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Paramount and Dreamworks Go HD DVD Exclusive
Bamelin
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Registered User regular
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Announce
Paramount and DreamWorks Animation Each Declare Exclusive Support for HD DVD
Movies Distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment Including Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks Animation SKG, DreamWorks Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Nickelodeon Movies and MTV Films to be Released Exclusively in HD DVD
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B) and DreamWorks Animation SKG (NYSE: DWA), each announced today that they will exclusively support the next-generation HD DVD format on a worldwide basis. The exclusive HD DVD commitment will include all movies distributed by Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Nickelodeon Movies and MTV Films, as well as movies from DreamWorks Animation, which are distributed exclusively by Paramount Home Entertainment.
The companies each said that the decision to distribute exclusively in the HD DVD format resulted from an extensive evaluation of current market offerings, which confirmed the clear benefits of HD DVD, particularly its market-ready technology and lower manufacturing costs. Paramount Home Entertainment will launch its exclusive HD DVD program with the release of the blockbuster comedy hit "Blades of Glory" on August 28th and follow with two of the biggest grossing movies of the year "Transformers" and "Shrek the Third". These three titles alone represent more than $1.5 billion in box office ticket sales worldwide.
"The combination of Paramount and DreamWorks Animation brings a critical mass of current box office hits to consumers with a line-up of live action and animated films that are perfect for HD DVD," stated Brad Grey, Chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures, which is currently the leading studio in domestic box office. "Part of our vision is to aggressively extend our movies beyond the theater, and deliver the quality and features that appeal to our audience. I believe HD DVD is not only the affordable high quality choice for consumers, but also the smart choice for Paramount."
"We decided to release "Shrek the Third" and other DreamWorks Animation titles exclusively on HD DVD because we believe it is the best format to bring high quality home entertainment to a key segment of our audience -- families," stated DreamWorks Animation CEO, Jeffrey Katzenberg. "We believe the combination of this year's low-priced HD DVD players and the commitment to release a significant number of hit titles in the fall makes HD DVD the best way to view movies at home."
With the rapid increase of HD TV screens in households, and audiences wanting to enjoy the total entertainment experience, HD DVD has emerged as the most affordable way for consumers to watch their movies in high definition. In addition to pristine quality, HD DVD also offers consumers the chance to personalize the movie-watching experience, to interact with their movies and even to connect with a community of other fans.
Paramount Home Entertainment will issue new releases day and date as well as catalog titles exclusively on HD DVD. Today's announcement does not include films directed by Steven Spielberg as his films are not exclusive to either format.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20070820/APE/708200679
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070820/ap_on_hi_te/dueling_dvd_formats;_ylt=AqteY5g3L5tbS33uawfBvVEjtBAF
"Part of our vision is to aggressively extend our movies beyond the theater, and deliver the quality and features that appeal to our audience," said Brad Grey, chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc. "I believe HD DVD is not only the affordable high quality choice for consumers, but also the smart choice for Paramount."
Looks like the format war won't be ending any time soon. This is massively good news for HD DVD.
Speaking for myself I just bought the 360 Add-On despite my worries about better Blu-Ray studio support. With Paramount going exclusive it looks like things are going to get VERY heated this holiday season.
Bamelin on
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Really, standard DVD does me just fine ATM. I give it another couple of years before we see some real market take-up, and subsequently, affordability. Until then, it's difficult to say who's going to 'win' the format war.
At least until hybrid players becomes affordable as well.
In a couple of years we will be buying all our movies off itunes or xbox live or whatever. I really don't think anyone is going to win this war. We will just keep bouncing along like this for a bit. I don't really need anyone to win. I love my hd-dvd player and my movies. Soon I will grab a combo player or a ps3 and I will enjoy me some Blu-Ray too.
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Well, with consoles there's a clear difference for consumers.
With Bluray vs. HD-DVD there'll be tons of "Why can't mah vidja playah thingamabob play this here darn movie ah boughted?"
"That's a toaster sir."
Exactly. I kinda see the industry also doing the same as the game industry did - realise that they are limiting their consumer base by sticking to a singular format, then again double formats are pretty risky too.
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The question is will these people ever bother upgrading? My parents would be this exact consumer. But they have no interest in HD. Hell it took them 5 or 6 years to convert to dvd and then they only did it when I bought them a player for xmas. People who are actively looking for HD content probably have a pretty good idea whats going on.
This also means that the format wars are going to be around for a while it seems.
(and I've already seen it 4 times at the cinema.)
XBL : lJesse Custerl | MWO: Jesse Custer | Best vid ever. | 2nd best vid ever.
I honestly can't see it happening for a long time. The move from VHS to DVD was aided by the fact that DVDs were just so much better than VHS at everything. They were more convenient and reliable. The move from DVD -> Blu-ray/HDDVD doesn't really provide any benefit outside of more disc space for more special features that few people watch and a better picture (that may or may not be noticeable to most people, depending on their TVs/vision).
I'm liking my DVDs and SDTV just fine.
My parents were exactly like that. Then I showed them planet earth on my PC. Within a week they'd bought themselves a HD tv.
As for the news, this is pretty insane. I can't imagine ($$$?) what would make them go exclusive instead of dual format.
The doublethink in that quote in the OP is hilarious though.
You think when the movies industry saw DVD-Audio (remember that?) fall at the feet of the inferior .MP3 file as the next gen format, they would realise and present a united front in the battle of physical formats vs data. They are sealing their own fates by fighting with each other. Which pisses me off, because I much prefer physical formats.
Hey ho.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
Microsoft.
The killer thing that BRD has in its pocket is Disney. Kids are the biggest repeat watchers of DVDs. I swear my friends' kids watch Cars and Finding Nemo 100 times a week. With Disney in the BRD camp a lot of parents will go that way in order to buy the titles for their kids.
It's funny... back before I started looking into the formats, I would've been in the BD camp, based solely on the storage capacity. After Sony's bungling of the launch (mediocre players and even worse transfers on their discs), still not having their shit together regarding a final spec, and their general arrogance, I'm rooting for HD-DVD (although, I guess quite honestly, if either format would up and disappear tomorrow and everyone could just settle on one format, I probably wouldn't mind much.)
I still buy the occasional BD-exclusive disc, though. Have to get my Casino Royale somewhere...
I would also assume that kids are the market segment least likely to care about HD content.
150 Million.
True, but never underestimate the desire of a parent to show off how much they love their kids by buying them the most expensive shit.
Which, when you look at the numbers, is probably far more then they've been making on high-def media so far.
It feels like a much more epic battle then it really is... in reality they're fighting over tens of thousands of purchases a week, which pales in comparison to the absolutely massive numbers of standard DVDs that are sold every week.
Kind of ridiculous, really.
I mean really, why dub a series into English when it's already in English? David Attenborough's been doing a fantastic job on documentaries since when I was a kid.
Buy it in Canada. We got the original voice-over I believe (the US version is Sigourney Weaver, correct?).
Don't we Americans love British accents?
Correct. She wasn't bad, but seriously why spend the money?
Correct, unfortunately.
This is true?!? The US of A you are DEAD TO ME!
He is a Living Legend. He is at the peak of his field. I'm sure he knows more about ants that store honey in their ares than whoever they got to do the american version. I mean fair enough if your dubbing some shitty random British narrator - but not when it's The D to the A.
Fucking hell.
Fuck.
EDIT: Canada rocks, Discovery sucks.
2009 is a year of Updates - one every Monday. Hopefully. xx
A customer called my store yesterday asking why he couldn't get the five free bluray movies with a 360.
I wonder if disney's wholesale acceptance of live marketplace signifies any possible move back to hd-dvd.
I also wonder if the success of content delivery via xbox live is going to subvert the whole hd-dvd/blu-ray argument.
Thank goodness for that. I don't have anything against Sigourney Weaver, but you're dubbing over David Attenborough here.
1: There was no technology anywhere near like video tapes at that point, and people really really wanted them.
2.: VHS had a killer advantage over Beta, namely the fact that it was cheaper and omnipresent (as opposed to the more expensive, more limited Beta).
In this case, people aren't exactly clamoring for the tech (as said before, it's not as "ooooh, shiny" as DVD, and many average people can't tell a difference), it's too soon/similar to DVD, and neither side really has the killer advantage. And without that, people are going to be more inclined to say "eh, fuck it."
even if one of them wins, it's lifespan will becut short by riect downloads, which will be the next real jump forward in inovation for home video watching.
Looks like I'm getting HD.