Universal at CES (1 Viewer)

[Paul_Scott]

nor would I. For Tosh, there is no choice. If they want to share in the future HDM pie, they have to build high quality, low priced dual format players.

Maybe they don't want a share of HDMs? Maybe they have concluded that the window of opportunity is going to be too short to actually realize any good profit off of royalties before some other delivery system whether it is downloads, or a form of flash drives, captures the publics fancy.
Maybe it is in Tosh's interest to keep Sony mired and spending money in pursuit an optical disc treasure that will never return all that has been invested in the pursuit of it- while at the same time, keep raking in the revenue from DVDs, and putting money towards that next delivery system?

The media software figures from last year were released. HDMs accounted for less than 2% of software sales. Are the majority of people here honestly suggesting that Universal and Parmount are going to be missing out not jumping on the Bd bandwagon when everyone is under the impression it is a buyers market (i.e that Sony copuld pick up the remaining studios cheap out of panic)?
Following hot on the heels of warner will not realize the best payout for anyone o the HD DVD side. The BDA will be desperate again. I like the metaphor I heard in another forum- HD DVD is in a coma and on life support right now. But Bd is a newborn on life support.

 

[SD_Brian]

They will be missing out on a larger share of that 2% and, greedy bastards that studios are, that may be enough to push them over the edge.

 

[Chris S]

This is the same thing Universal did last year at CES while Fox touted a whole slew of releases that didn't materialize. Of course the situation is vastly different today but I'm going to be cautious about what I read into their announcement or lack thereof.

My personal feeling is that they're looking for a way to jump ship but I'm still very guarded that yet another surprise is still waiting for us before this whole ordeal is over.

 

[Patrick_S]

I always wondered about the sales figures.

Are the figures like they are because of market preference or the fact that there is more exclusive content available on Blu? I know the numbers posted for Warner were not 2-1 Blu but basically 1-1.

So was the overall sales delta market preference or studio exclusivity?

 

[Adam Gregorich]

When major catalog titles can barely move 10,000 units. A lot of catalog titles on both formats moved fewer than 2000 units.

 

[SD_Brian]

It's pretty much a no-brainer that the amount of exclusive content is the major driving force behind those numbers and that's why Warner's decision is such a serious blow to HD DVD.

 

[Adam Gregorich]

I posted this in another thread, but it is applicable here too:

 

[Dave Moritz]

While I am still waiting to hear if this article in FT is the real deal. This could really help pressure Universal to at least go format neutral.

Finacial Times Article: Paramount in HD-DVD Blow
FT.com / Mergermarket - Paramount in HD DVD blow

If true Universal may have to quickly change there HD-DVD only stance and at least include Blu-ray releases very soon. The CES show has not even ended and things seem to be changing rapidly since WB anounced going Blu-ray only at the end of May. We could see Universal making a anouncement within the next few days if Paramount is indeed going to go Blu. At that point Toshiba will have no choice in the matter, hell they could be involved in talks with Sony allready to discuss ending the format war allready.

This war is ether going to last till the end of the year or self distruct leaving Toshiba with no choice but to support Sony's Blu-ray platform by the end of the year. Things are getting very interesting and I can not wait to see what happens next.

 

[Jari K]

Yes, I´m sure you´ve a point, but HD DVD-camp also cancelled their press conference, which at least to me opens many questions.

There must´ve been some titles they they´ve planning to reveal. What´ll happen to them? Will they be canceled, moved or will they even be released in "another format" later on?

I mean when Paramount/DW dropped the bomb last time, Blu-ray camp was quite fast and ready to show their support and there were many title announcements (sure, Fox didn´t stick up with all the dates, but still).

I fully understand that these "HD DVD exclusive"-companies want to take a time-out now, but if they want to keep their fans at least in some level, they should make some moves soon. I know that many HD DVD-fans are very passionate about their format (which I partly understand, since some have bought e.g. 200 HD DVDs etc), but I also believe that many of them are essentially "film buffs", which eventually will buy also Blu-ray-titles. As long as HD DVD-camp is "silent" (or giving some PR-mumbojumbo), the danger of fans "switching sides" increases. IMO. It takes more than a couple of catalog-titles or "Transformers" this time..

 

[ppltd]

I think the fact that Warner goes exclusive in no way dows a great deal to change the outlook for the HD formats one way or the other. the fact is the general public finds DVD more than adaquate, and 4.99 bargin bin DVD's are still the mainstay for many consumers. Fact is, when Toshiba and Sony couldn't get their acts together over two years ago pretty much signed the slow death warrant for the formats.

 

[Jim_K]

Wow. So the Paramount out-clause is based on Warner going BD exclusive. That just shows how much weight what Warner does has with the other studios.

Oh I'll bet there's going to be some major wheeling and dealing in the coming weeks. Warner was keeping that format afloat, I just don't see Universal and Paramount willing let alone capable of sustaining a format all by themselves.

I smell more changes in the wind. Offering Toshiba a slice of the BD pie would be a logical next move and would bury this pretty quickly.

 

[Jari K]

(post moved, wrong thread)

 

[Douglas Monce]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Warner is the 800 pound gorilla! And in my opinion Warner has been keeping both formats afloat. They have released more movies on both formats than any other studio. Of course they have more movies than any other studio to release.

Doug

 

[Bleddyn Williams]

One of the best ways to measure real studio support is by releases.

Disney and Fox issued a release schedule to press their current advantage. The fact that Dreamworks/ Paramount and Universal aren't announcing any titles seems very telling, sad to say.

 

[Peter-PP]

Paramount denies report.

Bloomberg.com: Japan

 

[Scott-S]

Quote from the Bloomberg article linked above from a Paramount spokesperson:

LOL, love the use of "current plan". That isn't a very strong statement. In fact, given the state of the format wars right now, I would argue that this real weak statement is a sign they are going to be re-thinking their stance.

 

[Chris S]

O' very much so. That is why I'm surprised that the HD DVD Promotions Group didn't release a stronger press release to the Warner announcement.

 

[Dave Moritz]

I would say very weak indeed, lmao. Toshiba must know that all it will take is one more defection to Blu-ray and they will be finished. I do not see how they can continue the war with only two studios backing them? Toshiba will eventually have to go Blu as well so it makes no sense for them to do things that can hurt HDM. I still believe that HD-DVD is a good product but it has its limitations. And one of the big ones besides the obvious storage space issue is not having the bit rate to pass both 1080p and lossless on some releases. At least that is what I understand is that not all HD-DVD's can offer lossless depending on how much the video takes up in transfer rate. I believe that Transformers is a good example and that is why it ended up with a lossy Dolby Digital Plus audio track.

I see Universal getting squeezed from more than one side over the next few months to go Blu. And if they are producing Blu-ray test discs then that tells me they are ether getting ready for the inevitable or they are looking to go neutral. As it stands some might see WB as being the company that united to formats once the war is over. If Universal was to go Blu then I feel they would be seen as the one that ended the war. It makes no sense for Universal to only release movies for HD-DVD, it's just not good business! Since they have to make HD transfers for broadcast uses I do not see dual physical media releases as being that exspensive. The fact is that Universal and Paramount are both holding up HDM progress overall. They are keeping HDM divided and are keeping the market from focusing on marketing a single HD format to the consumer.

I do not see Universal and Paramount being able to fuel this format war much further than the begining of 2009. I feel that as long as the current situation exsists, that Toshiba will have no choice but to raise the white flag and surrender. Toshiba is down to two studios and it's insane to keep it going when the outcome is becoming very obvious. And all it will take is for one of the two to say, "we can not do this anymore, we are now announcing support for Blu-ray!". That would be all it would take to finish off HD-DVD and end this war.

I call on Toshiba to be smart about this, unite the formats and end this war. This does not help promote HD content and only serves to keep many consumers from adoupting HDM. If Sony was the one on the ropes and only had two studios and was in the same possition Toshiba finds themselves in right now. If Toshiba had the majority of the hardware companies and now the majority of studios. I would call for Sony to be smart and to end the war as well.

The only question is will Toshiba risk damaging the HDM market and keep this war going for as long as possible. Or will they step back while taking a deep breath, and realize that continuing the war serves no purpose anymore? Will Toshiba use there head and do whats good for business or will they keep the war alive just for spite? Toshiba put up a good fight and I comend them on bringing a good product to market that also has good product support. My HD-DVD player will remain in my HT and I will use it for as long as the player is functional. I will only be buying Universal titles that I can not resist, otherwise Universal will not be making much money from me on HD-DVD titles. I figure that about 85% - 90% off my spendable movie cash will go towards Blu-ray titles, not HD-DVD titles.

We all shall see how much longer Toshiba will be willing to drag this out, they are dying and they know it!

 

[DaViD Boulet]

It's just a matter of time folks.

Even if Universal and Paramount *wanted* to only support HD DVD, they don't have the market power to keep the HD DVD boat floating, given all the water that it's taking in with the Warner annoucement and severe market-shift towards BD.

The INDUSTRY WANTS ONE FORMAT: THEY KNOW IT WILL BE BLU-RAY.

That's enough cause for Best Buy, Walmart, Target, CC and the rest of the gang to rework their store shelves and go uni-format-blu.

The market will kill HD DVD even if 2 studios continue to release product exclusively on it.

And you can bet that it's only a matter of time before those studios go blu too. Days, weeks, or months, but certainly not years.

 

[Nick Graham]

I don't see how they can stay HD only at this point, unless legally bound by a contract. I don't see how Toshiba remotely recovers from the Warner announcement, and I haven't even seen someone speculate how they could rebound at this point.