Taken from http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Steven_Spielberg/Industry_Forecasts/Exclusive:_Spielberg_Big_Supporter_of_Blu-ray,_But_Future_High-Def_Releases_Uncertain/878

"Confirming mounting speculation, we've got exclusive word this morning that Steven Spielberg is indeed "a big supporter" of Blu-ray, and that yesterday's carve out in the Paramount/DreamWorks HD DVD announcement was designed to allow the legendary director to release future titles on Blu-ray.

With many of his early blockbusters distributed by Universal Pictures ('E.T.,' 'Jurassic Park' and 'Jaws,' among them), it was once assumed that the combination of Steven Spielberg's classic titles and Universal's exclusive HD DVD support would be one of format's biggest weapons against rival Blu-ray, but a series of developments have led many to speculate that perhaps Spielberg himself has other ideas.
The first hint of trouble for HD DVD came back in February when the HD DVD promo group issued a public apology to Spielberg after listing several of his titles in a "Coming Soon" list that was apparently never approved by the director.

Then, just last month came news that the very first Spielberg high-def title -- a 30th anniversary edition of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' -- would be released on Blu-ray, not HD DVD. (That release is due November 13, day and date with the standard-def DVD edition.)

Finally, yesterday's stunner of a Paramount/DreamWorks HD DVD exclusivity press release included a conspicuous one line carve-out, stating that Spielberg's DreamWorks films would be exempt from the terms of the HD DVD exclusivity arrangement, opening the door to the possible future release of more recent Spielberg blockbusters on Blu-ray.

So what's the deal? We put that question to the source for all things Spielberg -- his longtime spokesman and DreamWorks marketing exec Marvin Levy. Speaking exclusively with High-Def Digest, Levy confirmed Spielberg's active support of Blu-ray with the selection of 'Close Encounters' for his next-gen debut.

"It was important to Steven that if any of his films were to be released [first] on high-definition, that it would be a classic," said Levy. "Steven is big supporter of Blu-ray, and chose 'Close Encounters' to be the first of his films on either format."

Spielberg approved the new high-def transfer made for the film, and among the Blu-ray's supplements is a new introduction recorded by the director specifically for the release, as well as a storyboard comparison.

Levy further clarified the Paramount/DreamWorks press release, syaing that "...his movies, like 'Saving Private Ryan' and 'War of the Worlds,' are not included in that deal. They are not exclusive to HD DVD, nor [are they] planned for that format at this time.'"

Levy went on emphasize that beyond 'Close Encounters,' Spielberg has no other films in the high-def pipeline on either format. "At this moment, there are no plans for something further [on either format]. Anything in the future will be decided on a title-by-title basis. There certainly won't be more titles in 2007."

Excellent find, thanks.

I wonder how pissed off SS is at Viacom now. He was already said to be considering leaving (and taking the DreamWorks catalogue with him) for a different studio or going it alone. I hope he leaves and ends up at Twentieth Century or Sony. Even if he goes it alone I have no doubt that he will be releasing in Blu-ray.

Is it interesting that Directors, and Producers (in charge of the creative aspect of the movie) seem to be chiming in regarding a format? As I see it the differences technically are small albeit maybe significant if you are trying to squeeze out maximum performance from a format (no one has seen that yet), What gives? Are we missing something? We couldn't be as one side or the other would have brought it to out attention as a positive or negative.
Is Content protection the key here? And since managed copy is AACS and on both formats how is that significant?

I wonder how pissed off SS is at Viacom now. He was already said to be considering leaving (and taking the DreamWorks catalogue with him) for a different studio or going it alone. I hope he leaves and ends up at Twentieth Century or Sony. Even if he goes it alone I have no doubt that he will be releasing in Blu-ray.
Well that could have been the crucial factor in Paramount's decision. Just suppose (as we all know he's not happy with them) Spielberg told them "kiss off", all the "make nice" didn't work. Paramount figures he's gone anyway so why not go exclusive?

And further............what if Spielberg goes to WB or Uni and says "if you go with BD I'll come here"?

What a tangled web it is indeed :)

FWIW - I don't believe Spielberg can take anything but the films he directed (big names to be certain - but not the whole dreamworks catalog)

Spielberg makes some great movies, but that guy's an arrogant A-hole that has waaaay too much power. I don't care which format he releases on - just frickin release something you egomaniacal Hollywood slackey!

I love this part It was important to Steven that if any of his films were to be released [first] on high-definition, that it would be a classic So we should be grateful that Spielberg is going to grace us with his masterpiece's in high definition? :rolleyes:

wow... this format war is disgusting,...... old people acting like children... wow... who gives what format its on...

Is SS was so for BD why is he letting his Dreamworks tittles be released on HD DVD? Why is it only the movies he directs are not coming to HD DVD exclusively?

Well that could have been the crucial factor in Paramount's decision. Just suppose (as we all know he's not happy with them) Spielberg told them "kiss off", all the "make nice" didn't work. Paramount figures he's gone anyway so why not go exclusive?

And further............what if Spielberg goes to WB or Uni and says "if you go with BD I'll come here"?

What a tangled web it is indeed :)

FWIW - I don't believe Spielberg can take anything but the films he directed (big names to be certain - but not the whole dreamworks catalog)
Apparently it was a contractual stipulation that if SS decides that he doesn't like Viacom that he can put DreamWorks up for sale and go to a different studio with the catalogue intact. It may sound stupid to sign to those terms on the part of Viacom, but before DreamWorks SKG, Paramount Pictures was failing big time in the same way as Universal is now, Spielberg literally has the Midas Touch when it comes to movies. Is it any surprise that Universal are having troubles that SS left them and Paramount are suddenly the studio to beat now that he is there.

Interesting times ahead, indeed.

Is there any film director who went on record for his/her HD DVD support?

Seeing how poorly catalogs are doing and considering that the average BD hardware owner (PS3 owner) is too young to even remember Close Encounters in the theater I would be surprised if he can sell 10K copies of Close encounters on BD the week it's released.

Whoop tee doo Steve-o, noone cares that you or Michael Bay are mad that there won't be more movies to play on your PS3 this fall.

Exclusive Martin Levy Interview Confirms that Spielberg Supports Blu-ray:

Exclusive Interview: Marvin Levy
Posted August 21, 2007 by Josh

Earlier today, Steven Spielberg's spokesperson and current member of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Marvin Levy, was kind enough to speak to Blu-ray.com regarding Paramount's recent decision to exclusively back the HD DVD format and Mr. Spielberg's future involvement with high definition media. Mr. Levy did confirm for us that Mr. Spielberg is "certainly a supporter of Blu-ray" and communicated the Spielberg camp's excitement over the upcoming release of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind', exclusively on Blu-ray.

In speaking with the technical team behind the release, Mr. Levy confirmed that 'Close Encounters' "looks absolutely great" and will feature, "a new interview for this piece looking back and looking currently at Close Encounters and how Steven feels about the film today."
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=418

Is there any film director who went on record for his/her HD DVD support?

That guy in the commercials that I had never heard of until the commercials. :)

edit: wait was he a director or a producer? I just remember he looked like a jester for the mob...

Directors needs to make movies, not decide what storage formats are used for home distribution.
What's next, will Spielberg tell us what kind of TVs we can watch his movies on???

I wonder how pissed off SS is at Viacom now. He was already said to be considering leaving (and taking the DreamWorks catalogue with him) for a different studio or going it alone. I hope he leaves and ends up at Twentieth Century or Sony. Even if he goes it alone I have no doubt that he will be releasing in Blu-ray.


Need details about this. I think he can only take stuff he Directed, not sure.

Funny damn thing is Universal is courting him, and he seems to be considering Universal. Wish I could still find the link I saw that at.

Directors needs to make movies, not decide what storage formats are used for home distribution.
What's next, will Spielberg tell us what kind of TVs we can watch his movies on???

No, that's George Lucas plan.

Directors needs to make movies, not decide what storage formats are used for home distribution.
What's next, will Spielberg tell us what kind of TVs we can watch his movies on???

Yeah. It's like dumbass Hollywood stars getting involved in politics.

Could be that directors, producers, and even actors feel that a stronger DRMed, region controlled format will provide them with more residuals. As they said in All the Presidents Men, "follow the money".

Directors needs to make movies, not decide what storage formats are used for home distribution.

If random people on this internet forum can be so passionate about the format war, why can't directors who may even have a financial stake in it choose a side?

I mean it's like the people who complain about actors in politics. If a normal person got active in politics it's okay. But if an actor does it, its not okay? Where's the logic in that? Actors are people, and just like normal people, some will want to become active in politics. It doesn't make their politics right or wrong, it just makes them politically active. And if they choose to do that, so be it. Simply because their famous shouldn't limit their options.

I'd be curious to know just what kind of rights he holds.

One of the snafu's that rights-holders run into, is that they own the rights, but not the camera-negs and pre-print materials, so they kind of are in a bind that keeps them just marching out on their own and putting out copies. Rights are one thing but full access is another, and that's where studio's can get stinky.

Is there any film director who went on record for his/her HD DVD support?

Michael Imperilio....LMAO....I thought it was funny.

Wow...for months we've been hearing about how HD DVD was the "choice" of film-lovers and BD was just a bunch of gamers, but now that Spielberg, Bay, Coppola, and Cameron are either prefering BD or complaining about a lack of neutrality it's "like celebrities getting involved in politics"???

I guess HD DVD fan-boys only want to hear when film-lovers like their format.

So I guess Spielburg better start courting Fox or Sony if he wants his next movie on Blu-Ray.

I think it's childish to no end that a director can hold a movie hostage like that because it's not Blu-ray. But Universal and Paramount can make sure Blu-ray doesn't get his movies either.

When it's all said and done if he wants re-market Indiana Jones, he'll need HD DVD to do it if he wants it on an HDM at all.


but now that Spielberg, Bay, Coppola, and Cameron are either prefering BD or complaining about a lack of neutrality it's "like celebrities getting involved in politics"???

Ok ottscay, I know you are bitter and angry today. But you're going to have to come up with a link for Coppola and Cameron. Last I checked, they have movies in Blu-ray-only distributors, but have said NOTHING about a preference.

More FUD from the BDA army today.

"It was important to Steven that if any of his films were to be released [first] on high-definition, that it would be a classic," said Levy. "Steven is big supporter of Blu-ray, and chose 'Close Encounters' to be the first of his films on either format."


God, pew.
Translation - it was important to start with a non-Universal title that people were less likely to buy than ET, RAIDERS, or JURASSIC PARK just to test the water :rolleyes:

Need details about this. I think he can only take stuff he Directed, not sure.

Funny damn thing is Universal is courting him, and he seems to be considering Universal. Wish I could still find the link I saw that at.
He basically had it written into the purchase contract that should DreamWorks SKG break ties with Viacom that it would take its library with it. You have to understand how desperate Viacom were at this stage, Paramount pictures in 2004 before they bought DreamWorks SKG came in seventh place with just 6.7% market share http://www.boxofficemojo.com/studio/?view=company&view2=yearly&yr=2004&p=.htm, desperate times etc...

So if Spielberg feels that he can't stick around at Viacom any longer then the DreamWorks SKG library goes with him wherever he goes, likely alone.

Max,

He won't take the Dreamworks SKG library with him. Good read. (http://www.cinemablend.com/new/DreamWorks-Dreams-Of-Jumping-Ship-5857.html)

"According to Variety, David Geffen and Steven Spielberg are considering leaving Paramount, and taking the DreamWorks name with them. Things would have to be pretty bad to get Spielberg and Geffen to walk, since the name is the only thing they’d get to take with them. Most of the DreamWorks employees and the library of films the studio had built would remain Paramount property, and anyone who has been a Star Trek fan for any amount of time know how possessive Paramount can be. "

No, that's George Lucas plan.

Wasn't THX certification his grand plan to control how movies are made and viewed from camera to the livingroom...:)

THX Certification is a benchmarking tool. Basically says that this meets a level of tolerance that LUCAS feels is necessary to reproduce something similar to the Skywalker ranch level. I think it is a load of manure. If it was so great wouldn't bose have tried to get it slapped on everything? :P

What? No early adopters accusing Spielberg of being a total hack? Oh, that was the Michael Bay thread.

So I guess Spielburg better start courting Fox or Sony if he wants his next movie on Blu-Ray.

I think it's childish to no end that a director can hold a movie hostage like that because it's not Blu-ray. But Universal and Paramount can make sure Blu-ray doesn't get his movies either.

When it's all said and done if he wants re-market Indiana Jones, he'll need HD DVD to do it if he wants it on an HDM at all.



Oh, I don't know about that. We have no idea how long the payoff contract is stipulated for. By the time Indiana Jones 4 comes around, Paramount could be back releasing Blu-rays. 150 million only goes so far...

Paramount's not exactly the most loyal company. Remember. It was they that went neutral and drew WB over. Then a year and a half later, they hop back over to HD DVD. Indiana Jones comes out... what? Next spring? Summer? A few months later, by the time of release, they could be touting Blu-ray exclusivity for all we know. ;)

I wouldn't count on Indy 4 to rescue HD DVD. I'm sure HD DVD's just thanking their lucky stars they have Transformers and Shrek 3 to prop their release schedule up. :)

Oh, I don't know about that. We have no idea how long the payoff contract is stipulated for. By the time Indiana Jones 4 comes around, Paramount could be back releasing Blu-rays. 150 million only goes so far...

Paramount's not exactly the most loyal company. Remember. It was they that went neutral and drew WB over. Then a year and a half later, they hop back over to HD DVD. Indiana Jones comes out... what? Next spring? Summer? A few months later, by the time of release, they could be touting Blu-ray exclusivity for all we know. ;)

I wouldn't count on Indy 4 to rescue HD DVD. I'm sure HD DVD's just thanking their lucky stars they have Transformers and Shrek 3 to prop their release schedule up. :)

Paramount is also the first studio that broke DIVX exclusivity while they were under contract thanks to an escape clause.

Paramount won't stick with HD-DVD much longer if the problems like Spielberg, Cameron, and Bay keep going on.

I garuntee they are reassessing their decisions right now.

Now, if there was only that pesky truth that Paramount was paid off......................


Oh I know. Its in the same place as this phantom James Cameron Blu-ray statement.

Paramount won't stick with HD-DVD much longer if the problems like Spielberg, Cameron, and Bay keep going on.

I garuntee they are reassessing their decisions right now.

Quit believing Beatboy's janitor at Paramount "source".

Bay has already retracted, Spielberg is already in the know. The money was for exclusive content, you only have to look at the leaked anouncement. Paramount hadn't intended to go fully exclusive, Sony pushed them.

Paramount won't stick with HD-DVD much longer if the problems like Spielberg, Cameron, and Bay keep going on.

I garuntee they are reassessing their decisions right now.

What did Cameron say? I missed it. And I also haven't seen where SS doesn't support HD DVD.

Of course Paramount is not reassessing their decision at all. Want to get fired? Make a major decision/announcement like this and then retract in 2 days.

Spileberg only cares about one thing... MONEY.

Spileberg only cares about one thing... MONEY.

DING DING DING!!!! WE HAVE A WINNER!

God, pew.
Translation - it was important to start with a non-Universal title that people were less likely to buy than ET, RAIDERS, or JURASSIC PARK just to test the water :rolleyes:

Man you are so right, watching CE once was hard enough but to OWN it - no way.

I had another interesting question. How much of Twilight Zone: The Movie was Spielberg's? He had a hand in that movie as a producer. Does Landis have control of that movie? Because it's due out on HD DVD October 9th.

Can anyone find a quote for me where Spielberg said he would refuse to allow any movie to release on HD DVD? I'm curious because while he of course says he supports Blu-ray, he doesn't say he won't support HD DVD.

I had another interesting question. How much of Twilight Zone: The Movie was Spielberg's? He had a hand in that movie as a producer. Does Landis have control of that movie? Because it's due out on HD DVD October 9th.

Can anyone find a quote for me where Spielberg said he would refuse to allow any movie to release on HD DVD? I'm curious because while he of course says he supports Blu-ray, he doesn't say he won't support HD DVD.

If you're looking for quotes from the man himself you'll be looking for quite a while, because SS has never actually said anything on the subject to the best of my knowledge. At HDD, it was "his longtime spokesman and DreamWorks marketing exec Marvin Levy". It's always been sources or spokesman etc etc. Then man himself has not actually given any interviews on the subject, again, to the best of my knowledge.

So take all that for what it's worth...

It will be interesting to see what happens to Spielberg's future films...the next 3 are with Paramount and DreamWorks.

Michael Bay (sort of) retracted his HD flame...

Max,

He won't take the Dreamworks SKG library with him. Good read. (http://www.cinemablend.com/new/DreamWorks-Dreams-Of-Jumping-Ship-5857.html)

"According to Variety, David Geffen and Steven Spielberg are considering leaving Paramount, and taking the DreamWorks name with them. Things would have to be pretty bad to get Spielberg and Geffen to walk, since the name is the only thing they’d get to take with them. Most of the DreamWorks employees and the library of films the studio had built would remain Paramount property, and anyone who has been a Star Trek fan for any amount of time know how possessive Paramount can be. "
It depends on how he leaves, if he just quits and takes the DreamWorks name, then sure the library stays with Paramount, but if he cuts ties by putting the studio up for sale (the more likely route) then the library goes with it.

God it's interesting to see how Blu crew is comforting themselves, unfortunately the only thing they have is Spielberg that's coming out with 1 movie that historic and most gamer crowd won't even be interested in. To be honest this title would sell better on HD DVD as the audience is much more diverse.


Second, who gives are crap about Spielberg. Seriously. HE IS OUT OF THE HI-DEF GAME..why don't you people get that..

His PR is saying that he's supporting Blu-Ray because of ridiculous DRM and because they want to sell the title better. This comes as a great advertisement to peel Blu-Ray tools for the money even if they didn't want the title.

The fact that NOBODY will see Spielbergs movies this year and probably next year makes this WHOLE discussion completely irrelevant.

Blu-Ray people can't stop trying to find a way to reassure themselves that Paramount and Dreamworks going neutral is nothing. GET OVER IT..It's a HUGE deal, and without Spielberg their catalog is GREAT.

Blu-Ray is on the knees now and it would take Walmart to get those Venturer 7000 HD DVD players for $149 and it's pretty much done. Warner is almost already HD DVD exclusive as it released a bunch of movies exclusively on HD DVD without known release date on Blu-Ray and we'll see like 1 or 2 titles from Disney this year. So you, Blu crew, you are pretty much ****ed.

Instead of comforting yourself, Blu-bois you'd be better of selling those players (oh crap wait you can't you bought a console) and getting a super cheap HD DVD player.

I mean all these sweet new titles coming from Paramount, Dreamworks, Universal, Weinstein, Warner, New Line..you don't really want to miss out now don't you?

Directors needs to make movies, not decide what storage formats are used for home distribution.
What's next, will Spielberg tell us what kind of TVs we can watch his movies on???Yeah. It's like dumbass Hollywood stars getting involved in politics.

No, it's nothing like it. It's like politicians getting involved in politics that are usually run by businessmen.

The studio execs are suits, it's a business to them and nothing more. The filmmakers are the people who both know and care about these kind of things (you know....things like 'image quality').

Well, maybe not so much in the case of Spielberg who bought into the Sony Press Machine's "the war is over" hype so is pissed now.

Spielberg makes some great movies, but that guy's an arrogant A-hole that has waaaay too much power. I don't care which format he releases on - just frickin release something you egomaniacal Hollywood slackey!

It was important to Steven that if any of his films were to be released [first] on high-definition, that it would be a classic

I love this part So we should be grateful that Spielberg is going to grace us with his masterpiece's in high definition? :rolleyes:

You've misinterpreted the quote. It is saying that Spielberg wanted his first HD release to be one of his classics (close encounters), not a new release.

Michael Bay (sort of) retracted his HD flame...

Sort of? I'd have to call his a complete retraction.

As for SS, all that's been said is that he supports BD. There's no evidence that he would want to be exclusive.

I say "sort of" because it just seemed awfully quick of a turnaround...as in "Michael, we're gonna give you a little kickback" fast. I'm not complaining (I am an HD'er), but money talks.

Paramount won't stick with HD-DVD much longer if the problems like Spielberg, Cameron, and Bay keep going on.

I garuntee they are reassessing their decisions right now.
De Nile is a river in Egypt...

Paramount and Dreamworks have made their decision very clear, and they didn't just blurt it out without thinking about it. There's crtainly nothing to cause them to re-consider, as they already knew how Spielberg feels.

If ANYthing, folks should see this as a sign that Spielberg may, at the very least, have to seriously consider releasing his crown jewels to both HD DVD and Bluray. HD DVD is the popular format, and there could potentially be a lot of animosity towards SS if he sought to ostracise the format...

De Nile is a river in Egypt...

Paramount and Dreamworks have made their decision very clear, and they didn't just blurt it out without thinking about it. There's crtainly nothing to cause them to re-consider, as they already knew how Spielberg feels.

If ANYthing, folks should see this as a sign that Spielberg may, at the very least, have to seriously consider releasing his crown jewels to both HD DVD and Bluray. HD DVD is the popular format, and there could potentially be a lot of animosity towards SS if he sought to ostracise the format...

HD-DVD is the least popular format of the two. Just correcting your post.

Seriously, why is this guy acting like a damn baby. Keep your fanboyism to yourself and just let us watch your movies. Direct the movies, and let the distributors handle the rest.

God it's interesting to see how Blu crew is comforting themselves, unfortunately the only thing they have is Spielberg that's coming out with 1 movie that historic and most gamer crowd won't even be interested in.Are there any Paramount movies gamer crowd is interested in other than Transformer?

Are there any Paramount movies gamer crowd is interested in other than Transformer?Why are people so stuck on this movies for the gamer crowd thing? I understand that there are a lot of PS3s out there, but I read these things about how 300 will have a higher ratio for Blu-ray because of this gamer crowd thing and also stuff like the above, when the reality is that for new common titles released on both formats at the same time recently, these are the ratios I compiled for the first week for titles I could get data for (Blu-ray with the higher number in each case):

7/24: The Host 2.36:1
7/31: 300 1.91:1
7/31: Shooter 1.71:1
7/31: Blue Planet 2.03:1
8/07: Disturbia 2.04:1
8/07: TMNT 2.17:1

Are those all "gamer crowd" titles? Why would Blue Planet (an IMAX movie) have a higher ratio for Blu-ray than 300? Why would only 1 title out of 6 have a better ratio for HD DVD than 300 in their first weeks out?

And as far as the "gamer crowd" from what I've seen close to half the HD DVD players out there are XBOX360s with add-ons.

--Darin

What? No early adopters accusing Spielberg of being a total hack? Oh, that was the Michael Bay thread.

well, to be fair, Michael Bay IS a hack. Spielberg on the other hand, he directed Jaws and Jurassic Park

so let's not pretend like we're comparing apples to apples here

In a bit of shocking news from a new interview at IMDB.com with Marvin Levy (DreamWorks Marketing Cheif) yesterday he confirms that Spielberg's offerings on HDM will be Blu-ray Exclusive regardless of studio as he mentions that "Spielberg continues to be a "big supporter of Blu-ray."

Here is the article with the appicable portion bolded:

Paramount and DreamWorks garnered "incentives" valued at $150 million to agree to release their films in high-definition home video exclusively in the HD DVD format, the New York Times and Daily Variety reported today (Wednesday), citing no sources. Both publications said that the HD DVD camp had agreed to "promotional considerations" amounting to $50 million for Paramount and $100 million for DreamWorks over the next 18 months. The Times indicated that an undisclosed amount of cash also exchanged hands. Variety's revelation was buried in an article about director Michael Bay's flip-flop over the two film companies' decision. Bay had originally posted a message titled "Paramount pisses me off!" on his personal website in which he remarked: "I want people to see my movies in the best formats possible. For them to deny people who have Blu-ray sucks!" He vowed not to direct Transformers 2 if it would not be released in the competing Blu-ray format, which currently outsells HD DVD by three to one. By the end of the day, however, Bay had backtracked, writing, "I overreacted. I heard where Paramount is coming from and the future of HD. ... I like what I heard." Fellow director Steven Spielberg remained unconvinced, balking at the Paramount/DreamWorks deal (as he did with Universal's exclusive deal with the HD DVD camp). A spokesman indicated that his films will continue to be released exclusively in the Blu-ray format, regardless of the studio for which they are made. DreamWorks marketing chief Marvin Levy said Tuesday that Spielberg continues to be a "big supporter of Blu-ray."
http://imdb.com/news/sb/2007-08-22/

~Josh

How much of a coup would that be if such films as:

ET
Jaws
Indiana Jones Trilogy
Saving Private Ryan
Jurassic Park Trilogy
War Of The Worlds

Were only available on Blu-ray, yet released by Paramount and Universal? It appears that SS is flexing his own muscle :)

~Josh

Is this your big, war ending news?

Is this THE big news?

can we say Indiana Jones 4 on Blu-ray

Is this your big, war ending news?

No, not at all.

~Josh

In a bit of shocking news from a new interview at IMDB.com with Marvin Levy (DreamWorks Marketing Cheif) yesterday he confirms that Spielberg's offerings on HDM will be Blu-ray Exclusive regardless of studio as he mentions that "Spielberg continues to be a "big supporter of Blu-ray."

Here is the article with the appicable portion bolded:


http://imdb.com/news/sb/2007-08-22/

~Josh

Uhm, correct me if I am mistaken, but I don't think IMDB.com interviewed Marvin Levy. It sounds like they are just reporting on this story

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Steven_Spielberg/Industry_Forecasts/Exclusive:_Spielberg_Big_Supporter_of_Blu-ray,_But_Future_High-Def_Releases_Uncertain/878

albeit with an interpretation of it that says SS will be BD exclusive.

If Speilberg doesn't allow Universal to release his films on HD-DVD only, I can gurantee we will never see HD versions of them as long as there is a format war.

And if HD DVD takes off, he will back track just as Bay did, no big news.

Here we go. Let's get this morning started.

"In this corner, we have in red trunks and a flashing globe on his head..... HD DVD !"
"In the other corner, we have in blue trunks and with mouse ears..... Blu-ray!"

Let the debate begin.

Welcome to two days ago:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=894128

(original source: highdefdigest (http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Steven_Spielberg/Industry_Forecasts/Exclusive:_Spielberg_Big_Supporter_of_Blu-ray,_But_Future_High-Def_Releases_Uncertain/878))

ooooohh....HD DVD buzz kill. Those titles alone will compete nicely with Paramount's entire catalog. So buy HD DVD, get a lot of average titles. Buy Blu Ray get the titles everyone wants...

Moreover, Spielberg's clout cannot be ignored relative to other studios and directors. If Spielberg says Blu Ray is the format of choice, many will follow. This is huge!

This move sounds like Spielberg saying, " I will not release my awesome catalog of films on a second class format".

It’d be great if you can show the actual quote by the spokesman instead of the editorializing by the reporter.

“A spokesman indicated” doesn’t carry much weight.

Welcome to two days ago:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=894128

(original source: highdefdigest (http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Steven_Spielberg/Industry_Forecasts/Exclusive:_Spielberg_Big_Supporter_of_Blu-ray,_But_Future_High-Def_Releases_Uncertain/878))

The thing is that Beats article, is a bit different from what's been said prior.

Last I checked, didn't the original articles state that although he preferred Blu Ray, that he wanted to see his films available on both formats?

ooooohh....HD DVD buzz kill. Those titles alone will compete nicely with Paramount's entire catalog. So buy HD DVD, get a lot of average titles. Buy Blu Ray get the titles everyone wants...

Moreover, Spielberg's clout cannot be ignored relative to other studios and directors. If Spielberg says Blu Ray is the format of choice, many will follow. This is huge!

This move sounds like Spielberg saying, " I will not release my awesome catalog of films on a second class format".

Another rumor you BD fanatics cant wait to post here. Spielbergs recent movies blow anyway. Here is an Idea, why dont you guys wait until this is confirmed before you start running your mouth, talk about grasping at straws...:confused:

just curious...

how many of Spielberg's movies have been released so far?

He may have pukked a Michael Bay & changed his mind.

Now more than ever, own both formats!

Slow news day eh? :rolleyes:

The thing is that Beats article, is a bit different from what's been said prior.

Last I checked, didn't the original articles state that although he preferred Blu Ray, that he wanted to see his films available on both formats?

No, that would be the HD DVD spin cycle bending Levy's direct quotes. Here's the related text out of the original HiDefDigest article:
So what's the deal? We put that question to the source for all things Spielberg -- his longtime spokesman and DreamWorks marketing exec Marvin Levy. Speaking exclusively with High-Def Digest, Levy confirmed Spielberg's active support of Blu-ray with the selection of 'Close Encounters' for his next-gen debut.

"It was important to Steven that if any of his films were to be released [first] on high-definition, that it would be a classic," said Levy. "Steven is big supporter of Blu-ray, and chose 'Close Encounters' to be the first of his films on either format."

Spielberg approved the new high-def transfer made for the film, and among the Blu-ray's supplements is a new introduction recorded by the director specifically for the release, as well as a storyboard comparison.

Levy further clarified the Paramount/DreamWorks press release, syaing that "...his movies, like 'Saving Private Ryan' and 'War of the Worlds,' are not included in that deal. They are not exclusive to HD DVD, nor [are they] planned for that format at this time.'"

Levy went on emphasize that beyond 'Close Encounters,' Spielberg has no other films in the high-def pipeline on either format. "At this moment, there are no plans for something further [on either format]. Anything in the future will be decided on a title-by-title basis. There certainly won't be more titles in 2007."

First boldfaced quote corroborates Spielberg's preference for Blu-ray.

Second boldfaced quote explicitly refutes the concept of any of Spielberg's directed films appearing in HD DVD only. It goes on to explicitly reject the idea that any of them will even be neutral for the time being.

Nowhere in the quotes from Levy does he indicate that Spielberg has accepted release of his films on HD DVD under any circumstances (even under format neutral status), so in essence the IMDB article further expands on these comments.

ooooohh....HD DVD buzz kill. Those titles alone will compete nicely with Paramount's entire catalog. So buy HD DVD, get a lot of average titles. Buy Blu Ray get the titles everyone wants...

Moreover, Spielberg's clout cannot be ignored relative to other studios and directors. If Spielberg says Blu Ray is the format of choice, many will follow. This is huge!

This move sounds like Spielberg saying, " I will not release my awesome catalog of films on a second class format".

From this post, I think your wine of the week was Thunderbird. You should cut back.

Once BD+ comes out and is cracked or able to be bypassed (about 3 months), this will change.

No.

Another reason to call BS on this. Spielburg CAN'T FORCE a studio to release a movie on a format they don't support. He may cry and pack up his ball and go home, but Universal is not obligated to release his movies in Blu-ray format just because he says that's what he wants.

It just means Universal won't release them at all. And neither will Paramount.

And that's very much different than the article that said he wanted his movies cross-platform.

Oh, and where now are all the BDA Army soldiers out crying Spielburg is anti-consumer today?? I'm betting you won't hear any of that (COUGH COUGH HYPOCRISY COUGH COUGH).

I'm glad to hear this news actually (true or not), and hopefully Warner catches wind of this rumor as well, not that they need more incentive to move, but this just might add a little giddy up to whatever they have planned...

Meh, the only one of those movies listed above that I own on DVD is War Of The Worlds and it is NOT a double dipper.


LOL @ Thebland

This may be a dumb question, but how is it that Spielberg gets to decide which platform the movie gets distributed on? Everyone accepts it as true, I just wonder how this came about and why other directors don't have the same clout (outside of Lucas with SW).

Anyhow, say for example he wanted Jurassic Park 1-2 (the ones he directed) on Blu-ray (according to the OP). What if Universal says no. Could it be an all or nothing situation? I really doubt Spielberg can force the studio that owns the movie to release it. He apparently can prevent it from being released on HD DVD. I accept that. Can the true owner of the film, the studio, conversely prevent it from being released on Blu-ray by refusing to release it? BD or nothing type situation.

If that was the case, the studios could easily check Spielberg, making him wait it out. Seriously, the HDM market is so small that even if Universal and Paramount weren't exclusive to HD DVD, they probably would wait until the market grew significantly before releasing Spielberg's greatest hits on either format. I am sure despite his professed preference of BD, even Spielberg wants to wait to reissue these hits until the HDM market is mature; i.e. millions and millions of players in homes. Look how long it took to get Star Wars episodes 4-6 onto SDVD.

No, that would be the HD DVD spin cycle bending Levy's direct quotes. Here's the related text out of the original HiDefDigest article:

Okay, but I don't see anything there stating that his films will be Blu Ray exclusive either.

So whats up, am I just supposed to assume that because he prefers BD, that it's a done deal for Blu Ray exclusiveness?

What implications, if any will this have between both SS and Paramount/Dreamworks if he does decide on BD?

This is getting good I must say... and all I really want is Jaws.

Wait. Spielberg will see the light.

All the spielburg movies I want anyway are Universal titles.

Mike's gonna tell Stenen Spielberg, 'You can't do that'!

I've heard it all...

Yeah if this is true, my assumption would be that we see no SS movies on either. That sucks for both I guess.

IMDB simply reports on news posted on other websites or wire services, and then gives it a spin. They've misreported many times in the past. This is nothing different from the original Paramount press release, or the Highdefdigest article. Nothing to see here, folks.

This may be a dumb question, but how is it that Spielberg gets to decide which platform the movie gets distributed on? Everyone accepts it as true, I just wonder how this came about and why other directors don't have the same clout (outside of Lucas with SW).

Anyhow, say for example he wanted Jurassic Park 1-2 (the ones he directed) on Blu-ray (according to the OP). What if Universal says no. Could it be an all or nothing situation? I really doubt Spielberg can force the studio that owns the movie to release it. He apparently can prevent it from being released on HD DVD. I accept that. Can the true owner of the film, the studio, conversely prevent it from being released on Blu-ray by refusing to release it? BD or nothing type situation.

There is nothing he can do legally. Universal owns the rights to Jurassic Park, and ponied up money for Spielburg to make them. They could right now announce them and put them out.

The sticky part is that everyone wants to make his movies, so they dare not go against what he wants.

Personally, since he wants to walk away from Paramount anyway, and he more or less walked away from Universal, I say screw him and put the movies out there. What's he going to do? Go to Fox or Columbia exclusively? Ok. It's been looking like beyond Indiana Jones that might happen anyway.


If that was the case, the studios could easily check Spielberg, making him wait it out. Seriously, the HDM market is so small that even if Universal and Paramount weren't exclusive to HD DVD, they probably would wait until the market grew significantly before releasing Spielberg's greatest hits on either format. I am sure despite his professed preference of BD, even Spielberg wants to wait to reissue these hits until the HDM market is mature; i.e. millions and millions of players in homes. Look how long it took to get Star Wars episodes 4-6 onto SDVD.

I hope at some point the studios grow a little fortitude and decide "You know what, we put money up for these movies. We should have some say where they get distributed on media". At the very least I believe they will deny him Blu-ray versions of his Universal and Paramount movies.

I'd take WOTW on either format..

This may be a dumb question, but how is it that Spielberg gets to decide which platform the movie gets distributed on? Everyone accepts it as true, I just wonder how this came about and why other directors don't have the same clout (outside of Lucas with SW).

Its because of his ability to make blockbusters. A Spielberg movie is a zero risk payday for any studio that finances him, thus no one studio wants to piss him off to a degree that he refuses to work with said studio again.

That said, Universal, Paramount, etc. do have the last say when it comes to releasing the Spielberg movie under their control. They won't release them without Spielberg's permission, to avoid pissing him off, but they can just keep them tucked away in their vaults.

Spielberg may have more direct control of distribution, ala Lucas, when it comes to Dreamworks and even more so Amblin Entertainment, both of which he's a founder of.

Yeah if this is true, my assumption would be that we see no SS movies on either. That sucks for both I guess.

This is going to be the way it is anyway. We wont see a big Spielberg (or Lucas) title until there is far more hardware in peoples homes. He wants to make a big splash. Combined both formats dont have enough to make a the splash he is looking for.

In a bit of shocking news from a new interview at IMDB.com with Marvin Levy (DreamWorks Marketing Cheif) yesterday he confirms that Spielberg's offerings on HDM will be Blu-ray Exclusive regardless of studio as he mentions that "Spielberg continues to be a "big supporter of Blu-ray."

Here is the article with the appicable portion bolded:


http://imdb.com/news/sb/2007-08-22/

~Josh

Where does it state in that editorial that it was an interview with Marvin Levy, let alone new?

Paramount has already stated that they will be released in both formats, not exclusively in BD...

Another reason to call BS on this. Spielburg CAN'T FORCE a studio to release a movie on a format they don't support. He may cry and pack up his ball and go home, but Universal is not obligated to release his movies in Blu-ray format just because he says that's what he wants.

It just means Universal won't release them at all. And neither will Paramount.

And that's very much different than the article that said he wanted his movies cross-platform.

Oh, and where now are all the BDA Army soldiers out crying Spielburg is anti-consumer today?? I'm betting you won't hear any of that (COUGH COUGH HYPOCRISY COUGH COUGH).

Oh great, another Blade Runner fiasco. I'll be dead by the time any of these movies are released on HDM. It's one thing to take your toys and go home. It's another thing to do it with mass-consumer items like movies. I'm sure some of the egos involved will make sure this happens. It's a sad day to read something like this.

Doug

The NY Times just reported Sony "paid him off." =)

Is Disney releasing Bad Santa on HD DVD in November? No? Well, then I guess IMDb sometimes gets their formats confused when they distill other site's information:
http://www.imdb.com/news/sb/2007-05-30#film3

Only days after renaming its home video division to Disney Home Entertainment, the Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday that it intends to release Badder Santa: The Unrated Version on November 20 in HD DVD and Blu-ray.

Has anyone seen an actual quote from SS, or is this all twice-repeated hearsay?

I think that either a direct Spielberg quote or a release announcement would carry a lot more weight than what we see here.

If this is the best that BDA can muster to counter Paramount/DW......:(

No.

Yes.

First, this story hit days ago.

Second, nowhere in the quotes from Levy does it state that Spielberg could or would release his hits on Blu-Ray only! Spielberg does not have the authority to force Universal Studios to release BD-only versions of Jaws, ET, JP, etc. The quote claimed that SS could make them available on both platforms if he chose. Uni could simply not release them at all if Spielberg chose to play hard ball. Some films like Jaws & JP, Uni could release them anytime they wanted if they felt pissing off SS was in their best interests, as he was not the producer on either film like ET.

Of course, this is all a moot point. Spielberg will not allow his mega-hits be released on a new format until there are millions of players in the wild. It was no different with DVD. Sure, he'll let Close Encounters, Hook, Always, 1941 and other lesser titles debut earlier, but he'd never green-light the blockbusters at this point. No different from George Lucas, both guys like to throw their weight around.

And by the time Indiana Jones 4 is ready for home video, there may be a clear leader / winner in the HD war anyhow. There will certainly be many, many more players. If Warner drops BD, Spielberg will become the world's biggest HD DVD fan overnight! :)

Whatever, just give me Jaws and Spielberg can do and say whatever he pleases. Universal owns the rights to Jaws, so SS can go throw a hissy fit with them.

And judging by the posts above, everyone seems to be lost just as I am as to what the hell IMDB is reporting today. Looks as if they made their own assumption on whats been reported by others earlier.

So, how much Sonybucks did Speilberg get?

Has anyone seen an actual quote from SS, or is this all twice-repeated hearsay?

I think that either a direct Spielberg quote or a release announcement would carry a lot more weight than what we see here.

If this is the best that BDA can muster to counter Paramount/DW......:(

IMDB=twice repeated hearsay.

First, IF this is true then Spielbergs ego needs to come back to normal levels. Second, Saving Private Ryan is the only title that is a real loss because Indiana Jones is a George Lucas collaboration with Lucas being the main man.

I think the wine is getting to many Blu Ray peoples head. Personal attacks regarding literacy in the New York Times and now promoting FUD. Let me tell you I am glad I am a Badger - we know how to deal with the Michigan crowd.

So, how much Sonybucks did Speilberg get?

The word from "unnamed sources" is NADA. Cause it AIN'T gonna happen.

Spielberg was executive producer of Transformers, an HD DVD exclusive. Does that count as a Spielberg movie?

Can someone link me to the movies affected?

I think the ONLY movie I am willing to rebuy in HD is 'Saving Private Ryan' since I absolutely LOVE that movie. Guess I'll wait until I get my PS3 since it won't be offered in HD DVD

Believe me, once HD DVD wins (and it will) we will be seeing Spielberg films on HD DVD.

Can someone link me to the movies affected?

I think the ONLY movie I am willing to rebuy in HD is 'Saving Private Ryan' since I absolutely LOVE that movie. Guess I'll wait until I get my PS3 since it won't be offered in HD DVD

If SPR is not offered on HD DVD, it will also NOT be offered on Blu-Ray.

The Paramount / Dreamworks agreement does not include certain Spielberg-directed films. Translation -- Paramount cannot release certain titles which Spielberg retains some control over without releasing on Blu-Ray as well. And that's today! By the time he's willing to release on either HD format there will be an entire new set of circumstances.

Mods, this thread title should be changed to "Certain Spielberg titles may be dual format only", as it is a total fabrication in its current heading.

By the way, Band of Brothers is available on HD DVD, which he had a big hand in.

Okay, but I don't see anything there stating that his films will be Blu Ray exclusive either.

So whats up, am I just supposed to assume that because he prefers BD, that it's a done deal for Blu Ray exclusiveness?
It looks like the only Spielberg-directed title we'll see in 2007 will be Close Encounters of the Third Kind on Blu-ray. Given the time frame that it takes to prep a movie for release, it would be early 2008 at the soonest before any other Spielberg title would hit store shelves even if he gives a green light for one. So at least for 2007, it is correct to say Spielberg is Blu-ray exclusive this year. Next year is a long way off, and much could change by then... or not. I think it's pretty difficult to speculate beyond the holiday season, as we don't know what is going to happen yet.

What implications, if any will this have between both SS and Paramount/Dreamworks if he does decide on BD?

This is getting good I must say... and all I really want is Jaws.
Tough to say. I don't think Paramount, Dreamworks, OR Universal have the power to release his films on a format he doesn't want them to; look at how long it took for his stuff to appear on DVD, for example.

Unless Spielberg changes his mind, though, I'd wager that the chances of seeing Jaws on any high def format are just about zero. Spielberg will refuse to allow Universal to release on HD DVD, and Universal will probably not agree to release on Blu-ray, so all of the Universal titles controlled by Spielberg will most likely stay where they've been : limbo.

Dreamworks titles are a more pertinent question. Paramount/Dreamworks explicitly left themselves an escape clause for Spielberg's titles, so at best we'd see those titles as neutral releases, and from the evidence we have so far, even that's a long shot - and I personally think it would be much more likely to be a Blu-ray exclusive, given the reaction that the Spielberg camp had to the HD DVD PRG's little snafu early this year.

The Paramount / Dreamworks agreement does not include certain Spielberg-directed films. Translation -- Paramount cannot release certain titles which Spielberg retains some control over without releasing on Blu-Ray as well. And that's today! By the time he's willing to release on either HD format there will be an entire new set of circumstances.



So what happens with his titles on Universal? Is there anything stopping those from being released because of SS?

This is a total non story as SS has never said he will not agree to a HD DVD release of his movies just that he prefers BD. This is another of those threads that should be locked up.

Tough to say. I don't think Paramount, Dreamworks, OR Universal have the power to release his films on a format he doesn't want them to; look at how long it took for his stuff to appear on DVD, for example.

Unless Spielberg changes his mind, though, I'd wager that the chances of seeing Jaws on any high def format are just about zero. Spielberg will refuse to allow Universal to release on HD DVD, and Universal will probably not agree to release on Blu-ray, so all of the Universal titles controlled by Spielberg will most likely stay where they've been : limbo.

Dreamworks titles are a more pertinent question. Paramount/Dreamworks explicitly left themselves an escape clause for Spielberg's titles, so at best we'd see those titles as neutral releases, and from the evidence we have so far, even that's a long shot - and I personally think it would be much more likely to be a Blu-ray exclusive, given the reaction that the Spielberg camp had to the HD DVD PRG's little snafu early this year.

Well that answers my following question. Thanks.

If Spielberg wants his titles on Blu Ray only, that's where we'll see them. He has more clout than all the studios combined.

By the way, Band of Brothers is available on HD DVD, which he had a big hand in.
:eek:

You just made my day.

Pardon the noob-ness. I just got into HDM :p

Someone will open up there check book and Spielberg will say: Lets open up the vault!

No, that would be the HD DVD spin cycle bending Levy's direct quotes. Here's the related text out of the original HiDefDigest article:


First boldfaced quote corroborates Spielberg's preference for Blu-ray.

Second boldfaced quote explicitly refutes the concept of any of Spielberg's directed films appearing in HD DVD only. It goes on to explicitly reject the idea that any of them will even be neutral for the time being.

Nowhere in the quotes from Levy does he indicate that Spielberg has accepted release of his films on HD DVD under any circumstances (even under format neutral status), so in essence the IMDB article further expands on these comments.

But the "either format" at the end of the first quote kind of leaves the door open IMHO.

The same applies for the second quote with the "at this time" line at the end.

The third quotes just means nothing further is coming out in 2007 on again either format!! I don't know where you are getting the (even under format neutral status) from!!

Yeah, very slow news day ... which is why BeatBoy (who I assume was a cheerleader in college ... ummm, college?) tried to make old info into new news.

Mr. Spielberg obviously thinks that BD is the "better" format ... just like lots of people thought that 70mm was a better format than 35mm. And, of course, all of that's true. BD can out-perform HD DVD on several levels. But just because it has higher performance specs doesn't mean it's the right choice for the studios considering all the various factors.

Spielberg's work will not be release on HD DVD I'll bet ... at least for a good while. That is news (this week, not today). And a lot of folks will be disappointed by that. Not me ... but certainly lots of consumers. He is perceived as a great filmmaker.

So what happens with his titles on Universal? Is there anything stopping those from being released because of SS?

Spielberg retains some control over ET. Jaws could be released tomorrow by Universal if they wanted, as they have full control over the title. But it isn't that simple.

No studio wants to piss off a director / producer as powerful as Spielberg, so they would wait until they had his complete blessings and assistance on the project before bringing his films to a new format.

So why is Close Encounters debuting on Blu-Ray with Spielberg's blessings? Who knows how much $ was provided by Sony to green-light the project and obtain Spielberg's assistance. Perhaps he is aware of the install-base of PS3's in the wild, despite the fact that very few are actually buying BD movies for it. Maybe it's a test to see how it would sell in HD at this time. And, most importantly, Close Encounters is not considered one of his perennial classic blockbusters like Jaws, ET, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, Private Ryan, etc.

Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray:

If the Spielberg titles do not get released on either format = Win for Blu-ray (They block the exclusivity of Paramount and Universal)

If the Spielberg titles get released on both formats = Big Win for Blu-ray (They share in the distribution/revenue of suppossedly exclusives studios)

If the Spielberg titles get released only on Blu-ray = HUGE Win for Blu-ray
(They pull-off a huge coup and get Paramount and Universal to release exclusive titles only on Blu-ray)

Only time will tell.

~Josh

Hey, the man (SS) may also simply like BD better. He has been known to be almost stubborn about certain technologies. I've read his quotes in interviews (sorry, no link) where he talked about shooting on film. With Lucas heading completely down the digital road ... and with the both of them being close (professionally and personally I assume), people wondered about SS going digital too. He stated that he'll shoot on film forever ... until his death or the death of Eastman Kodak or whatever. I'm paraphrasing from memory ... but the spirit of his comments as portrayed here is valid.

He likes his technology ... and he may simply be a very big enthusiastic fan of BD.

Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray:

If the Spielberg titles do not get released on either format = Win for Blu-ray (They block the exclusivity of Paramount and Universal)

If the Spielberg titles get released on both formats = Big Win for Blu-ray (They share in the distribution/revenue of suppossedly exclusives studios)

If the Spielberg titles get released only on Blu-ray = HUGE Win for Blu-ray
(They pull-off a huge coup and get Paramount and Universal to release exclusive titles only on Blu-ray)

Only time will tell.

~Josh

With statements like that a person really has to question the lucidness of one Blu-Ray supporter. Seriously.

You way of reasoning is simply astonishing.

There is nothing he can do legally. Universal owns the rights to Jurassic Park, and ponied up money for Spielburg to make them. They could right now announce them and put them out.

The sticky part is that everyone wants to make his movies, so they dare not go against what he wants.

Personally, since he wants to walk away from Paramount anyway, and he more or less walked away from Universal, I say screw him and put the movies out there. What's he going to do? Go to Fox or Columbia exclusively? Ok. It's been looking like beyond Indiana Jones that might happen anyway.


I hope at some point the studios grow a little fortitude and decide "You know what, we put money up for these movies. We should have some say where they get distributed on media". At the very least I believe they will deny him Blu-ray versions of his Universal and Paramount movies.

This is all pretty much spot on. Spielberg has no say on his movies legally, outside of possibly his Dreamworks stuff (maybe). It's just that no one wants to piss him off.

Hey, the man (SS) may also simply like BD better. He has been known to be almost stubborn about certain technologies. I've read his quotes in interviews (sorry, no link) where he talked about shooting on film. With Lucas heading completely down the digital road ... and with the both of them being close (professionally and personally I assume), people wondered about SS going digital too. He stated that he'll shoot on film forever ... until his death or the death of Eastman Kodak or whatever. I'm paraphrasing from memory ... but the spirit of his comments as portrayed here is valid.

He likes his technology ... and he may simply be a very big enthusiastic fan of BD.
Lots of directors much prefer film. Nothing wrong with that. Film vs. digital is quite a bit different than HD DVD vs. Blu-ray, since practically for all intents and purposes, HD DVD and Blu-ray are effectively extremely similar.

"With statements like that a person really has to question the lucidness of one Blu-Ray supporter. Seriously."

Yep more damage control FUD being spread around like it's truth. How much longer is this forum going to allow it to be used for a single users quest to make a name for himself as an supposed industry insider?

I think we will find this story too is either not true or inaccurate. I can't believe that SS can completely control the distribution of his films just because he directed them. I am talking mostly about the older blockbusters.

Lots of directors much prefer film. Nothing wrong with that. Film vs. digital is quite a bit different than HD DVD vs. Blu-ray, since practically for all intents and purposes, HD DVD and Blu-ray are effectively extremely similar.Oh for goodness sakes, I know that. Maybe I didn't make my point clearly ... I was just speculating about the possibility that he may simply feel deeply about it. That he just likes it more (BD as a format).

I wasn't in any way passing any judgement on his or anyone else's desire to originate on film. Hell, I would feel the same way if I were a working director. My point was simply how emphatic he was about that desire. He may have similar feelings about BD as a consumer release format. And there's nothing at all wrong about that either.

Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray:

If the Spielberg titles do not get released on either format = Win for Blu-ray (They block the exclusivity of Paramount and Universal)

If the Spielberg titles get released on both formats = Big Win for Blu-ray (They share in the distribution/revenue of suppossedly exclusives studios)

If the Spielberg titles get released only on Blu-ray = HUGE Win for Blu-ray
(They pull-off a huge coup and get Paramount and Universal to release exclusive titles only on Blu-ray)

Only time will tell.

~Josh


Actually, I think it's a complete non-factor and completely devoid of being remotely news-worthy! It was a quote from his spokesman -- not from Spielberg himself. It was a blanket statement about certain Spielberg hits from Dreamworks, and never even hinted at the Universal classics like ET, Jaws, and Jurassic Park! Spielberg made these films under the Uni label before he was partnered with Dreamworks -- they were not even mentioned in the conversation!

These films would not be seeing the light of day for a couple of years anyway, until the install-base is large enough. By that time, who knows what the HD landscape will resemble? This Paramount news has shaken the entire industry, and ripple effects are guaranteed to occur. Do BD supporters think they're going to see Star Wars films on their format anytime soon? You'd have to be crazy to think that, as Lucas and Spielberg are two of a kind in regards to their classics.

When Indy 4 is scheduled for home video release is when we'll hear more about Spielberg / Lucas and their decisions on the HD market -- probably not before. Their films have never influenced a new format because they have always refused to debut them until the format is already viable and strong (did you see any Star Wars film on D-Theater?)

Believe me, once HD DVD wins (and it will) we will be seeing Spielberg films on HD DVD.

When you post something believable I will believe it.

By the way, Band of Brothers is available on HD DVD, which he had a big hand in.

If he didn't direct it, that's irrelevant.

Actually, I think it's a complete non-factor and completely devoid of being remotely news-worthy! It was a quote from his spokesman -- not from Spielberg himself.

What are spokespeople hired to do?

If Spielberg wants his titles on Blu Ray only, that's where we'll see them. He has more clout than all the studios combined.

For a smart man Jeff - HOW in the world can you be so ignorant!

Fact: Universal Owns SS movies.

Fact: SS has VIDEO RELEASING RIGHTS on this movies

Fact: Universal supports HD DVD as does Paramount

Fact: IF and I say IF, SS says no HD DVD for his movies than ALL Universal and Paramount SS movies do not come out in HD . . . . PERIOD!

That's it. He can NOT say to Uni or Para. - "release my movies on BD" because he does not have THAT legal right. He can ONLY green light a picture of his on the format that the studio that owns the movie supports.

He CANNOT over-ride contracts that Uni and Para have with HD DVD. NO ONE has that kind of clout - EVEN Steven Speilberg.

If you think otherwise then you are not the smart person I give you credit for being.

I think we will find this story too is either not true or inaccurate. I can't believe that SS can completely control the distribution of his films just because he directed them. I am talking mostly about the older blockbusters.

I think SS control over his movies all come down to the contracts he signed with the studio that provided the financing/distribution. We do NOT know what those contracts stated or promised.

Since most movies are financed by investers and the studio, usually all the studio and investers want are the most money out of the product and in some cases, control of the product itself and marketing.

It could be that SS gives up certain aspects of revenue to have ownership of movie rights and how they are distributed. This means even if he goes BD only, the studio and investers who financed the movie still get their money from the sales. It's not like they lose out on the income from the sales.

There are plenty of performers/professionals who give up monetary gains for artistic creativity and product ownership/control.

FIRST >>> This is some "re-quote" of a "spokesperson" Let me know when it makes Reuters as FACT from the horse's mouth.

SECOND >>> Although these BIG NAME producers have clout, they still get their checks from the Production company. (Although Dreamworks SKG is part of the Spielberg empire). Spielberg doesn't have to AGREE, he just has to cash his check.

Since NO Spielberg films beyond Close Encounters has been annoumced, what do you think he will say if next year Blu-Ray is DOA?

This Producer rant crap is truly LAME news. Just like Michael Bay having a cry-baby fit that he immediately retracted. They will all fall in line with the company writing a check. People keep trying to corner ONE PERSON into picking a side. These producers are easy targets, but in the end mean little.

Actually, I think it's a complete non-factor and completely devoid of being remotely news-worthy! It was a quote from his spokesman -- not from Spielberg himself. It was a blanket statement about certain Spielberg hits from Dreamworks, and never even hinted at the Universal classics like ET, Jaws, and Jurassic Park! Spielberg made these films under the Uni label before he was partnered with Dreamworks -- they were not even mentioned in the conversation!

These films would not be seeing the light of day for a couple of years anyway, until the install-base is large enough. By that time, who knows what the HD landscape will resemble? This Paramount news has shaken the entire industry, and ripple effects are guaranteed to occur. Do BD supporters think they're going to see Star Wars films on their format anytime soon? You'd have to be crazy to think that, as Lucas and Spielberg are two of a kind in regards to their classics.

When Indy 4 is scheduled for home video release is when we'll hear more about Spielberg / Lucas and their decisions on the HD market -- probably not before. Their films have never influenced a new format because they have always refused to debut them until the format is already viable and strong (did you see any Star Wars film on D-Theater?)Very good! Logical, reasonable ... sounds completely believable.

Steven Speilberg DOES NOT OWN ANY MOVIES!

Is that clear?

George Lucas OWNS the Star Wars Movies. They belong to him.

This is not the same thing AT ALL.

Just More and More BD FUD to try to pick up a few crumbs of self manufactured news to offset getting blown out of the water over the Paramount announcement.

Steven Speilberg DOES NOT OWN ANY MOVIES!

Is that clear?



Just curious, how do you/we know ?

Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray:

If the Spielberg titles do not get released on either format = Win for Blu-ray (They block the exclusivity of Paramount and Universal)

If the Spielberg titles get released on both formats = Big Win for Blu-ray (They share in the distribution/revenue of suppossedly exclusives studios)

If the Spielberg titles get released only on Blu-ray = HUGE Win for Blu-ray
(They pull-off a huge coup and get Paramount and Universal to release exclusive titles only on Blu-ray)

Only time will tell.

~Josh

Not released >>> No one "WINS"
RELEASED >>> EVERYONE "WINS"
BR or HD DVD ONLY RELEASE >>> Not a HUGE win either way. His hard-ware selling movies are not the ones that matter anymore. Jaws, Raiders, Poltergeist, etc. are OLD. He makes dramas (Munich, Saving PB) He's not a huge factor anymore. He's more into helping other guys now.

Actually, I think it's a complete non-factor and completely devoid of being remotely news-worthy! It was a quote from his spokesman -- not from Spielberg himself. It was a blanket statement about certain Spielberg hits from Dreamworks, and never even hinted at the Universal classics like ET, Jaws, and Jurassic Park! Spielberg made these films under the Uni label before he was partnered with Dreamworks -- they were not even mentioned in the conversation!

These films would not be seeing the light of day for a couple of years anyway, until the install-base is large enough. By that time, who knows what the HD landscape will resemble? This Paramount news has shaken the entire industry, and ripple effects are guaranteed to occur. Do BD supporters think they're going to see Star Wars films on their format anytime soon? You'd have to be crazy to think that, as Lucas and Spielberg are two of a kind in regards to their classics.

When Indy 4 is scheduled for home video release is when we'll hear more about Spielberg / Lucas and their decisions on the HD market -- probably not before. Their films have never influenced a new format because they have always refused to debut them until the format is already viable and strong (did you see any Star Wars film on D-Theater?)


To reinforce your point Bob, Spielburg and Lucas both had their movies out on Laserdisc, which didn't exactly win a format battle either. I had Star Wars and Indiana Jones, and Close Encounters and ET on LD.

Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray

Either way?


You have the stones to post a thread titled "Spielberg Films To Be Released Exclusively In The Blu-ray Format" and then an hour later start spinning situations where it's still good news even if false?

How about a little responsible posting? Rather than getting people all hyped up over stuff that is either complete BS or at least grossly misrepresented.

Steven Speilberg DOES NOT OWN ANY MOVIES!

Is that clear?

George Lucas OWNS the Star Wars Movies. They belong to him.

This is not the same thing AT ALL.

Just More and More BD FUD to try to pick up a few crumbs of self manufactured news to offset getting blown out of the water over the Paramount announcement.

Hmmm.....okay then.

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/461

Before enticing HD DVD fans with the promise of titles by Hollywood's biggest director, perhaps someone at the HD DVD Promotions Group should have given Steven Spielberg a call first?

The possibility of some of Spielberg's biggest hits coming to HD DVD first lit up the web following a January 29 update of the HD DVD Promotions Group official "Coming Soon" HD DVD release list. The web site added three of the director's biggest Universal blockbusters ('Jaws,' 'Jurassic Park' and 'E.T.') to its release schedule, causing a fast and widespread wave of excitement among early adopters. Fans not only continue to highly anticipate the first Spielberg blockbusters in high-def, but consider the combo of the director's top titles and Universal's HD DVD-exclusive support to be one of the format's biggest weapons against rival Blu-ray.

The Promotions Group, which is the official umbrella PR organization for the HD DVD Forum (which includes primary format backers Universal and Toshiba), updates its schedule routinely, and its "Coming Soon" list is considered one of the key indicators of new titles expected on the format.

Unfortunately, it seems the Spielberg trio was a bit premature. Today, the HD DVD Promotional Group has removed the offending titles from its list, and issued a full apology via its website:

The inclusion in the January 29 update of our 'Coming Soon List' of three Steven Spielberg classics was an error on our part. The HD DVD Promotion Group expresses sincere apologies to Steven Spielberg, Universal Studios Home Entertainment and HD DVD fans for this mistake. We will endeavor to prevent any similar mistake and to provide accurate information.

As for Universal's response to the news, they continue to express the same sentiments as always regarding any big A-list titles from top directors. A request for comment from the studio brought this now-canned response, first made by Ken Graffeo, EVP of Universal Studios Home Entertainment, regarding the studio's 2007 HD DVD plans:

Universal feels the key to getting a great HD DVD disc is filmmaker participation. They have been educating filmmakers about the possibilities for interactivity, picture and sound available with HD DVD. There are other challenges like scheduling that come into play when working on DVD/HD DVD releases with filmmakers. Universal is committed to working with filmmakers whenever possible to put out the best quality presentation they can.

At the risk of sounding cynical, we can't say we're particularly surprised by this news. As battle-scarred survivors of the early DVD days -- when Spielberg notoriously held off the release of any of his major titles from the format for years -- this is par for the course. Spielberg and fellow behemoth George Lucas have never been known to quickly embrace new home video formats, and we expect that won't change anytime soon -- especially with a next-gen battle raging, and no clear winner yet in sight.

Of course, we all want the biggest and the best movies on high-def as soon as possible, including those by Spielberg. So as we all continue to dream of next-gen dinosaurs and man-eating sharks, watch this space and we'll keep you posted on any further developments.

I doubt Paramount or Universal will release any SS films then. He doesn't have the power to MAKE them.

Spielberg already sold the studio property, he is just still at partner there. He can leave like any attorney at a law firm could. It would just continue without him. Paramount owns the library already at this time. :)

Doby, it's too bad nothing you highlighted proves Spielburg owns anything. Perhaps you should have highlighted the correct lines:

Universal feels the key to getting a great HD DVD disc is filmmaker participation. They have been educating filmmakers about the possibilities for interactivity, picture and sound available with HD DVD. There are other challenges like scheduling that come into play when working on DVD/HD DVD releases with filmmakers. Universal is committed to working with filmmakers whenever possible to put out the best quality presentation they can.

Just curious, how do you/we know ?

Just look it up - it is listed at IMBD

Just a quick note to the MODS if they're looking at this. Please don't close this thread. An offending poster should be dealt with and his ugly post deleted. But the rest of this has mostly been valuable.

I think the main point that people are skipping over here is that in the end, Speilberg has zero say in where his films go. Right now the studios give him his respect and consideration in dictating how they are released, but in the end its a courtesy only and not something they have to abide by. If Universal wanted to release Jaws on HD-DVd next month they could, the issue is that Speilberg would have nothing to do with the release and they would rise his ire and kill any future studio involvement from him, so they have elected for now to go with his wishes. If the situation presented itself where they could profit more from releasing now and risking losing him, IMO they would jump on it.

I doubt Paramount or Universal will release any SS films then. He doesn't have the power to MAKE them.

EXACTLY - he ONLY has the power to STOP them - that is all

Hmmm.....okay then.

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/461

More BD FUD blu?

He DOES NOT have releasing rights on Jaws. But he is still SS. If Uni wanted to - legally they can release Jaws and there is NOTHING SS can do about it. But this is just not done with the likes of him - THAT is why they announced in the first place and you know it.

YOU are SO bush blu.

<<<---I am banned


Hahahaha, man some of the BD boys are really having meltdowns over this situation.

Jeff is being completely illogical and this guy is plain frothing at the mouth like a Starbuck's coffee.

Good show old boys, good show!!

:D

EXACTLY - he ONLY has the power to STOP them - that is all
But if they stop him, the studio's and investers get no money at all.

Sure, the studio's would be mad if SS didn't release on HD DVD but if he went BD exclusively, the studio and investers still get sales revenue.

Isn't revenue what it's all about when it comes to studio's and investers ?

Another reason to call BS on this. Spielburg CAN'T FORCE a studio to release a movie on a format they don't support. He may cry and pack up his ball and go home, but Universal is not obligated to release his movies in Blu-ray format just because he says that's what he wants.


If that's your opinion, then you clearly have no idea as to the level of control Spielberg has over his films. He has contracts that are the envy of Hollywood. What he says, goes, and any studio will kiss his ass just to have him work with them.

Hahahaha, man some of the BD boys are really having meltdowns over this situation.

Jeff is being completely illogical and this guy is plain frothing at the mouth like a Starbuck's coffee.

Good show old boys, good show!!

:D

Not worried at all. Most that can happen is NOBODY gets them, which would be fine, since it wont just be BD exclusive.

Very pleased that all his movies are under HDDVD supporting studios which gum up the works!!!

I read that Speilberg's net worth is somewhere around $3 Billion :eek: . He is one of the most powerful men in Hollywood. You can not put him in the same category as Michael Bay. That being said....his films will probably be released in both formats. Unless Bluray fails before that happens.

Released on Bluray or HD DVD...doesn't matter. The public's perception of Bluray has been seriously wounded. Beyond repair IMO.

Unless Spielberg changes his mind, though, I'd wager that the chances of seeing Jaws on any high def format are just about zero.

Jaws HD will be on TNTHD this weekend. Surely they wouldn't go to the trouble of re-mastering an HD version just for TV and not release it on disc.

I read that Speilberg's net worth is somewhere around $3 Billion :eek: . He is one of the most powerful men in Hollywood. You can not put him in the same category as Michael Bay. That being said....his films will probably be released in both formats. Unless Bluray fails before that happens.
I doubt it. I suspect they just won't be released.

Not that it makes a huge difference for him, since hi-def is still early. It'd actually make more sense for him to just wait it all out, and then release on the winning format. That'd make SS the most money.

Jaws HD will be on TNTHD this weekend. Surely they wouldn't go to the trouble of re-mastering an HD version just for TV and not release it on disc.

I already have Jaws in HD on my DVR. It was released on both MonstersHD and Universal HD. So anyone who thinks Spielberg has any control over Jaws doesn't know much at all!

Not worried at all. Most that can happen is NOBODY gets them, which would be fine, since it wont just be BD exclusive.

Very pleased that all his movies are under HDDVD supporting studios which gum up the works!!!

I'm not worried either. As I said previously, the only one of his movies I own is WotW and it is not worth double dipping IMO.

So, if I haven't bought any of his DVDs in the last 6 years that I have owned a DVD player. I am not losing sleep knowing these will never come to light in either format or will only come out on the 1 format I do not own.

IF HD-DVD wins, I have no doubts they will be released on that format. However, as already stated. It will most likely be years, not months until any of them are released on either format. Besides Close Encounters of course.

If that's your opinion, then you clearly have no idea as to the level of control Spielberg has over his films. He has contracts that are the envy of Hollywood. What he says, goes, and any studio will kiss his ass just to have him work with them.

With all due respect, that is not simply my opinion. That is fact. Spieburg may have AURA around him, and no one denies that. But if Universal today announced E.T. for HD DVD, there is absolutely nothing SS could do about it other than not assisting with the development, or deciding to go somewhere else to make his movies, which he's been doing anyway.

He has NO legal power to stop anyone from distributing his movies on HD DVD.

So let me get this straight. We now have studios AND directors to consider when informing people about what movies are coming out?


J6P is running for the hills lol....


Oh well. Bring on Jurassic Park!

I read that Speilberg's net worth is somewhere around $3 Billion :eek: . He is one of the most powerful men in Hollywood. You can not put him in the same category as Michael Bay. That being said....his films will probably be released in both formats. Unless Bluray fails before that happens.

Released on Bluray or HD DVD...doesn't matter. The public's perception of Bluray has been seriously wounded. Beyond repair IMO.

The public's? Or a bunch of forum posters than needed a refreshing slap in the face?

You're fighting over an ant hill in Africa. FYI. Nobody gives a damn.

How much of a coup would that be if such films as:

ET
Jaws
Indiana Jones Trilogy
Saving Private Ryan
Jurassic Park Trilogy
War Of The Worlds

Were only available on Blu-ray, yet released by Paramount and Universal? It appears that SS is flexing his own muscle :)

~Josh

Excellent news. :) I actually had a thread I started talking about this scenario occurring, which was deleted, called "Disaster scenario for HD DVD". I pointed out that Michael Bay wouldn't be the only Director upset at Paramounts move and that this may result in Spielberg deciding to release everything on Blu-Ray which makes up Paramounts biggest hits. In essence backfiring on HD-DVD by alienating their biggest director.This pretty much levels off any gains made by Paramounts exclusivity in my opinion. That makes Star Trek and Gladiator movie's the only ones I'll have to get on HD DVD while Disturbia and Transformers perhaps as well. However Indiana Jones 4 released with a box set on Blu-Ray would be HUGE. I see Spielberg ramping up production on it sooner than Spielberg probably originally intended to now based on Paramounts decision. I'm trying to look at the positives that still may come from prolonging the format war which aren't many. :)

Unlike George Lucas, who owns his Star Wars films (and I believe may have also bought back American Grafitti), SS does not own all his films (I believe he does own some). So some SS films are beyond his control (Jaws, Jurassic Park, etc.) while others he may have direct influence over.

The only director that can REALLY dictate when/where/how/what format his films (at least a certain little space saga, anyway) is George Lucas. If he wanted to release the SW flicks on HDDVD/BD/whatever, he could under the LFL banner...and FOX can't say much about it. He owns the movies themselves. Fox gets a piece of distribution out of semi-loyalty from GL (which LFL could conceivably pay themselves out from under if they wanted to) but has no real control/say over what GL does with 'em. He (as LUCASFILM) essentially paid for every film after the '77 original himself, and later bought back the rights to the first film from FOX.

Guessing that, with the millions/billions coming out his butt, the same could be the case for AMERICAN GRAFFITI (which would be UNI/HDDVD if released right now) and THX-1138 (WB/both).

Now..would GL go over Fox's head and release SW in HD indie-style? Probably not. But you never know. The "skip either format/offer 'em as HD downloads instead" that Rick McCallum mentioned a while back could be the more likely situation (but I hope not).

But if they stop him, the studio's and investers get no money at all.

Sure, the studio's would be mad if SS didn't release on HD DVD but if he went BD exclusively, the studio and investers still get sales revenue.

Isn't revenue what it's all about when it comes to studio's and investers ?

SS is worth $2.9 BILLION according to Forbes. So how much money is he going to receive from a release of his BIG titles?

You really have to understand the legal contracts and what they mean.

When does close encounters come out? If it sells only marginally better than other catalog titles, this tells me that this hullaballo is over catalog titles that wont sell terribly well.

Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray:

If the Spielberg titles do not get released on either format = Win for Blu-ray (They block the exclusivity of Paramount and Universal)

If the Spielberg titles get released on both formats = Big Win for Blu-ray (They share in the distribution/revenue of suppossedly exclusives studios)

If the Spielberg titles get released only on Blu-ray = HUGE Win for Blu-ray
(They pull-off a huge coup and get Paramount and Universal to release exclusive titles only on Blu-ray)

Only time will tell.

~Josh

How on earth can your review be taken with any validity after statements like this. So blocking content from hitting any form of HDM is better than it going to HD-DVD because it will be better for Blu-Ray? Makes no sense. Yet another person cheering for the pizza box and not the pizza inside. The trappings of these films make no difference if inside you get superior sound and video.

It was always HD DVD that was accused of prolonging this war. Welcome your new champion: SPIELBERG

"Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray:

If the Spielberg titles do not get released on either format = Win for Blu-ray (They block the exclusivity of Paramount and Universal)"

How is this scenario a win for BLU-RAY? As a BLU-RAY owner and an HD fan I still would not get to watch the movie. This is a sad line of reasoning to try and claim a win. You seem more concerned with Format wars than actually wanting to watch movies in HD.

Couldn't George Lucas/LFL also be part of a possible equation in regards to INDIANA JONES movies and their HD format fate? Even though they are SS films via Paramount, they are still first and foremost an LFL-owned property.

"Today's announcement does not include films directed by Steven Spielberg as his films are not exclusive to either format."

In essence, and despite his own studio's commitment to HD-DVD, Spielberg has reserved the right to release his films on both formats, or perhaps whichever one he chooses as the format war wages on.

For further clarification, we talked with DreamWorks spokesman Marvin Levy via e-mail this morning, and he told SpielbergFilms the following revealing information.

"Steven is a supporter of Blu-Ray but is not exclusive to either format."

http://www.spielbergfilms.com/dreamworks/1505

It was always HD DVD that was accused of prolonging this war. Welcome your new champion: SPIELBERG

I'm sorry, but you think a 50/50 split of studios with WB in the middle isn't holding up the war at all?

And FYI, as of this point of time, WB is still in the middle. May change, may not.

But isn't this like Fox's exclusivity - we support BR but we ain't releasing any titles.

If you are going to do that, you can say anything. Like I will give it away for free, or I will donate $1M to charity for every copy sold. It means nothing.

""Steven is a supporter of Blu-Ray but is not exclusive to either format."

End of thread right there

" Spielberg Films To Be Released Exclusively In The Blu-ray Format"

The thread title is not true
bye bye beatboy

Nowhere in the quotes from Levy does he indicate that Spielberg has accepted release of his films on HD DVD under any circumstances (even under format neutral status)

Yes. And nowhere does he indicate that Speilberg has decided has decided to continue BD releases exclusively, or indeed release ANY highdef movies after the BD Close Encounters. That is there was a lack of statement on any of these and the rest is fabrication. Spielberg prefers BD, will release Close Encounters on BD, and has no stated current plans for either format after that.

The rest was made up by the IMDB article but was not a quote.

- Tom

Spielberg already sold the studio property, he is just still at partner there. He can leave like any attorney at a law firm could. It would just continue without him. Paramount owns the library already at this time. :)

I think that studios are nervous about "angering" Stevie. It's rather scary how much influence and power one guy has on the hollywood scene, but he has it.

Couldn't George Lucas/LFL also be part of a possible equation in regards to INDIANA JONES movies and their HD format fate? Even though they are SS films via Paramount, they are still first and foremost an LFL-owned property.

George Lucas is "best of friends" with Stephen. You better believe it they are discussing this Paramount decision and that George is as upset as Stephen if not more by it. I predict that it may dawn on them that it might be time to help Blu-Ray win as quickly as possible and a Star Wars on Blu-Ray announcement would end this format war in my opinion.. Believe me I want Blu-Ray to win in order to be able to watch my yet to be released films encoded to the highest possible bitrate while the audio is lossless. In other words I want both audio and video to be their best they can be. This is my greatest motivation and is why I will keep fighting for the Blu side and limit my HD-DVD purchases to "must have" exclusives only. First I predict that there is a very good chance we see a box-set of Indiana Jones as a Blu-Ray exclusive to be released with the Indy 4 film. If not, then as a box set by Christmas following its release. Either way a huge push for Blu-Ray at that time..

Threads merged, topic retitled.

George Lucas is "best of friends" with Stephen. You better believe it they are discussing this Paramount decision and that George is as upset as Stephen if not more by it. I predict that it may dawn on them that it might be time to help Blu-Ray win as quickly as possible and a Star Wars on Blu-Ray announcement would end this format war in my opinion.. Believe me I want Blu-Ray to win in order to be able to watch my yet to be released films encoded to the highest possible bitrate while the audio is lossless. In other words I want both audio and video to be their best they can be. This is my greatest motivation and is why I will keep fighting for the Blu side and limit my HD-DVD purchases to "must have" exclusives only. First I predict that there is a very good chance we see a box-set of Indiana Jones as a Blu-Ray exclusive to be released with the Indy 4 film. If not, then as a box set by Christmas following its release. Either way a huge push for Blu-Ray at that time..

where do ou come up with stuff like this? Do you honestly believe someone reads a post like this and thinks.....

"YEA, that makes a lot of sense...and judging by the poster its gotta be true."

just curious to you believe that?

Speilberg's support for Blu Ray is puzzling, none the less if he thinks any of his titles that he made under a Universal contract will ever be released on Blu Ray, he is smoking crack.

Its still very very unclear exactly what rights he has to his Universal movies, whatever it is, it is clear he can not release them on Blu Ray by himself.

So I guess if he doesn't want Jurrasic Park, Jaws, etc. to be seen in 1080P with lossless sound, fine, he can be that way, no sweat off my back.

At this point I personally don't care who wins. But its never going to takeoff mainstream (and get a lot cheaper) while theres 2 formats, actually 3 including std dvd.

George Lucas is "best of friends" with Stephen. You better believe it they are discussing this Paramount decision and that George is as upset as Stephen if not more by it. I predict that it may dawn on them that it might be time to help Blu-Ray win as quickly as possible and a Star Wars on Blu-Ray announcement would end this format war in my opinion.. Believe me I want Blu-Ray to win in order to be able to watch my yet to be released films encoded to the highest possible bitrate while the audio is lossless. In other words I want both audio and video to be their best they can be. This is my greatest motivation and is why I will keep fighting for the Blu side and limit my HD-DVD purchases to "must have" exclusives only. First I predict that there is a very good chance we see a box-set of Indiana Jones as a Blu-Ray exclusive to be released with the Indy 4 film. If not, then as a box set by Christmas following its release. Either way a huge push for Blu-Ray at that time..

But is there any proof that GL favors BD over HDDVD or vice versa?

With GL's track record of re-releasing SW on video ad nauseum, I'd think he'd rather issue SW himself (under the LFL banner/bypass FOX) on both formats to get more $$.

Take it with a grain of salt, but as I mentioned earlier....at the Euro SW CIV convention, Rick McCallum responded to the SW/HDM question that GL will wait out the format war before doing an HD SW release. If nothing happens/stalemate occurs, LFL will consider HD downloads instead.

I do agree that if FOX were to issue SW BD's today, we can all start calling BD the eventual winner again. Even though there A LOT of SW DVDs out there, you know that most will pony up again for an HD set.

SW could be to an HD format (to some extent, anyway) what many claim porn was to the VHS/Beta battle. "The Decider".

Quite frankly, I don't consider Star Wars *that* important. Yes it's important, but it won't win a war on its own.

Personally I have little to desire to buy it again on any format. I'm all Star Wars'd out after the bazillion rereleases.

...Believe me I want Blu-Ray to win in order to be able to watch my yet to be released films encoded to the highest possible bitrate while the audio is lossless. In other words I want both audio and video to be their best they can be...

Oh, you must mean like the upcoming release of Spiderman 1& 2. No way can HD DVD achieve this on a 30GB disc. :rolleyes:

Trust me, you'll be triple dipping with Sony in no time...

What makes you think that yet another release of Star Wars is going to be a format winner? Most of us probably have already double dipped on these titles and I for one have no intention of triple dipping at mrsp Maybe I will buy when they become budget.

Excellent news. :) I actually had a thread I started talking about this scenario occurring, which was deleted, called "Disaster scenario for HD DVD". I pointed out that Michael Bay wouldn't be the only Director upset at Paramounts move and that this may result in Spielberg deciding to release everything on Blu-Ray which makes up Paramounts biggest hits. In essence backfiring on HD-DVD by alienating their biggest director.This pretty much levels off any gains made by Paramounts exclusivity in my opinion. That makes Star Trek and Gladiator movie's the only ones I'll have to get on HD DVD while Disturbia and Transformers perhaps as well. However Indiana Jones 4 released with a box set on Blu-Ray would be HUGE. I see Spielberg ramping up production on it sooner than Spielberg probably originally intended to now based on Paramounts decision. I'm trying to look at the positives that still may come from prolonging the format war which aren't many. :)

Are you delusional? There are pages and pages of insightful comments which have ripped apart beatboy's preposterous mis-quotes and theories on Spielberg, yet you ignore them all and exclaim "Excellent news"!?!

Jaws, ET and Jurassic Park are ALL properties of Universal Studios and will NOT be seen on Blu-Ray! FACT! Deal with it! The article regarded Spielberg's Dreamworks' properties over which he still retains some control. Furthermore, he could only possibly demand they be dual format AT BEST! This, of course, all depends upon whether BD is even a viable format when the time presents itself.

Quite frankly, I don't consider Star Wars *that* important. Yes it's important, but it won't win a war on its own.

Personally I have little to desire to buy it again on any format. I'm all Star Wars'd out after the bazillion rereleases.

On it's own? Maybe, maybe not. But it would play a MAJOR role in the format war if it came out today.

Just like if Paramount were to issue THE GODFATHER set on HDDVD only.

That's the tough thing about this. While you may not be desiring various popular franchises/movie series, most consumers will be. As it stands today, BD gets, just to name a few:

STAR WARS
ALIEN
XMEN
DIE HARD
BOND

HDDVD gets:

THE GODFATHER
BOURNE
MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE
BACK TO THE FUTURE
and if he ends up with no say in it, Speilberg's
JURASSIC PARK
INDY JONES

WB and New Line gives you both for:

BATMAN
SUPERMAN
MATRIX (eventually both formats)
LOTR

What a mess!

What makes you think that yet another release of Star Wars is going to be a format winner? Most of us probably have already double dipped on these titles and I for one have no intention of triple dipping at mrsp Maybe I will buy when they become budget.

Because there are a lot of folks who will pony up for another SW release. They have before. The major decider? No. But, certainly shouldn't be considered as a non-issue. Esp. if an HDM set were to be a massive set of all 6 films wih all the "bonus materials" LFL has yet to release (old deleted scenes, etc). WHen SW hits an HD format, it's gonna sell...A LOT. To many people (just not for certain folks on the AVS Forums) having SW in your movie collection is akin to having the Bible on a bookshelf.

But it would play a MAJOR role in the format war if it came out today.
Well, we already know it won't come out today, or anytime in 2007, if Lucas's past history is any indication. In fact, I'd be surprised if he Star Wars released in 2008, on either format.

Threads merged, topic retitled.

Thanks for that, DrDon.

Are you starting to feel like markrubin bailed at just the right time? :D

"Are you starting to feel like markrubin bailed at just the right time? "

I wonder how much more the mods have to work on this site just because of Beatboy created threads?

Are you delusional? There are pages and pages of insightful comments which have ripped apart beatboy's preposterous mis-quotes and theories on Spielberg, yet you ignore them all and exclaim "Excellent news"!?!

Jaws, ET and Jurassic Park are ALL properties of Universal Studios and will NOT be seen on Blu-Ray! FACT! Deal with it! The article regarded Spielberg's Dreamworks' properties over which he still retains some control. Furthermore, he could only possibly demand they be dual format AT BEST! This, of course, all depends upon whether BD is even a viable format when the time presents itself.

Great Post!

Unfortunately you are talking to a brick wall . . . it won't get through.

Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray:

If the Spielberg titles do not get released on either format = Win for Blu-ray (They block the exclusivity of Paramount and Universal)

If the Spielberg titles get released on both formats = Big Win for Blu-ray (They share in the distribution/revenue of suppossedly exclusives studios)

If the Spielberg titles get released only on Blu-ray = HUGE Win for Blu-ray
(They pull-off a huge coup and get Paramount and Universal to release exclusive titles only on Blu-ray)

Only time will tell.

~Josh

And what happens if Universal and Paramount tell him to go jump in the lake because they refuse to release his films on BR? :rolleyes:

Are you delusional? There are pages and pages of insightful comments which have ripped apart beatboy's preposterous mis-quotes and theories on Spielberg, yet you ignore them all and exclaim "Excellent news"!?!

Jaws, ET and Jurassic Park are ALL properties of Universal Studios and will NOT be seen on Blu-Ray! FACT! Deal with it! The article regarded Spielberg's Dreamworks' properties over which he still retains some control. Furthermore, he could only possibly demand they be dual format AT BEST! This, of course, all depends upon whether BD is even a viable format when the time presents itself.

And the studios could pretty much tell him that they refuse to release those movies on either format until the war is resolved.

Close Encounters was available for free on Comcast HD On Demand for quite a while. It was a LOUSY transfer. Does anyone think SS controlled that availability? Did we hear him screaming about having it out there for NOTHING (basically)?

Close Encounters was available for free on Comcast HD On Demand for quite a while. It was a LOUSY transfer. Does anyone think SS controlled that availability? Did we hear him screaming about having it out there for NOTHING (basically)?


Watched that as well. Agree that it wasn't eye-popping, but still better than a typical SD TV airing. Doubt the BD looks anything like that. Guessing that guys like SS are not as concerned as to how their movies run on "free" TV. Or he doesn't have as much ,if any say, in it over the studios' TV syndication.

Lucas does/did w/ SW, apparently. From what I read eslewhere, the HD versions that ran on Cinemax/HBO were submitted in 2.35:1/DD5.1, and as per Lucas' request, were to be broadcast that way.

Speilberg can not block Univesal from releasing his films on HD DVD.

I'd love to see him try.

Now his Dreamworks films obviously are a different story, and since he owns a certain amount of the rights to them, he can state certain demands or provisions to Paramount/Dreamworks.

But his early movies are the property of Universal, and Universal alone.

Speilberg can not block Univesal from releasing his films on HD DVD.

I'd love to see him try.

Now his Dreamworks films obviously are a different story, and since he owns a certain amount of the rights to them, he can state certain demands or provisions to Paramount/Dreamworks.

But his early movies are the property of Universal, and Universal alone.

What about JAWS? Didn't Uni announce it on HDDVD a while back, then yank it after SS caught wind of it and put his foot down? Don't know that it had anything to do with not being in his "format of choice" or just the fact that he hadn't seen/been asked to be involved with such a transfer, but I do recall that some months back.

Now, OTOH, does the fact that CEOT3K is hitting BD mean the SS has in fact taken the blue pill? Have we heard that from his own mouth, not some publicist or promo person?

Perhaps SS doesn't want (or was asked...or PAID--talk of $$ changing hands being such a hot topic in this current leg of the war) to make his P/DW exception to avoid seeing BD have to compete out of the gate with his Uni-issued HDDVDs at least until after the BD sales buzz around that title dies down. Uni could--and probably should--crank out his flicks fairly soon, if they can. SS will collect his share.

What about JAWS? Didn't Uni announce it on HDDVD a while back, then yank it after SS caught wind of it and put his foot down? Don't know that it had anything to do with not being in his "format of choice" or just the fact that he hadn't seen/been asked to be involved with such a transfer, but I do recall that some months back.
Link?

Even if that were true, that just means neither format gets it.

Speilberg can not block Univesal from releasing his films on HD DVD.

I'd love to see him try.

Now his Dreamworks films obviously are a different story, and since he owns a certain amount of the rights to them, he can state certain demands or provisions to Paramount/Dreamworks.

But his early movies are the property of Universal, and Universal alone.



How many SS films are on HD DVD? What evidence do we have otherwise?

No proof he hasnt blocked them, and no proof that he has. All we know is that there are none available.

pretty certain if Universal wanted to they can release his films without his blessings. i dont see why they wont since spielberg no longer makes films for universal.

only real problem with universal doing this would be trying to involve him in any extra features. for sure director's commentary will not be present.

Link?

Even if that were true, that just means neither format gets it.

I'll see what I can find...but I know I read it both @ AICN and The Bits.

So take that for what it's worth.;)

edit: Here's a story that mentions the SS/Uni/HDDVD thing

http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/michael-bay-no-blu-ray-no-transformers-2/

And the HDDVD Group's "apology" to SS over the Uni HDDVD announcements

http://www.hddvdprg.com/eng/list.html

Why would neither get it, though? If it's just the case that he hadn't been asked to get invovled--or felt he should be--in HDDVDs of his films @ Uni, why wouldn't the studio delay/scratch the announced releases (and from what I remember, they were pretty preliminary) out of some sort of "favor" to him. Wait around, get Steve to get as involved as he needs/desires, and get a great HD release with enough goodies to entice re-dips of otherwise solid SD DVD releases. With someone like SS, a studio will listen..to a point.

only real problem with universal doing this would be trying to involve him in any extra features. for sure director's commentary will not be present.

UNi does own his films done on their dime. If they want to, they can crank 'em out w/o his seal of approval. Doubt he'd bitch much, 'cause he'll still collect his % of royalties. If need be, they do a new HD transfer of the films, and port over some old DVD extras. Anything with SS in it will just have to come from those. If one format "wins", SS and everyone's elses films will end up on said victor format at some point.

And involved or not, you'll probably never hear a SS commentary track. He has said in the press a few times that he hates 'em. Look at that as saving "limited" HDDVD disc space for higher quality PQ/AQ.;)

If random people on this internet forum can be so passionate about the format war, why can't directors who may even have a financial stake in it choose a side?

I mean it's like the people who complain about actors in politics. If a normal person got active in politics it's okay. But if an actor does it, its not okay? Where's the logic in that? Actors are people, and just like normal people, some will want to become active in politics. It doesn't make their politics right or wrong, it just makes them politically active. And if they choose to do that, so be it. Simply because their famous shouldn't limit their options.

well said!

If random people on this internet forum can be so passionate about the format war, why can't directors who may even have a financial stake in it choose a side?

I mean it's like the people who complain about actors in politics. If a normal person got active in politics it's okay. But if an actor does it, its not okay? Where's the logic in that? Actors are people, and just like normal people, some will want to become active in politics. It doesn't make their politics right or wrong, it just makes them politically active. And if they choose to do that, so be it. Simply because their famous shouldn't limit their options.

well said!

Concur with the well said part.

And nothing wrong with a director "picking sides". But, I'd think choosing one format over the other is limiting options....for more royalty $$. Spielberg's bank account won't be hurt if Uni cranks out ET/JAWS/JP HDDVDs w/o his involvement.

pretty certain if Universal wanted to they can release his films without his blessings. i dont see why they wont since spielberg no longer makes films for universal.

only real problem with universal doing this would be trying to involve him in any extra features. for sure director's commentary will not be present.Or they might want to work with him in the future. I don't know whether they could legally release the films against Spielberg's will, but here is Ken Graffeo's answer when asked about Spielberg titles (from a videotape of the event where he answered):

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/mytwocentsa141.html
Graffeo: In regards to the Spielberg, um... it wasn't... Steven wanted to wait for DVD til there was a higher penetration for that. Um... right now, with 100... 200,000 players and 150,000... he wants to wait til there's more penetration. Because, um... you know when you do release... and Jaws was the first Steven Spielberg that we came out with, and at that time we released we sold a million units. More than we'd ever sold on VHS. But you have to have, sort of like... I don't want to say critical mass, because you had close to 3 or 4 million households that had players... but it's too early now. And I think we have to work very close with our filmmakers because they have a very big part in what we do.--Darin

Also, remember that HDDVD has played it real smart till now...maybe they were working on the Paramount deal and decided to go ahead and wait till all the pieces are together and then release when more players are in homes...remember, everytime it has looked bad, they say..."just wait, don't panic, everything will fall into place, time is on our side"...like I heard someone say the other day here, when he went to one of those events where Amirm and the others showed off HDDVD...he said they told him "wait till the subsidies run out and you will see what happens"...not exactly his words, but similar to that...

It seems to me that if a filmmaker is truly passionate about his art, he would want as many people to see the film as possible.

Now that is logical, that and the filmmaker wanting as much money as possible.

So we can assume that Speilberg: a)wants money b)wants his films to be enjoyed by as many people as possible.

Thus for him to block Universal from releasing his films in HD DVD(eventhough he can't block them if he wanted to) really doesn't make any sense.

Now then again, picking sides is really irrational, and Speilberg is just a human being, so he can definitely be irrational.

But if he does support Blu Ray, to the point of wanting to block Universal, then his support is purely irrational.

My point is, until I hear Steven Spielberg come out and say it with all the details of his contracts and the power he has over distribution then I will continue to LOL at the bland and Beatboy because they are grasping at straws for any bit of BD fud they can find. We have had to listen to them start all kinds of Big News threads for the last year or so and now I get to laugh at them...this is the real benefit of this format war!!!

It would be nice to hear from Mr. Spielberg.

I believe Universal and Paramount can release whatever they choose to release on any format they prefer, in this case HD DVD, for the films they OWN.

I can not see Universal being forced to release a Spielberg film on BD when they do not support the format and sit on the HD DVD board, but also own the films. It would be like Spielberg holding the razor and telling Universal to slash their wrists. BD guys, I hope you don't expect that to happen

This actually would be a good case for studios to get more control over their directors, regardless of their stature to set some limits.

Anything can happen....but contracts or not Spielberg is the most powerful film maker and Hollywood and I am sure he can flex muscle and leverage issues he feels strongly about. The fact that the headlines also included pieces that Spielberg's films may or may not be included on HD DVD speaks to his leviathan status in Hollywood. Note, no other director's films are getting excluded.

Can someone summarise the discussions here for me?

I have not seen ANYTHING to date, apart from speculation by some BD-fan writers, that Spielberg has said he will ONLY release to Bluray. Am I incorrect here?

It would seem obvious to most people that the logical course of action for Spielberg would be to release on BOTH bluray and HD DVD.

Has anything actually shown this to NOT be the case?

Thanks for your help...

Anything can happen....but contracts or not Spielberg is the most powerful film maker and Hollywood and I am sure he can flex muscle and leverage issues he feels strongly about. The fact that the headlines also included pieces that Spielberg's films may or may not be included on HD DVD speaks to his leviathan status in Hollywood. Note, no other director's films are getting excluded.


Clinging to a morsel.......lol

Obviously he cant hold his prior films hostage all he can do is get mad and go direct elsewhere....his last few movies have been lame anyway. He is like a running back without a good offensive line now.:)

We'll see. He strikes as a guy in Hollywood not to make enemies with. Who knows.... Universal would love to have him back. Why burn bridges. No one knows at this point but Spielberg holds extraordinary power so it isn't as simplistic as a contract. Moreover, none of us knows what is in his contract as he left Universal. Spielberg is a smart guy...I am sure there are provisions for his Universal projects that may be problematic for Universal...

This goes on and on.

None of us has any idea what Spielberg can and will do as far as releasing any other movies in any hidef format. He has not said and his contracts are not public. And to a great extent we are quoting sources that know no more than we do.

It is an excercise in self-hypnotism.

- Tom

I think he is too busy filming Indiana Jones 4 for Paramount to care about the HD DVD/BLU RAY war.

Did I read, not too far back, that Michael Bay said he would not do "Transformers 2" because he was very angry with Paramount for going HD exclusively? Well, according to Bay himself, he overreacted, after a wine and dine meeting with some blu dudes, but has now, apparently, seen the light and Transformers 2 is back on the drawing board

http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2153898,00.html

I wonder how hard it would have been for Paramount to find an A level director to replace him had he stood firm?

beatboy - it's rather a shame that you feel you must misquote Marvin Levy in order to make Spielberg's support for bluray appear to be more than it really is.

Marvin Levy did not state "big supporter" - his real quote is here at the Spielberg Films website: http://www.spielbergfilms.com/dreamworks/1505

"Steven is a supporter of Blu-Ray but is not exclusive to either format."

Also, it's rather unsurprisingthat the link you provide as evidence is only a "blogged" misquote on IMDB, rather than the offical source that I have provided above...

http://imdb.com/news/sb/2007-08-22/[/url]

~Josh

Sorry Stevie....
I just got all the Back to the Future movies in HD for free taped to DVHS. I could care less about anything else you own. Same goes for you George!

Oh.... BTW, David Geffen is a virus.

Face it people, blu-ray will win and there is not a damn thing HD-DVD can do about it. The Paramount/Dreamworks incident will only postpone it's eventual death. We need one format for christ's sake in order for HD to beat DVD. Blu-ray is it.

We need one format for christ's sake in order for HD to beat DVD. Blu-ray is it?

To answer your question, Blu Ray it is not.

We need one format for christ's sake ...

Ahh! So to some this really is a religious holy war. ;)

- Tom

I think the spelberg thing could change at anytime. He may be blu now. But if thiers just as much or more money to be made on the Hd_DVD side.he will change.
I'd really like to know why he like blu-ray over HD-DVD. You'd think itd be about the best way to present his movies. Which both formats can offer.


I wonder how many blu-ray folks they'll lose when the new profiles come. Those who don't know about them won't be able to play some extras on their player. Only to discover the players is obsolte. Yes those that come here do know and will live with not having everything or they have upgraded the player. Not to say HD-DVD dosent have its issues. But thiers been firmware updates to fix just about everything so far. Older players my not do 24p but that's not going to effect the movie or extras playback

Eitherway it's a win-win situation for Blu-ray:

If the Spielberg titles do not get released on either format = Win for Blu-ray (They block the exclusivity of Paramount and Universal)

No, this would be a big LOSE for EVERYONE.


If the Spielberg titles get released on both formats = Big Win for Blu-ray (They share in the distribution/revenue of suppossedly exclusives studios)

This would be either a TIE, or a WIN for EVERYONE.


If the Spielberg titles get released only on Blu-ray = HUGE Win for Blu-ray
(They pull-off a huge coup and get Paramount and Universal to release exclusive titles only on Blu-ray)

Only time will tell.

~Josh

This one would be a big win for blu-ray. However it's the most unlikely of the possibilities.

You're apparently a big fan of blu-ray. Thats all well and good.

Your'e credibility however is non-existant. You get movies ahead of everyone else since you do reviews on a few websites. This doesn't make you an "authority" on reasoned thinking.

I always saw posts dismissing "beatboy" as a blu-troll but never saw anything to warrant it until now. I stay out of the blu side of the forums, maybe that's why it took until now to agree with that assessment. At one point I defended your posts, unsure what the source of the strong reactions was. That's no longer the case.

I think people do not understand the "Spielberg exemption" in the ParaDream deal. Because of Spielberg's special arrangement regarding distribution, they simply carved him out of the general agreement. It doesn't mean Steven phoned Paramount all fevered insisting his movies MUST be made available in BD and HD. It's merely that the agreement was negotiated around Spielberg in order to get the thing done. Those who think this means that Saving Private Ryan will be release on both HD and BR is mistaken - it does not mean that. It means merely the exclusivity agreement does not include those Spielberg films. And there is nothing that prevents them from simply coming to terms on those movies later on - they simply put them in a side pot, for now.

Did I read, not too far back, that Michael Bay said he would not do "Transformers 2" because he was very angry with Paramount for going HD exclusively? Well, according to Bay himself, he overreacted, after a wine and dine meeting with some blu dudes, but has now, apparently, seen the light and Transformers 2 is back on the drawing board

http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2153898,00.html

I wonder how hard it would have been for Paramount to find an A level director to replace him had he stood firm?The HD DVD exclusivity is for 1.5 year, expect the T2 disc release around the end of it.

Orignally Posed by K.L.
The HD DVD exclusivity is for 1.5 year, expect the T2 disc release around the end of it.

First, don't blapheme one of the greatest action films ever created... There is only ONE "T2" and that belongs to James Cameron. :p

As for Transformers 2 by the end of the 18 month exclusive window... What, they've already got a script and are shooting for a 2008 release date?

C'mon it going to be at least 24 months before the next film could even have a shot at being released...

fitprod

Spielberg should stay out of the Blu-ray/HD-DVD debate and put the smack down hard on TNT HD. They vertically stretched Jaws last night. It looked horrible.

I wish he would greenlight Universal to release it, to do the OAR justice. Same goes for Dreamworks (and the one psuedo Kubrick film at Warner) to release his recent classics on BOTH formats.

Jaws on the Universal HD channel was the shizzle...

Wow...for months we've been hearing about how HD DVD was the "choice" of film-lovers and BD was just a bunch of gamers, but now that Spielberg, Bay, Coppola, and Cameron are either prefering BD or complaining about a lack of neutrality it's "like celebrities getting involved in politics"???
I feel they may just have been funnel-fed a lot of the kool-aid - not their fault. Were they to spend 1 week dedicated to reading this forum, they'd have a better handle on the true strengths and weaknesses of each of the formats.

Bluray's strength, perhaps is scmoozing and "talk" - anyone feel that it was mere coincidence that Michael Bay came home "exhuberant" after a night drinking with two Bluray people - who no doubt filled him with FUD regarding the Paramount decision - before making his infamous Posting-under-the-Influence faux-pas?

HD DVD's strength, perhaps, is "doing" - getting the specs done, getting the new players out, getting the prices down. In the long run, the "doing" will win out over the "talking".