gord

 

[Jaime_Weinman]

I remember when the first season of The Mary Tyler Moore Show was about to be released, there was a quote from Peter Staddon in the newspaper: "To be honest, I know it will sell well. There is no downside." I have to assume that that confidence was based in part on market research or at least on a reading of what the market was. As we know, that confidence was misplaced. You just can't predict how a show is going to sell. (The first season, I mean. Once the first season is out, the studios can predict sales of future seasons based on that.)

 

[Casey Trowbridg]

Chris I don't see how anyone should have to eat crow over a statement like that considering the very next post said...


As Gord said, market research isn't always reliable. Putting it as simply as I can, there's a big difference between asking someone if they'd spend money on something and actually getting them to do it.

 

[Chris:L]

Oh, now I begin to see your point. Maybe the big execs are concerned only about money.

 

[Dane Marvin]

Gord, that really sucks. If it's any consolation to you, my friend was so adamant about getting this that she didn't even care what it was going to cost. She pre-ordered the day I told her about it. Now she keeps asking me when season 2 is coming.

 

[MatthewA]

I've got a radical idea:

Everyone buy a set when they say they are going to, bearing a financial crisis.

 

[Casey Trowbridg]

Right, that's why Disney is in the funk its in. Eisner is not concerned with being creative and good story telling, but the bottom line. Yet, to be fair Studio execs have to be concerned about money because they have a responsibility to their shareholders to remain profitable. Of course the Disney brass seems to ignore the ill of its own shareholders but that's for a different thread.
Whether we like to admit it or not studios don't release these shows to please the fans, they release them to make money. Will it be profitable is the question they have to answer, if the answer is no then its not coming out no matter what the fans want.

I'll give you an example, why did fox release the Simpsons on DVD? Was it because they knew it would make money, or because they wanted to do something for the fans?
Please note however, that in a lot of cases the 2 are tied together, it is because of the Simpson fan base that Fox knew the show would make a lot of money on DVD, but not all shows are like the Simpsons in terms of fan appeal.

 

[MarkHastings]

But as I stated before, instead of being mad that the market research showed postivie results (and sales don't reflect those results), why not be glad that the market research didn't show that sales would be bad? At least this way, you'd get (at least) 1 season out of it.

As much as I'd like the rest of Son of the Beach, I'm glad the market research didn't show the bad sales that actually happened, becuase if they did, I wouldn't even have Season 1 in my collection.

 

[Elyse]

Another worry I have about first season sets needing to sell well in order to have later seasons released is that sometimes the first season of a series is not the best. For example, I don't like the first couple of seasons of Star Trek: TNG at all, but I bought seasons 4-6. I don't have enough money to buy season sets I don't want just to push the company to produce the later seasons I do want, especially since there's no guarantee that'll happen.

I don't know if any studios look at show ratings when figuring out which -seasons- will sell best (not just overall show vs. show ratings). It seems a bit strange, but what would happen if seasons weren't always released in order? For example, if season 1 doesn't sell very well, skip season 2 and release season 3 (the most popular one, winning awards, etc.).

While this would upset collectors / people who wanted season 2, it at least means that more episodes of the show are released, and maybe if the numbers for season 3 were good enough, the skipped season would be released later. Anything is better than the studio just giving up on the show and never releasing any more.

(This obviously works better for shows with shorter plot arcs than others [e.g. okay for most sitcoms but not for a show like Alias, which has plot through multiple seasons].)

 

[Casey Trowbridg]

I think that there are some problems with releasing the show out of order. Especially if season 1 has a cliff hanger ending that is resolved in the opener of season 2, or if events in season 2 impact what happens in season 3.
Plus, I think that this would cause some consumer confusion if a studio went from season 1 of MTM to season 6 so everyone could get their fix of chuckles bites the dust. It would be like getting a DVD release of Rocky III before Rocky I you know? Its an interesting thought, but I just don't see the studios going for something like this, because most people that are going to buy the show are going to commit themselves to the whole run. I'm not a big fan of season 1 Simpsons but yet I have it.

 

[MarkHastings]

Elyse, while I agree with what you're saying, I think the research would be impossible to decide which seasons to deliver first. In the case of Cheers, I could see there being 3 types of fans. The 1st type may just only be interested in the Shelly Long years, the 2nd type may be only interested in the Kirstie Alley years, and (of course) the 3rd type would take them all. So it's fair to say that seasons one-(whenever Shelly left), might not be a best-seller due to the Kirstie Alley fans.

But, I guess, this is why they release best-of's at first (i.e. Friends, Married with Children, etc.) to see if there really is an interest.Same here, the main reason I bought it was for the commentary.

 

[Chris:L]

I'm thinking when someone says "I'll definitely buy it." they mean they will buy it. Meaning either they will buy it immediately or down the road. But they will buy it.

 

[Jason Seaver]

Or, they'd buy it if it were in front of them at that moment. I know I've certainly come out of a theater sure I would buy the movie I just saw on DVD only to see my enthusiasm markedly lower when it actually came out.

 

[Gabe D]

It'll never happen, but I've often wished for the same thing. For instance, if they ever release "Newhart" Season 1, I won't buy it. However, I would snap up the last couple of seasons. Same with "Brady Bunch." There's a lot of shows like that for me.

 

[Mark Lx]

Yeah, I don't take anything for granted. I'm not a completist. I'll by a season or collection based on the perceived entertainment value of that set alone. Some shows, like Three's Company, I almost hope the don't finish the last couple of seasons so I don't feel the pressure to complete the show, having started. You could say I'm a "collector" in a sense, but I would never try to define the collection. That's no fun.

 

[Matt Giggey]

I'm with you there. I'm *praying* for season two of Upright Citizens Brigade, but even if it isn't released, I'll still get plenty of enjoyment from season one.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

as am i. even though i converted my vhs tapes to dvd (the whole series..30 episodes and 11 hours on one dvd ), i'll be first in line for ANY ucb release. i'll always have the episodes, but the commentary on season 1 was, without any doubt, the funniest commentary ive heard to date. ok, enough UCB ass kissing for now.

CJ

 

[Christ Reynolds]

13 months after my last post, still praying. anyone who wants my homemade dvd, PM me, send me a blank disc, and i'll make you a copy. to help out fellow UCB fans waiting for seasons 2 & 3, if they ever come out.

JC