Can say that i am surprise but here is the update. No official words from Universal and no time frame given but if this happens sooner than later, we might see HD DVD replacing Universal Home video market share. and hey, the price would be of either smilar to that of HD DVD/Blu-ray or (crossing fingers) DVD's.

see the 2006 home video chart? 11% controlled by Universal. if the strategy is implemented sooner than later, we will have the 10% = HD DVD sales. When BD titles are still competing with their DVD counter part.

http://videobusiness.com/contents/images/YearEnd-TotalSellThrough06-Pie.jpg

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9949021&posted=1#post9949021


Edited: to exclude Dreamworks ;)

*******

added:


anyhow the quote says, Universal plans to ONLY release new movies in combo disc. See how the 'only' modifies the verb 'release' ? ;)

Given that most of us already own DVD catalog titles of our favorite movies, Universal plans to only release new movies in combo disc, and to release catalog titles as stand-alone HD DVDs.


http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9946668&&#post9946668

genius DVD to HD DVD transitioning strategy. Hopefully BD will come up with BD/DVD combo as soon as possible to neutralise this immenent threat

Look closer and you will see that 4.2% on Universal sales came from DreamWorks, which they no longer have a distribution deal with, also the Sony figure is wrong as it includes MGM, yet Sony do not distribute for MGM, Fox does.

I wish $ony had done that with SACD. It would be the audio format. :(

Look closer and you will see that 4.2% on Universal sales came from DreamWorks, which they no longer have a distribution deal with, also the Sony figure is wrong as it includes MGM, yet Sony do not distribute for MGM, Fox does.


still 11% would be = HD DVD. How many BD can they sale when BD is competiting against DVD? What if Warner and paramount decide to do the same with their HD DVD releases, that would effectively say that HD DVD has already transitioned from DVD.

still 15% would be = HD DVD. How many BD can they sale when BD is competiting against DVD? What if Warner and paramount decide to do the same with their HD DVD releases, that would effectively say that HD DVD has already transitioned from DVD.
It would trump $ony's failing (ATM) P$3 strategy.

still 15% would be = HD DVD. How many BD can they sale when BD is competiting against DVD? What if Warner and paramount decide to do the same with their HD DVD releases, that would effectively say that HD DVD has already transitioned from DVD.

No, 11.4% (+Weinstien Co which I would say is about 0.5%) would be exclusive to HD DVD, not 15%. Warner have made it quite clear that they feel TotalHD is the way forwards for them. Paramount I have no idea, but they have never taken the combo too seriously so what makes you think they would start now.

This is stunning news, if true. I apologize for not knowing your biography, but are you an insider? Is this information reliable?

No, 11.4% (+Weinstien Co which I would say is about 0.5%) would be exclusive to HD DVD, not 15%. Warner have made it quite clear that they feel TotalHD is the way forwards for them. Paramount I have no idea, but they have never taken the combo too seriously so what makes you think they would start now.

i said "if"

This is stunning news, if true. I apologize for not knowing your biography, but are you an insider? Is this information reliable?

this whole thing is not a solid news. so dont take as it is ;) . check the link provided in the initial post. The info came from a HD DVD insider at AVSforum. This also confirm Universal's statement of 90% combo disks for HD DVD. Guess the remaining 10% would be catalogue HD DVD titles which have been released in DVD previously. I just want to know the time ;)

i said "if" and this whole thing is not a solid news. so dont take as it is ;)

Well without credible evidence to back up your "if", it means nothing.

So once again xbotboi comes up with a useless thread which will meander into a format war thread.

Well without credible evidence to back up your "if", it means nothing.

So once again xbotboi comes up with a useless thread which will meander into a format war thread.

think ..................

what would this do to the Videoscan data? ;)

think how excited CEs would be knowing that suddenly, there are millions of people owning HD DVD contents but without the HD DVD player.

did i hear Trojan horse? :eek: :D

Well without credible evidence to back up your "if", it means nothing.

So once again xbotboi comes up with a useless thread which will meander into a format war thread.

think ..................

what would this do to the Videoscan data? ;)

think how excited CEs would be knowing that suddenly, there are millions of people owning HD DVD contents but without the HD DVD player.

did i heard Trojan horse? :eek: :D

think ..................

what would this do to the Videoscan data? ;)

think how excited CEs would be knowing that suddenly, there are millions of people owning HD DVD contents but without the HD DVD player.

did i hear Trojan horse? :eek: :D

Think, there are already 2m BD players out there, what will the studios do when they hear this, trojan horse anyone.

It works both ways.

You still don't understand that Pioneer, Panasonic, Samsung, Sony, Phillips, Hitachi, Mitsubishi, LG and Hitachi have a stake in BD IP, but hey have little to none in HD DVD. The only ones in that list who have a stake in the HD DVD IP are Sony and Phillips, but the amount is dwarfed by their respective stakes in BD.

If you are talking about wooing el cheapo Chinese manufacturers, they need way higher volumes to make a profit than what you are talking about.

think ..................

what would this do to the Videoscan data? ;)

think how excited CEs would be knowing that suddenly, there are millions of people owning HD DVD contents but without the HD DVD player.

did i heard Trojan horse? :eek: :D


If they do this...new releases better be less than $20 and catalog titles around $10 or they will only hurt their DVD sales...There are too many folks now not buying in to HD strictly because of the price of the discs.

Think, there are already 2m BD players out there, what will the studios do when they hear this, trojan horse anyone.


So far that hasn't gone that well.

think ..................

what would this do to the Videoscan data? ;)

think how excited CEs would be knowing that suddenly, there are millions of people owning HD DVD contents but without the HD DVD player.

did i hear Trojan horse?
Do you really think Universal will stop producing standard DVDs? Hehe.

Think... what would happen to Universal disc sales if they put all of their new releases out on Combo disc only with no SD DVDs?

Answer: J6P sees that Universal Movie A is $40 if they want it on any format, and other Movie B is $19.95. Which one do you think they will choose?

This is a most preposterous theory. :)

So far that hasn't gone that well.

Yes, you pint that out, but you fail to see that xboxboi's fantasising has less chance of making an impact than the PS3.

Also, in what way has it not worked, BD sales are good and the studios stood firm. That really was all the PS3 is for, in terms of BD anyway, which could be why we are seeing $599 standalones.

Yes, you pint that out, but you fail to see that xboxboi's fantasising has less chance of making an impact than the PS3.

Also, in what way has it not worked, BD sales are good and the studios stood firm. That really was all the PS3 is for, in terms of BD anyway, which could be why we are seeing $599 standalones.

I didn't fail to see anything. If UNi changes to all combos there will just be 90% percent of the owners that never see the HDVD. It will be exactly the same thing.

AS far as your BD comments go, the studios are firm because there is no reason for anyone to change at this point. BD sales aren't that good for the number of players out, but that may change if disc prices go down, but remember a large percentage of the reported discs were free. It could be as much as half. We are seeing $500 stand alones to stop HD enthusiasts from buying P$3s which is costing $ony money.

I didn't fail to see anything. If UNi changes to all combos there will just be 90% percent of the owners that never see the HDVD. It will be exactly the same thing.

AS far as your BD comments go, the studios are firm because there is no reason for anyone to change at this point. BD sales aren't that good for the number of players out, but that may change if disc prices go down, but remember a large percentage of the reported discs were free. It could be as much as half. We are seeing $500 stand alones to stop HD enthusiasts from buying P$3s which is costing $ony money.

Whatever dude, I can't be bothered to start another war thread, so if you want to, then go right ahead, but from here on in I am O U T out.

think ..................

what would this do to the Videoscan data? ;)

think how excited CEs would be knowing that suddenly, there are millions of people owning HD DVD contents but without the HD DVD player.

did i hear Trojan horse? :eek: :D

The PS3 is a fake, this is the real trojan horse. This puts HD DVDs into the home of many J6Ps with HD of bluray players. It makes the decision of which format to purchase that much easier. ;)

Whatever dude, I can't be bothered to start another war thread, so if you want to, then go right ahead, but from here on in I am O U T out. :confused:

Beatboy in 5...4...3...2...1

Is there something wrong with my browser? There's no question mark on the thread title. And when I click on the link in the first post, it just takes me to an apparently unrelated post by the same person.

Have I lost my mind?

The PS3 is a fake, this is the real trojan horse. This puts HD DVDs into the home of many J6Ps with HD of bluray players. It makes the decision of which format to purchase that much easier. ;)
J6P pays $39.95 for catalog titles? That's news to me.

Max,

Well without credible evidence to back up your "if", it means nothing

And yet, when a BD fanboy starts a thread indicating the iminent announcement of Universal going neutral based on the fact that Universal pulled its HD DVD section, no one batted an eye, and the thread went for several pages.

Let's hear it for consistency.

Let me take a stab at this. Universal meant that all new titles released on HDVD will be combos, not all new releases will be combos.

Is there something wrong with my browser? There's no question mark on the thread title. And when I click on the link in the first post, it just takes me to an apparently unrelated post by the same person.
Agreed.

That said, should Universal do this, they will obviously have to begin charging less for combos, like pretty close to what their new release SD-DVDs are going for. Not sure what the margins are, but maybe they have made a business case for being able to do just that?

I'd like to see Universal release some TL TwinDiscs. Dual layer HD DVD, single layer standard DVD (movie only). Some titles could be 2-disc TL TwinDisc Collectors Editions for extras.

Do you really think Universal will stop producing standard DVDs? Hehe.

Think... what would happen to Universal disc sales if they put all of their new releases out on Combo disc only with no SD DVDs?

Answer: J6P sees that Universal Movie A is $40 if they want it on any format, and other Movie B is $19.95. Which one do you think they will choose?

This is a most preposterous theory. :)

That said, should Universal do this, they will obviously have to begin charging less for combos, like pretty close to what their new release SD-DVDs are going for. Not sure what the margins are, but maybe they have made a business case for being able to do just that?

lets say that UNi will be able to slightly increase the profit margin of 'DVD' by slightly increase the price of the combo as compared to DVD. Have you read the second part saying that the when the strategy is implemented, the price would compete with the current movie title available in the market. Correctly if i am wrong, Combo price is already 'competing' with the price of other HD titles (HD DVD/BD).

So lets say that they can sell combo at MSRP $35 at 2mil units in 2007 with DVD at $19 selling at 20mil units. Compare that to selling a slight jack up price of the Combo (without DVD to compete with) at $25 selling at 19mil units. :p

Let me take a stab at this. Universal meant that all new titles released on HDVD will be combos, not all new releases will be combos.

If they're going to go for it they should go all the way with ALL new releases as combo's but hopefully at a reasonable cost.

this whole thing is not a solid news. so dont take as it is ;) . check the link provided in the initial post. The info came from a HD DVD insider at AVSforum. This also confirm Universal's statement of 90% combo disks for HD DVD. Guess the remaining 10% would be catalogue HD DVD titles which have been released in DVD previously. I just want to know the time ;)
Not only does the link in the original post not corroborate your statement, you're using what looks like old data and charts. It has the old Sony/MGM and Universal/Dreamworks, and if you read the small print in the picture reads "Source: VB research from studio sources year-to-date through April 2 on purchases of DVD and VHS." Odd that it would be using a date in the future...Are you intentionally using misleading/falsely attributed evidence? Do you care to post the article this comes from? According to the image properties, it comes from VideoBusiness.com, and is not "insider" info.

Actual chart for year-end 2006 (available here (http://www.videobusiness.com/info/CA6411771.html) in case the image doesn't work):

http://videobusiness.com/contents/images/YearEnd-TotalSellThrough06-Pie.jpg

Not only does the link in the original post not corroborate your statement, you're using what looks like old data and charts. It has the old Sony/MGM and Universal/Dreamworks, and if you read the small print in the picture reads "Source: VB research from studio sources year-to-date through April 2 on purchases of DVD and VHS." Odd that it would be using a date in the future...Are you intentionally using misleading/falsely attributed evidence? Do you care to post the article this comes from? According to the image properties, it comes from VideoBusiness.com, and is not "insider" info.

Actual chart for year-end 2006 (available here (http://www.videobusiness.com/info/CA6411771.html) in case the image doesn't work):

http://videobusiness.com/contents/images/YearEnd-TotalSellThrough06-Pie.jpg

whatever .. so 11% it is .. now compare the 11% HD DVD market share as compare to 0.**** BD market share in Home video ;)

whatever .. so 10% it is .. now compare the 10% HD DVD market share as compare to 0.**** BD market share in Home video ;)Okay, so you were caught lying, now it's time to make up more numbers? Because it looks like it's 47% to your 10%

Not only does the link in the original post not corroborate your statementI think the link should have been to a post from Amir here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9946668&&#post9946668

I think the link should have been to a post from Amir here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9946668&&#post9946668
It still doesn't change the fact that he was (intentionally?) using false evidence (now changed because he was caught). I should also note that his claim about percentages is also false, as your link only mentions new releases as combos, whereas the market share includes catalog releases.

It still doesn't change the fact that he was using false evidence (now changed because he was caught). I should also note that his claim about percentages is also false, as your link only mentions new releases as combos, whereas the market share includes catalog releases.

That's why I call BS...Amir's quote says combo for new release and HD DVD only for catalog, thus Universal would be dropping DVD completely...I don't buy it. Its much more reasonable to interpret what Amir is saying as all new HD DVD releases will be combo (priced competitively without a premium) and catalog HD DVD will not be combo. But all we need do is wait for Amir to clarify.

Which he just did

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9950328#post9950328

Let me take a stab at this. Universal meant that all new titles released on HDVD will be combos, not all new releases will be combos.

This is the most likely event. I find it unlikely that Universal would want to raise the delivery cost of all new releases at this point in time.

Cheers,

That's why I call BS...Amir's quote says combo for new release and HD DVD only for catalog, thus Universal would be dropping DVD completely...I don't buy it. Its much more reasonable to interpret what Amir is saying as all new HD DVD releases will be combo (priced competitively without a premium) and catalog HD DVD will not be combo. But all we need do is wait for Amir to clarify.

Which he just did

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9950328#post9950328

BS= Bachelor of Science? ;)

anyhow the quote says, Universal plans to ONLY release new movies in combo disc. See how the 'only' modifies the verb 'release' ? ;)

Given that most of us already own DVD catalog titles of our favorite movies, Universal plans to only release new movies in combo disc, and to release catalog titles as stand-alone HD DVDs.

BS= Bachelor of Science? ;)

anyhow the quote says, Universal plans to ONLY release new movies in combo disc. See how the 'only' modifies the verb 'release' ? ;)

A big steaming pile of BS...Does the larger text make you more correct?
OK...go read his reply now and get back with me... ;)

Let me take a stab at this. Universal meant that all new titles released on HDVD will be combos, not all new releases will be combos.

That's correct, Amirm clarified:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=795800&page=6&pp=30

Guys, sorry about causing confusion here. My only job was to find out Uni's HD DVD combo/pricing policy, not DVD. I did not mean to imply anything about them turning off normal DVD production and switching to combos only. I can see how my wording could be construed the way it was though. So hopefully no flogging occurs for folks who were led astray .

Amir just confirmed otherwise. case closed. Mods, please close thread ;)

anyhow the quote says, Universal plans to ONLY release new movies in combo disc. See how the 'only' modifies the verb 'release' ? ;)Which completely repudiates your original post stating that Universal's entire market share would be taken over by HD DVD.

Wait, we can't apply 50 lashes with a scourge to xboxboi for posting unsupported speculation as "fact"? Where's the fun in that? ;)

Wait, we can't apply 50 lashes with a scourge to xboxboi for posting unsupported speculation as "fact"? Where's the fun in that? ;)

i have said from the begining that this is not a hard news .. anyhow ,, if it pleases the forumers here .. bending over................. :p

genius DVD to HD DVD transitioning strategy. Hopefully BD will come up with BD/DVD combo as soon as possible to neutralise this immenent threat

BD can "NEVER" do a BD/DVD combo... isn't possible they left the DVD forum... this could hurt BD if they actually do it.

Odds 75/1.

Think, there are already 2m BD players out there, what will the studios do when they hear this, trojan horse anyone.

It works both ways.

You still don't understand that Pioneer, Panasonic, Samsung, Sony, Phillips, Hitachi, Mitsubishi, LG and Hitachi have a stake in BD IP, but hey have little to none in HD DVD. The only ones in that list who have a stake in the HD DVD IP are Sony and Phillips, but the amount is dwarfed by their respective stakes in BD.

If you are talking about wooing el cheapo Chinese manufacturers, they need way higher volumes to make a profit than what you are talking about.

Actually Samsung is releasing HD DVD drives... how long till they have an actual player??? Not long me thinks

Odds 4/1

I think releasing combo discs AND standalone DVDs is a waste of time. It only assures the price of combos will remain at around $30 a piece, and I don't want to pay that much when I'll never use the SD side.

Just to beat a dead horse ... for anyone thinking about replacing all DVDs with combos - remember this. There just isn't enough manufacturing capacity now. So, it can't be done now ...

That would be really swell if they did thought. It would only make sense. The normal dvd needs to go to the wayside anyway, I have always said. Just release combos only. That would lower the price, plus its been almost a year now and HD DVD prices have not fallen.