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[OokieSpookie]

For fucks sake....
Well I guess we haven't had one of these threads this week yet...

For the record no.

 

[jecclr2003]

Also, I think posters here on Neogaf are out of touch with joe 6 pack. The average walmart consumer doesn't want high-priced blu-rays. Take my buddy for example. He bought a 60" plasma a couple of years ago. Still has a standard definition cable box. His wife bought him a PS3 last christmas. He buys normal DVDs and actually thinks the PS3 can only play games. :lol

But the format is not dying, it just won't reach mass consumer levels like DVD and VHS.

And yet, just about every WalMart has an entire isle devoted to BluRay. If there wasn't a demand, they wouldn't be selling them.

 

[harSon]

I'll withhold my judgment until I'm able to get my hands on HD streams through Netflix/Xbox 360.

 

[Flo_Evans]

Bluray is awesome, fuck the haters and the poor blind people. :lol

 

[suffah]

And yet, just about every WalMart has an entire isle devoted to BluRay. If there wasn't a demand, they wouldn't be selling them.

They aren't for the average Walmart consumer. They are for the BRD bargain hunters and maybe .1% of the normal Walmart consumer.

 

[fistfulofmetal]

I don't care as long as I get Hellboy 2, then Watchmen on BD.

 

[viciouskillersquirrel]

For people who don't care about quality or extras, sure. Both online rentals and retail discs can co-exist, they cater to different markets.

It's just that one is shrinking and the other growing is all.

Anyway, I knew from the beginning that neither Blu-Ray or HD-DVD would be more than niche products. I said it from the beginning: they shouldn't have been focused so much on one another, they should have been focusing on defeating DVD.

 

[jecclr2003]

They aren't for the average Walmart consumer. They are for the BRD bargain hunters and maybe .1% of the normal Walmart consumer.

The "average" WalMart shopper shouldn't be breeding let alone looking into anything tech based.

If you ever want a self esteem boost, go into a WalMart at 3 am.... *shudder*

 

[tak]

And for those who own high-end equipment but won't buy Blu Ray... Why not rent? It won't cost you much more (if any) than On Demand and the quality will certainly be better, particularly if your TV is 1080p.

I think this thread is about buying movies.

 

[C.Dark.DN]

Is it dying or do you want it to die?

Everywhere I go HDTV's are the only thing being sold. If you can't afford one or a blu-ray player, sorry.

Oh...
Blu-ray Ownership Explodes in Japan
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=1972

Posted October 24, 2008 09:27 AM

Blu-ray Disc According to the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA), the sales of Blu-ray Disc players and recorders in Japan represented 31% of the total market from October 2007 through September 2008. The represents a 10,700% increase in Blu-ray shipments in Japan from a year ago, which has driven a 4.5% increase in the consumer electronics market in general.

In other words, Blu-ray is here to stay.

 

[Battersea Power Station]

I would like to subscribe to the source magazine, "Duh."

Common sense told us this would happen, but common sense was yelled at in that HD format war thread a while ago.

 

[krypt0nian]

Blu-Ray deserves to die. This "OMG HD IS SO MUCH BETTER" is a bunch of bullshit. No one cares and your favorite movie is still boring in "HD".

But your fave movie is eye and ear shatteringly amazing if you have the system and 1080p, baby! Haven't bought a DVD since I got my player.

 

[suffah]

10,700% increase.

Wow.

Hey, BLU-RAY ASSOCIATION. Pay attention you stupid fucks. Do you know why BR is succeeding in Japan? Is it because they love cutting edge tech? Nope. Is it because they all own HDTV's? Hell no. Then why? It's because the pricing is IN LINE with their ordinary DVDs and limited editions. Price BR's here in the US accordingly and you will see a boost.

 

[OokieSpookie]

Small bit of trivia...
The first dvd to reach a million sold was The Matrix and It took three years into dvd's lifespan to do it or come close.
Iron Man will reach it this year and it is a safe bet that The Dark Knight also will and these are two years into blu.
This is WITH the high prices, WITH the "recession", and with all of the Sony hate and drama.

This christmas you will see players under $200 and it will only go from there.
Movie prices also keep coming down and are not hard to find at good prices if you take a few minutes to look.

 

[Evlar]

It's just that one is shrinking and the other growing is all.

Anyway, I knew from the beginning that neither Blu-Ray or HD-DVD would be more than niche products. I said it from the beginning: they shouldn't have been focused so much on one another, they should have been focusing on defeating DVD.

Blu Ray isn't competing with DVD in the same sense it was competing with HD-DVD. Both DVD and Blu Ray are being produced side-by-side by the same media companies, sold in the same stores, and (more and more) playing on the same players. As I've said, once Blu Ray players get down to a similar price point as a mid-level DVD player things change, since even the Wal-Mart consumer will see the longer feature list for not much more money and start to gradually buy in.

Media companies themselves have reason to phase out DVD, if they can: DRM. As long as Blu Ray is perceived as more secure than DVD the studios will have an incentive to push the format forward, and since they can set the production levels of each format at whatever level they wish Blu Ray will survive.

I think the idea that download will become the dominant form of home video purchase within the next decade is kinda crazy. The bandwidth just isn't available in enough places, and the network as a whole will tremble under the load if hundreds of millions of consumers transfer to downloading tens or hundreds more gigabytes apiece on a weekly basis.

 

[avaya]

I see

Iron Man Blu-ray sold 500k units in it's first week. It represented 10% of all Iron Man sales incl. DVD. That is $10mn revenue in 1 week.

Blu-ray is pushed in commercials for nearly all new home video releases across all studios.

Yeah sounds like a dying format to me :lol

The people will rent instead of buy movies in future people are on some serious crack. That business model was around before DVD. Why is it going to defeat DVD or Blu-ray for that matter now?

 

[mollipen]

Its only necessary if you have a 40+ inch HD television and a nice surround setup...

I have a 32" HDTV and currently only use the speakers on my TV, and I cannot at all bring myself to buy DVDs anymore.

And seriously, we aren't even close to digital downloads being a viable solution, unless you're specifically talking rentals, and even then the quality isn't going to be near Blu-ray unless they're expecting people to wait a few days for a download.

 

[OokieSpookie]

Interesting that the author of the blog is a data storage person "Robin Harris has been selling and marketing data storage for over 20 years in companies large and small."

Now why would a data storage marketer be down on a movie format like blu in favor of downloads...

 

[Angry Grimace]

Major companies have absolutely no clue how to manage digital distribution, hence why it's not going to go past ultra-niche anytime soon.

 

[avaya]

Dark Night will likely do 1mn in 1 week.

EDIT:

"Recognition that consumers don't need Blu-ray"

What sort of idiot writes something like that. If you are a company selling a product the last thing you need to be pushing is that consumers don't need your product. :lol

Is he fixated on the Emo demographic or something?

 

[tak]

Media companies themselves have reason to phase out DVD, if they can: DRM. As long as Blu Ray is perceived as more secure than DVD the studios will have an incentive to push the format forward, and since they can set the production levels of each format at whatever level they wish Blu Ray will survive.

I don't think the studios can seriously think Blue Ray is more secure then DVD, if they do they're stupid. One only has to look at a popular torrent search engine for a second (which I'm sure the MPAA is doing) to see the large number of HD releases of various movies.

 

[bishoptl]

Interesting that the author of the blog is a data storage person "Robin Harris has been selling and marketing data storage for over 20 years in companies large and small."

Now why would a data storage marketer be down on a movie format like blu in favor of downloads...

Glad I wasn't the only one who spotted this.

 

[OokieSpookie]

I don't think the studios can seriously think Blue Ray is more secure then DVD, if they do they're stupid. One only has to look at a popular torrent search engine for a second (which I'm sure the MPAA is doing) to see the large number of HD releases of various movies.

Any rough estimate there as far as the number of dvd rips and dvdr torrents as opposed to the blu ray rips and bdr torrents?
You don't have to be exact, a ballpark figure will do...

 

[Zombie James]

It's just that one is shrinking and the other growing is all.

Shrinking? Really? I think this calls for graphs.

 

[avaya]

I don't think the studios can seriously think Blue Ray is more secure then DVD, if they do they're stupid. One only has to look at a popular torrent search engine for a second (which I'm sure the MPAA is doing) to see the large number of HD releases of various movies.

Downloads isn't where they are losing money hand over fist. It is the Chinese pirate houses which are devastating Hollywood since they are the ones that actually bringing piracy to the mass market across all demographics. Downloading films is still very much a youth activity. Physical copying is where the real problem is.

BD will take longer to be cracked for the physical copies.

 

[neojubei]

Wait for TDK

 

[Calcaneus]

Anyone who expected this to take off as quickly as DVD is a moron, and it took DVD 6 years to overtake VHS. So I think Blu-ray is doing fine. Of course, they need to bring down the prices, but there are deals to find, nonetheless.

True, I got my first DVD player in 2003, and the first DVD I put in the player was the first DVD I had ever watched.

Blu-ray is what 2 years old, its gonna take a while before the average consumer starts considering it over DVD.

 

[RiZ III]

Poor people are going to ruin all the fun ...

 

[viciouskillersquirrel]

Shrinking? Really? I think this calls for graphs.

Really. It was in another of these articles a while back showing the slowdown of DVD sales. The market actually shrunk for the first time and the studios were all excited about Blu-Ray riding in to save the day... you know, until it didn't.

I'm making the assumption however, that Blu-Ray movie sales are still negligible compared to the size of the DVD market.

 

[navanman]

I haven't bought a single DVD since I got my Panasonic Plasma and PS3.

Sure its still a small percentage of DVD sales but nobofy could have predicted DVDs would take off the way they have. That blog author expects Blu-Ray players to be the price of cheap Chinese DVD players and the price of DVDs 10 yrs after coming on the market.
You have DVD players in every laptop, room in house, car headrests, etc...

DVDs weren't anywhere near the price they were until 2-3 yrs ago.

 

[linsivvi]

I wonder where he got that 4% data from. In terms of dollar value, blu-ray has been hovering around 7% this year, and has moved up to over 10% since October.

 

[Zombie James]

Really. It was in another of these articles a while back showing the slowdown of DVD sales. The market actually shrunk for the first time and the studios were all excited about Blu-Ray riding in to save the day... you know, until it didn't.

So let me see if I've got this straight: Blu-ray sucks because DVD sales are slowing and Blu-ray hasn't surpassed DVD in it's 2nd year.

FYI, DVD surpassed VHS in late 2002, roughly six years after it launched.

 

[tak]

Downloads isn't where they are losing money hand over fist. It is the Chinese pirate houses which are devastating Hollywood since they are the ones that actually bringing piracy to the mass market across all demographics. Downloading films is still very much a youth activity. Physical copying is where the real problem is.

BD will take longer to be cracked for the physical copies.

I'm venturing into territory I don't know a lot about (physical piracy in other countries), but I don't think the people that buy from those places could afford Blu-ray players at current prices. The type of piracy you're referring is most prominent in countries with smaller household incomes, so you're not going to see a Blu-ray player under every TV. By the time they get cheap enough for that to happen we'll probably see physical pricey of Blu-ray on the same scale as DVD.

My main point was that anyone thinking Blu-ray is a prefect format that no one can crack or copy is ignoring history. People thought DVD video encryption was uncrackable when they were first coming out.

 

[GuessWho]

the haters have no idea what they are missing.

 

[Rocket Punch]

the haters have no idea what they are missing.

i think the problem is... they don't care.

 

[Hive]

Most people can't afford what it takes to utilize Bluray~

But I've seen it in person, and what I can say is that animation titles look amazing in HD, and that is the only reason I need to own one in the future.

The difference really is something

 

[Spruchy]

BluRay seems like more of a hassle than anything at this point.

God I know! I have to buy the disc, pay for it, then OPEN IT?!?! :lol :lol And then...this really gets me steamed... I have to insert it into the blu ray player?!?!

God what a hassle.

 

[viciouskillersquirrel]

So let me see if I've got this straight: Blu-ray sucks because DVD sales are slowing and Blu-ray hasn't surpassed DVD in it's 2nd year.

FYI, DVD surpassed VHS in late 2002, roughly six years after it launched.

You haven't got it straight at all. Correlation does not equal causation. Blu-Ray sucks because of inherent problems with its value proposition. The slowdown of the disc market notwithstanding.

 

[Threi]

Only idiots and rednecks refuse to buy Blue-Ray players.


I feel sorry for their blind asses because they don't think the visual benefit is worth the cost like I do.


[/sarcasm]

 

[XMonkey]

Not this shit again.

No, digital downloads are not killing Bluray anytime soon. This guy can take his biased words and shove it.

 

[Aruarian Reflection]

I'm going to be buying a PS3 soon mainly for the Blu-ray functionality since there's not too many PS3 games I'm interested in that's not already on the 360. Am I making a mistake or should I just get a standalone Bluray player? I heard the PS3 is actually a pretty awesome Blu-ray player which is why I've been considering it.

 

[Zombie James]

You haven't got it straight at all. Correlation does not equal causation. Blu-Ray sucks because of inherent problems with its value proposition. The slowdown of the disc market notwithstanding.

Funny, in 2001 I was still paying $35 for new release DVDs. Obviously DVD sucked and never went anywhere.

 

[Meier]

The format is fucked. I was dumb and bought 20+ HD DVDs... have tempered my BR purchases BIG time and only rent (thanks Netflix).

Until they're $15-17 a pop, the format will flounder. If you go into Target or Best Buy, the vast majority of these motherfuckers are $30-40 a pop. For a movie. Seriously? Seriously? No one is going to buy discs at that cost and for good reason.

 

[Xisiqomelir]

Sounds like a butthurt HD DVD fan.

.

 

[VictimOfGrief]

i think the problem is... they don't care.

It's not a problem.... it's an opportunity for the industry to get the message.

Anytime I want I can pop Serenity on my hd player and watch it.

oh and i plan on getting the dark knight on standard DVD.... terrible I know.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

God I know! I have to buy the disc, pay for it, then OPEN IT?!?! :lol :lol And then...this really gets me steamed... I have to insert it into the blu ray player?!?!

God what a hassle.

I know you're being sarcastic.. but yeah.. actually that's sort of it.
When redbox gets bluray I'll be very happy.

Also, the inevitable 300$ lost bluray boxset 3 years from now.

 

[viciouskillersquirrel]

Funny, in 2001 I was still paying $35 for new release DVDs. Obviously DVD sucked and never went anywhere.

Value =/= cost.

The opportunity cost of buying a VHS tape in 2001 was a movie in a format that didn't need rewinding, allowed you to skip chapters, didn't deteriorate nearly as quickly with time/use and gave you a consistent quality of picture. The opportunity cost of buying a DVD is being able to see the pores on Keira Knightly's nose when watching Pirates of the Carribean.

 

[Zombie James]

The format is fucked. I was dumb and bought 20+ HD DVDs... have tempered my BR purchases BIG time and only rent (thanks Netflix).

Until they're $15-17 a pop, the format will flounder. If you go into Target or Best Buy, the vast majority of these motherfuckers are $30-40 a pop. For a movie. Seriously? Seriously? No one is going to buy discs at that cost and for good reason.

DVDs were that price for years and it did alright. I don't know where people are getting this unrealistic idea that two years into it's life a new format is going to have $15 movies and $99 players. Toshiba did it with HD-DVD because the format was in the shitter, and they lost millions on the way to the bargain bin. Neither VHS, CD, DVD or any other successful format went on fire sales this early, Blu-ray is no different.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

Value =/= cost.

The opportunity cost of buying a VHS tape in 2001 was a movie in a format that didn't need rewinding, allowed you to skip chapters, didn't deteriorate nearly as quickly with time/use and gave you a consistent quality of picture. The opportunity cost of buying a DVD is being able to see the pores on Keira Knightly's nose when watching Pirates of the Carribean.

Yeah, I think a lot of people really do underestimate the quality of a GOOD dvd.
No, it's not HD. But it's DAMN WATCHABLE.

 

[Raistlin]

Glad I wasn't the only one who spotted this.

Its really sad stuff like this happens, but unfortunately ... it’s hardly unheard of.

While this may just be a blog, sadly the standards at many A/V sites and mags are about equivalent to those of many gaming sites and mags. ‘Professionalism’ and ‘Journalistic Integrity’ are about as common as a turnip in Alaska.