Blockbuster CEO to Studios: Make more copies of Blu-ray films
Now that Blu-ray is almost running full steam ahead with all the studios on board and full profile stand-alone players right around the corner, this holiday season is going to prove to be an important one for the adoption of Blu-ray. Blockbuster's CEO Jim Keyes wants to help out and says "We think the rental model can help Blu-ray." He believes that Blu-ray can help extend the packaged media model another five to ten years, but to make it work the studios need to get serious and make more copies of Blu-ray films. He goes on to explain that if the studios don't speed up the mass-market product, that the entire industry could lose out to digital downloads. While we love the idea of digital downloads, we are not willing to sacrifice any quality just to save us from handling a shinny round disc, but at the same time we don't have any problems renting or buying just about any Blu-ray movie we want.
Filed under: Blu-ray
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
landlocked @ Jul 1st 2008 2:05PM
And, um, make them less expensive.
Jeff N. @ Jul 1st 2008 2:06PM
The CEO of Blockbuster Jim Keys is correct.
Mr. E @ Jul 1st 2008 2:14PM
I've been buying my BDs so far, but pretty soon I'll start renting too. I know that Blu-ray replication capacity is still constrained, but can anyone speak as to whether it's currently hard to find in-stock copies of movies on Blu-ray at Blockbuster Video? Or is The CEO of Blockbuster Jim Keys just trying to be proactive here?
Nfinity @ Jul 1st 2008 2:19PM
And we know they won't make more copies because:
1. It costs too much to make Blu-Ray discs with high yield rates
2. Only a few replication factories actually have the capability of producing DL50gb discs out of which 80% is Sony.
3. Nobody is in the hurry to pay up several million dollars to replace their existing replication lines to appeal to like 2% of the market.
4. Studios simply don't want to push rent model with optical media, especially since it costs them significantly more to produce Blu-Ray discs. We've already heard from Netflix CEO that they are purposely limiting the number of copies they send to rental chains. Because they want to force sales.
5. Not enough people actually has or wants Blu-Ray
6. It's still way too expensive and nowhere near complee sub-$200 range player.
Blockbuster CEO is not saying anything new. We all know that digital downloads is storming the market will win. The only question is how long it will prolong consumer agony with obsolete Blu-Ray discs.
med1320 @ Jul 1st 2008 3:07PM
Dude, your so wrong!
Mark @ Jul 1st 2008 3:40PM
This is the biggest line of bullshit I've ever read.
Nfinity @ Jul 1st 2008 4:28PM
It's called reality.
Mark @ Jul 1st 2008 4:43PM
No Nfinity, it is called bullshit. Yields are not low, capacity is increasing because the demand is there, factories are expanding, studios will take profit anywhere they can get it, blu ray sales are increasing, and prices are dropping all the time. Digital downloads represent only a small fraction of the rental market and will continue to do so for quite some time. Ultimately digital probably will win but you are living in a fantasy land if you think that time is anywhere close.
Nfinity @ Jul 1st 2008 4:49PM
What you wish it should happen and what is reality are two completely different things.
Try to stop listening what bullshit PR is pumping you with and do some fact checking and it will become clear to you.
Nothing you mentioned is a fact. it's just your wishful thinking.
Jon @ Jul 1st 2008 5:15PM
Why dont you just go away , I want Bluray , I have Bluray and i dont want anything else
Why the hell do you want DRM filled downloads that will NOT be full HD with DTS Master audio sound ????
It will be some crappy ass compressed download ... Oh man you are obsolete
Eric @ Jul 1st 2008 2:40PM
Obviously you've never attempted to rent new-release blu rays from Netflix.
I've had Cloverfield at the top of my list for weeks and it's just sitting there with a cute "Very Long Wait" status on it.
andrewgreene @ Jul 2nd 2008 9:12AM
That's the only Blu-ray title that's happened to me on. I was able to get it the week after it was released. It might be telling to take a look at wait times and rental figures (if you can pry those numbers out of Netflix) in addition to the Nielsen numbers to get a better view of how many people are actually viewing Blu-ray and which titles are popular in the rental sphere as opposed to the ones that are actually being purchased.
Mark @ Jul 1st 2008 3:17PM
Physical rentals have probably peaked but Blockbuster needn't worry that digital downloads will take off any time soon. The market is too fragmented and just too complicated for widespread adoption. They should use their good name to cover both bases - offer physical media for the vast majority who want it, and offer digital downloads for those with the technical savvy to access them.
WebDev511 @ Jul 1st 2008 3:21PM
Make more copies? How many more copies per movie / production run do they need to make? Is BD production so constrained that the studios simply cannot make more to appease the rental market?
Is this really a make or brake for Blu? Probably not by itself, but pile it on top of the things beyond the control of the BDA and studios, and it is not going to help.
BDA and the studios have to play the hand that's dealt. If mass adoption never happens, I doubt that anyone is going to single out "not enough copies in the rental market" as a factor.
Douglas Brace @ Jul 1st 2008 4:03PM
I wanted to watch "Bucket List" on Blu-ray from Blockbuster Video and I had to wait almost 3 weeks to be able to. I had to wait almost 2 weeks to be able to rent "I am Legend."
PLEASE increase Blu-ray production.
Jon @ Jul 1st 2008 5:17PM
I dont understand why people w/ Blockbuster cant get the Bluray they want , Sure maybe they have a long wait online but that is what makes total access so great , if they do not ship me the Bluray i want , i return my movies from the mail and walk into blockbuster and grab the Bluray i want off the shelf for free .. Even my tiny little blockbuster has about 50+ blurays now with more everyweek
ne01 @ Jul 2nd 2008 12:47AM
"We all know that digital downloads is storming the market will win. The only question is how long it will prolong consumer agony with obsolete Blu-Ray discs."
Those would be the same digital downloads that don't offer nearly the video or audio quality of Blu-Ray, require a high-speed internet connection so you can wait only 4 hours to download them, force you to sit at your computer to watch them, and require you to be a geek to even know how to do it all?
Just checking.
Jon @ Jul 1st 2008 6:20PM
Dont forget the DRM .. You will NEVER EVER own a digital download .. you will have access to it and be able to watch it ...... but own it ? never .. I would rather have the option to buy a disc i can touch,hold,let a friend borrow and do whatever the hell i want with
ne01 @ Jul 1st 2008 9:24PM
Nfinity,
I'm not trying to influence anyone's buying, but I am very tired of hearing the "Blu-Ray is obsolete 'cause downloads will win" argument as it doesn't hold any water, except in the very long-term.
Anti-Blu-Rayers love to talk about how poorly Blu-Ray sales are going ad nauseum, but seem to forget that at this point in time, those numbers aren't necessarily too relevant. Yes, Blu-Ray does not currently have widespread market penetration -- that doesn't mean it's a dead or dying format.
Blu-Ray was locked in a pretty even format war up until January 08. That's six months ago folks -- not that long. During that time only EXTREME early adopters would have been expected to buy any HD optical disc players. Yes, the format war's over now, but the end of the format war just signals the beginning of the time period when most normal people would even begin to consider purchasing a player. This should still probably be considered an early adopter period, and since early adopters tend to be more knowledgeable than most, they're waiting for decent and affordable Profile 2.0 players (or buying PS3s -- which most Blu-Ray critics dismiss as "not counting as real players").
Also consider that most people make the majority of their major electronics purchases around the holiday season, and that Blu-Ray is a meaningless format for anyone without an HDTV (still about 2/3 of America). As HDTV penetration increases, Blu-Ray players come down in price, and Profile 2.0 players replace the confusing mix of 1.0, 1.1, and 2.0 players that we have now, Blu-Ray adoption will undoubtedly increase.
If by the end of this holiday season Blu-Ray sales have not improved tremendously, let the naysayers have their day (even though that may still be premature), but to predict the death of Blu-Ray based on current sales, only 6 months after it won the format war is laughable. To say that downloads are the next big thing when most people (1) wouldn't know how to get them, (2) prefer to sit on their couch, not their computer chair for movies, and (3) are very comfortable with optical discs (*cough* DVDs *cough*) is even more laughable. Yes digital downloads will undoubtedly win EVENTUALLY, but that's a long way off -- ease of use and TV integration will have to improve tremendously before that's even feasible. For those who care at all about video and audio quality, Blu-Ray (which if I'm not mistaken, is the point of HD) is very clearly the current winner.
patrickm @ Jul 2nd 2008 3:04AM
I am sick and tired of hearing digital download bullshit.
People are NOT going to download movies instead of getting blu-ray. This would assume that broadband is accessible to all Americans, which it is not and will not be for still some time. Even more, this assumes that everyone has an extremely fast broadband connection, which is even further away. This is especially a problem with internet providers feeling the crunch of increased usage and wanting to limit bandwidth. It takes a ton of bandwidth to support high quality hd audio and video, and it it won't be possible for the majority of americans years.
What about all the special features on blu-ray? How will people access them over the internet? What about subtitles and alternate languages for those that need them? There isn't even a download system in place that supports that nor one I have heard of that plans on it.
What about convenience you might say? Well waiting for a download isn't convenient. I would say that netflix, rentals, and retail stores already make finding movies convenient enough, especially when you factor in the lower quality that downloads are and will be for sometime. If people are willing to pay more for hd content from cable companies, they are willing to go get a blu-ray movie. If people wanted the lower quality of hd downloads, they would probably just upconvert a dvd. It isn't like an ipod where convenience and mobility trumps quality. People aren't taking their hdtv on the road.
Even if digital downloads were to overcome all of these problems, most people would already have a blu-ray player and be comfortable with using that for their movies instead of figuring out how to get digital downloads onto their tv.
ChiWax @ Jul 3rd 2008 12:54AM
The people who would buy Blu-Ray discs at premium price, buy large HDTVs, buy really nice multi-channel audio setups and buy PS3s or standalone players have hi-speed internet or access to it. The people you are talking about want to pay 4.99 a month to Netflix or go to Wal-Mart and buy a movie for 12.99 to 13.99. It's the fact of the matter. These same people are the ones stealing their music off the internet. So they don't even buy CDs anymore. It doesn't mean hi-def isn't a great thing, it's awesome. Face facts though, the economy is taking a huge dive and it's going to dive to levels you've never seen. That alone is gonna drive business to deliver content in the cheapest manner available to them. Sorry to say it...but it's true....Q
DrXym @ Jul 2nd 2008 4:53AM
Sounds like you should do some fact checking yourself. BD yields are not low. Terra Haute reported yields of 75-79% on BD50 LAST YEAR. They will be higher this year.
Your other arguments are equally specious. Factories wouldn't be increasing capacity if there was no demand. Blockbuster themselves wouldn't be asking for more discs if there was no demand. Nobody would be massively investing if there was no profit there. The likes of Singulus are reporting strong demand for replication hardware.
You are flat out lying like usual.
If you are bitching about price, perhaps you can tell us which digital download device costs less than $200. Please explain how this device allows you freely transfer your files, or just have the freedom to rent or purchase from any store you like. Be sure also to slap at least 12 months of broadband subscription on top of that.
DrXym @ Jul 2nd 2008 7:50AM
No Nfinity, I read things that report the facts. While you might wish yields are low or that there is no demand, there is more than enough evidence to show you are flat out lying. That's all there is to it really, you are lying. Publically listed companies have reported their yields, and their expansion plans and their advance orders. If you have any evidence to the contrary except for your dismissive hatred of a video format, please state it.
BTW thanks for admitting you can't buy a digital download device for under $200. That's some fine work right there.