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"Tepid" response to high definition DVDs?
That's what Peerflix is saying. The DVD trading service surveyed some of their most active DVD-buying users and found 1 in 5 plan to buy either HD DVD or Blu-ray in 2006.Really who didn't see this coming? Between high priced players, limited releases and battling incompatible formats this is pretty much to be expected. We are only at the very beginning of these formats and it will take a while for support to build for either one. Most people, even high definition and movie buffs, will wait for at least one of the three main conflicts to be resolved before coming off the sidelines. Let's revisit this topic in six months when players and movies have been on shelves, LG's combo player may be out and we can better anticipate future price movement.[Thanks for the tip Jason!]
HD-DVD titles on the way from Magnolia
Magnolia Home Entertainment, the distribution side of our good friend Mark Cuban's 2929 Entertainment, has announced they will be releasing five HD-DVDs in May. Bubble, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, The War Within and the TV series Bikini Destinations and HDNet World Report Special: Shuttle Discovery’s Historic Mission.Reuters pegs the prices for the three movies at $29.98 and the two TV sets at $26.98. No specific release dates yet although it is good to see more content announced. If my math is correct, that should give us 25 movies on the shelves by the end of May, hopefully enough to keep early adopters busy as the Blu-ray launch approaches.
HD-DVD reviews: They like, not like, LOVE it
That's what Reuters is saying and if the poll Ken pointed out in AVS Forums is any indication, they are correct. Toshiba's HD-XA1 has, despite limited content, poor demos, massive size and little public awareness, found acceptance with initial buyers and reviewers. I know many of our readers will be shocked to hear this, but apparently there is a considerable audience waiting for high definition content free from nasty compression artifacts and limited television broadcast schedules. More interesting to note is that some buyers are expressing hesitance towards Blu-ray, with its players starting at $1000 and going up from there. Did they just interview some HD-DVD fanboys (Odds are high they did, with only 10,000 units in stores.), or is there a possibility even the early adopting home theater community won't spend that much on movies? Whatever the case may be, we know two things for sure. HD-DVD is currently the absolute best format with <7 titles available on the planet; and Blu-ray, the clock is ticking, better get in the game.[Updated (working) link]
Toshiba delays HD-DVD rollout
The biggest surprise here, is that the "no sh** Sherlock" reaction to the delay of Sony's Playstation 3 has already been trumped twice in two days. We can't decide if this is more obvious than Microsoft's so-predictable Windows Vista delay (yep, they're still Microsoft), but Toshiba has decided to wait to ship their HD-DVD player until there are actually HD-DVD movies to play on them. Now this is where you show how surprised you are, don't worry, we'll wait.Ready? Ok, although Toshiba has not announced a new date, Warner expects to have titles on store shelves April 18th, so through the power of the cosmos, telekinesis and Google, we predict we'll see players.....April 18th. Sometimes we surprise ourselves with our abilities.
LG sheds more light on their combo Blu-ray/HD-DVD player
No mention of "Ultra-Multi", but LG has confirmed their plans to build a combination HD-DVD/Blu-ray player, and make it available this fall. What this will do for the next generation DVD market however, is unclear. The analyst quoted in the article sounds thrilled, but how many early adopters will get burned if the format battle drags on endlessly? Theres also the question of how much such a player will cost, after including both technologies plus licensing fees. The more I think about it, the more pessimistic I get; a "holy grail" device that comes to market late, heavy on price and short on features is the usual outcome. Maybe we're just reading into the possibility of high profile technology busts too much, anyone care to provide a glass half full perspective?
Film and TV tie-in MMOs on the way
MMO platform startup Multiverse recently announced that movie-makers James Cameron and Jon Landau have joined its board of directors, and this has some interesting implications for the future of MMOs and other entertainment media. While movie tie-in games are ten a penny, and franchised MMOs lurk around every corner, Cameron has a more ambitious project up his sleeve.The plan? Before releasing an upcoming sci-fi flick, Cameron intends to create a tie-in MMO that will get players hooked on the film's setting--think advergame, franchise and viral promotion rolled into one. Similarly, Multiverse is in talks with a TV network to create a related MMO that will help viewers get closer to their favourite characters.The numbers look appealing; Multiverse's low-cost approach means that franchises and developers who have been shying away from the MMO bandwagon can jump without sacrificing millions of dollars on an experiment. However, this could have its downsides--we may end up seeing an endless parade of cookie-cutter MMOs that equate IP with instant revenue without much thought for gameplay or originality.Hopefully this won't happen; it's up to Multiverse, and Cameron's novel tie-in, to set the scene for the future. Their MMOs will be competing with standalone franchised products, and it will be a battle for player revenue well worth witnessing. However, the big question is: when will Uwe Boll get wind of this?
Love your Sony Bravia so much you can't turn it off? Good, you might not be able to
That's what Sony informed Reuters today. About 400,000 of the flat panel displays and rear-projection TVs in the Bravia or Grand Wega line have faulty software that could leave users unable to turn them off (kinda bad) or bring them out of standby mode (really bad). Affected owners can simply unplug the sets to reset them and/or visit Sony's website Update My TV . Depending on model, you can either update the firmware yourself or you may need a technician to do it for you. Hopefully this problem is not more widespread than they think, the Bravia line has been very popular for Sony.[via Engadget]
TVMyiPod Service Legal?
TVMyiPod is a small company which will pre-load an iPod 5G with video and ship the original DVDs to you as well. In a Reuters article today, a reporter questions the legality of copying a DVD onto your iPod.Seeing as someone who has sway on the DMCA may read TUAW, I'd like to say two words on this subject: FAIR USE. Frankly I'm sure that paying for the DVD and the iPod warrants the right to view the DVD on the iPod. I really don't see this sort of service stepping into any Gray Zone whatsoever. You own the DVD. You own the iPod. In my book it's all good in the hood.
CES: You think you're sick of next generation DVD's? So are retailers
The CEO's of Best Buy and Circuit City took time during panel discussions at CES to tell them exactly how unhappy it makes them that sometime this year, they will try to sell you a $1000 next generation DVD player knowing full well you may have to come back a few years later and buy another one. That I don't believe at all, which is why I wondered if retailers may be the only ones benefiting from this conflict, but one thing I definitely agree with, is that the prospect of conflicting formats will negatively affect sales as customer wait for a winner. Confused and frightened customers who stay out of stores on Black Friday 2006 is what keeps both of these men awake at night, and I'm sure they'd love to do without figuring out how much shelf and advertising space, not to mention employee training they will have to devote to both formats.
