HD-DVD Titles Announced for 4th Qtr Release- (1 Viewer)

[Paul.S]

Paul Sweeting's latest column regarding the "bluff" that was the CES announcement of Q4 HD DVD launch.

-p

 

[Jesse Blacklow]

I don't know how I missed this, but according to Paul Sweeting over at Video Business, "HD DVD launch off for Q4, As Toshiba delays hardware production". At this point, it sounds like just another nail in the coffin.

 

[Paul.S]

That's kinda "old" news now, Jesse.

If you haven't, catch up with Sweeting's more recent columns (all available at the site; particularly seek out "'Management' Crisis" from the August 29 issue and "Encryption Keepers" from the September 5 issue).

In addition to there obviously being some dissembling going on in the HD DVD camp regarding the real reasons behind the delay of software and hardware, there is a significant disagreement between the IT members of the Blu-ray consortium and the studios regarding the issue of "managed copy" (Microsoft wants it, some studios do not).

Frankly, I wish HD DVD (and Blu-ray) would just go ahead and come to market, but from Sweeting's columns of the past two weeks it would appear that we're not as close as we need to be to finalization and licensing of the AACS spec for either side to have titles or players out in the next 6 months.

-p

 

[Jesse Blacklow]

I thought it was old news at first as well, but it's the first time I could tell that the HD-DVD group (and not supporting studios) has definitively stated that they're not meeting their original ETA of Q4 2005. That's the big news in the article. See the "HD-DVD/Blu-Ray Merger Possible?" thread for another article about Toshiba's hardware plans.

 

[PeterTHX]

Which is another reason to back Blu-ray. The hardware has been more or less finalized for some time now. Yet Sony, Panasonic, and the others haven't been making pie-in-the-sky promises about availablity other than "2006". They have been honest about it. UNLIKE the HD-DVD side.

 

[Paul.S]

Yes, Chief Smurf Officer.

What with U supposedly having reduced their slate from 16 to 12 titles (read: likely having pushed the entire HD DVD slate into '06), I went ahead and used Wherehouse.com trade-in credit to get the The Thing: CE for "free" ($9.99). I've of course kvetched herein and moreso in the disc's comments/review thread about the long-overdue CE having finally been released last October, only for U to announce an HD DVD of the pic 3 months later at CES.

-p

 

[Paul.S]

I didn't get any response or colloquy on the matter after my posting this in what could be called the pre-release, pre-HTF review Batman Begins thread. Bless their hearts, I think many are either blithely unaware of hi def imminence or are not taking a longer view on the issue of whether to buy high profile standard def titles streeting this fall.

"High-Def Debate Continues at Digital Hollywood"



This could be Nickerson maintaining a 'game face': if the latest press (specifically, the trade coverage of what Warner may do in the wake of Par's announcement of support of both formats this past Sunday and the Tom's Hardware coverage of the MS and Intel HD DVD 'support' and HP's response to an MS rep's comments) is any indication, it's possible Warner may soon announce Blu-ray support. But unless and until that happesn, I'm sure even/especially WHV senior execs have to stay the course with their public comments about HD DVD coming to market next spring.

So having said that, how are you guys dealing with the shadow cast over the (admittedly limited) number of fall standard def releases of 2005 theatrical titles for which Warner (and to a lesser extent Par) announced HD DVDs for back in January? Holding off? Getting them as cheaply as possible? Getting them as you usually would and planning on selling them next year? Am I fretting too much over the issue given how cheap even the list price for standard def is, much less, say, three months from now when there are a few dozen Batman Begins Deluxes available via Amazon Marketplace?

Of course, this begs the question: are the studios going to include on the hi def release all the supps that were/are supposed to be on the standard def?

-p

 

[Daniel-M]

it time for the HD-DVD camp to give. rhey now have only two major studios exclusivly supporting them

 

[Paul.S]

And U is not exclusive. -p

 

[PeterTHX]

It's only a matter of time.

It's like the heady days of DVD vs. DIVX when one-by-one the major studios "defected" to the open-DVD side. The same thing is playing out 7 years later. "PARAMOUNT IS IN!!!!"

Universal, we're waiting....your music division has already commited, time for you to suck up and cut your (potential) losses.

Toshiba must be sweating bullets right now. Their bluff has been called. You can't win with a pair of 2's, especially when the Blu-ray group has 3 of the 4 aces.

 

[Paul.S]

With the small but significant caveat that Universal Music Group and Universal Studios now have different owners and the former's optical media format choices have little to do with the latter's . . . -p

 

[PeterTHX]

Yeah. NBC now owns Universal studios.

 

[Paul.S]

Well, actually G.E.

I still wanna know exactly what those Frenchies plan to do with music releases on Blu-ray. UMG released more DVD-As and SA-CDs than any other major label.

NO ONE else here is vexed about whether to buy Batman Begins in 2 weeks??

-p

 

[JohnPhi]

Vexed no not at all. Title launch has already been delayed once, could happen again, and I can't even upgrade as my tv does not have HDMI, even though it is only 2 years old.

It is a bit early to really start worrying about purchases

 

[PeterTHX]

Until Warner announces Blu-ray support I'm not "vexed" about buying any of their DVDs. HD-DVD doesn't exist. And it may never exist.

 

[Jeff Adkins]

Warner Near Closing Deal To Support Blu-Ray

The fat lady has begun warming up.

 

[Paul.S]

Yeah yeah CSO--I know where you stand. I'm trying to get a sense of where others are on the issue.

-p

 

[Paul.S]

Thx, Jeff. Big news. -p

 

[Jeff(R)]

More from Business Week:

http://www.businessweek.com/technolo...6128_tc024.htm

"A Warner Bros. Green Light for Blu-ray?

The outfit's support would be a boon for Sony's next-generation DVD -- and a major blow to rival Toshiba's HD DVD format"

 

[DaViD Boulet]

This is HUGE.

And wonderful.

Blu-ray all the way...