http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/10/123_12659.html

Interesting article. Seems like Asia is really going Blu.


I own the HD DVD version of Transformers, but will definitely import the Blu-ray version, especially because it will likely have lossless audio (either PCM or Dolby TruHD).

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/10/123_12659.html

Interesting article. Seems like Asia is really going Blu.


I own the HD DVD version of Transformers, but will definitely import the Blu-ray version, especially because it will likely have lossless audio (either PCM or Dolby TruHD).

Haven't you heard TruHD isn't lossless.;)

Apples
Working hard so you don't have to!

Is Transformers getting a Korean Blu-ray release? That article never said that.

Transformers was huge in Korea (and China) though.

In Korea, Warner and Sony Pictures are planning to release some 50 movie titles for either Blu-ray and HD-DVD formats by December, including blockbusters such as ``The Transformers.''

Says in the last paragraph but its probably refering to the old version.

Says in the last paragraph but its probably refering to the old version.


It refers to it as the "blockbuster" which probably means the new one.

Also Korea is in the same region as the USA so the disk will play on any USA player.

Also the distribution rights to Transfromers are not owned by Paramount in Korea. They are owned by a group that is Blu-ray exclsuive. :)

If it has lossless it will be definitely worth importing even for people like me that already have the HD DVD version.

I read this also:

Neither of Blu-ray and HD-DVD gained a strong foothold in Korea or in other countries. In the beginning, they received a lot of attention from the industry, which thought they would soon replace the vernacular DVD discs. However, as of now fewer than 40 movie titles are available in Korea and none of them have sold more than 2,000 copies.

Says in the last paragraph but its probably refering to the old version.
Its almost certainly referring to the new version, but the distributor for Transformers was a Korean company called CJ Entertainment. The sentence doesn't support the claim, really.

In a strange twist of fate, all HD DVD titles are being released by Sony Pictures Korea, who distributes Universal's film library here. On the back of every HD DVD it says "Distributed by Sony Pictures Korea" in Korean. They have released maybe 10 HD DVDs since launching the format in August this year. Blu-ray was released in August of 2006.

Edit: I'll pick up some Korean magazines and see if I can translate some articles if anybody is interested in the situation over here.

Korea is our only hope for Michael Blu-Bay's Transformers on Blu-ray. :)

I will double dip on Transformers provided it gets LOSSLESS audio on BD.

I read this also:
Neither of Blu-ray and HD-DVD gained a strong foothold in Korea or in other countries. In the beginning, they received a lot of attention from the industry, which thought they would soon replace the vernacular DVD discs. However, as of now fewer than 40 movie titles are available in Korea and none of them have sold more than 2,000 copies. Sony DADC throws out more discs than that every month. :p

Hi Mike... I'm in Seoul. If I can buy Transformers on Blu-ray, I'll freak. I'll also send back a ton to sell on E-bay in the USA next time around.

Blu-ray players (even Samsung and LG, made here) are still horribly overpriced in Korea (around $1,000). At least there is the PS3, at over $500. They aren't real hot sellers. The problem is that little Blu-ray content has Korean subs.

They are actually selling a few blu-rays in Costco now. They had a Sony blu-ray player running in Costco at Yangjae yesterday, and they were using only the RCA output. Duh! I wanted to shoot someone. They had 20 TVs boosted and running off of that, and it looked like crap. They were playing Spidey 3.

Still not a lot of BR selection here in Korea. I have sold a few on auction.co.kr , and purchased some at Technomart on the video floor. There were a few HD-DVDs, but I haven't looked in a few months.

Sometimes I wonder if I don't own the largest Blu-ray collection in Korea (almost 80 discs now). I brought nearly all of them over from the USA during the summer, and have shipped some from Amazon.

Hmmmm...."Transformers" with a lossless audio track ? I'd like the hear it for comparison's sake but I don't know that I want to pay a price premium for such a shallow movie.

I don't care what Korea adopts as long as where I live I get what I want. You are welcome to move to Korea.

Samsung sold an expensive dual player that can play both Blu-ray and HD-DVD formats. Recent moves, however, showed that the electronics giant has finally settled on the Blu-Ray side. Last week, it launched a 600000 won Blu-Ray player, far more affordable than the one-million won model first introduced last year. The following weekend, the firm held a public showcase for the P1400 player and other beam projectors at the COEX exhibition center in southern Seoul together with Sony Pictures. The event was watched by members of DVD Prime, a prominent movie society on the Internet.

Korea Telecom, the telephone and Internet line operator, made a more ambitious move to utilize the HD video fever. The company said last month that it would soon connect its Internet-based TV broadcasting service to Sony's PlayStation 3 game console for the first time in the world. This is supposed to be a win-win strategy, as consumers will be able to use the console box as a Blu-ray player and set-top box for HD TV, it said.

The Blu-ray technology uses a blue-violet laser to read and write the disc. Because of the shorter wavelength of the blue-violet laser, compared to the red laser used for DVDs and CDs, it can store up to 25 gigabytes of information on a single disk, about five times more than a DVD.

In comparison to HD-DVD, which also uses a blue laser, Blu-ray disc has more information capacity per layer, but is known to be more costly to manufacturer.

One of the two formats was thought to replace the current DVD format to become a new market standard by around next year. But so far, the transition to the HD format has been far slower than expected due to high prices and lack of content.

Market reports are showing that the Blu-ray has nevertheless taken a sharp edge over HD-DVD in the format war worldwide. According to Home Media Magazine, American consumers bought 2.6 million Blu-ray discs in the first nine months of the year and just 1.4 million HD-DVD discs.

In Korea, Warner and Sony Pictures are planning to release some 50 movie titles for either Blu-ray and HD-DVD formats by December, including blockbusters such as ``The Transformers.''Thank god Korea is in Region 1. Is there any other place that sells Transformers or other Paramount movies in Blu-ray?

However, as of now fewer than 40 movie titles are available in Korea and none of them have sold more than 2,000 copies.

That constitutes Blu-Ray "taking momentum"?

Ugh. Both formats are in more dire shape than we thought...

Neither of Blu-ray and HD-DVD gained a strong foothold in Korea or in other countries. In the beginning, they received a lot of attention from the industry, which thought they would soon replace the vernacular DVD discs. However, as of now fewer than 40 movie titles are available in Korea and none of them have sold more than 2,000 copies. :eek::eek::eek:

With "momentum" like that, I'd hate to see what stagnation looks like :p

Articles in Korea about the format war are crappy, and articles translated into English are even crappier. Samsung is firm Blu-ray in Korea because there is absolutely no other choice. Toshiba doesn't sell any products except laptops. The 360 has mostly English only games, and the HD DVD add-on is $200 and only available on special order in stores or the internet. HD DVD has no chance at all, especially with Sony distributing the HD DVDs, which is still the strangest thing I've seen yet out of this format war.

That said, I'm fighting the losing battle here in Korea with HD DVD only at this point. I'm only going to buy into Blu-ray when I can get a region 3 dual format player, but this looks less likely as time goes on.

Mike, did you ship your HD-DVD player here to Korea? Or sneak it past customs? I've never seen one for sale (other than the expensive LG combos) in Korea.

You should look into getting a BR drive for your computer, and do some sort of home theater PC thing.

Is the Korean version of Transformers going to have a bonus scene where they play StarCraft in a net cafe?

baccusboy, I'm taking you up if it hits ;)

Mike, did you ship your HD-DVD player here to Korea? Or sneak it past customs? I've never seen one for sale (other than the expensive LG combos) in Korea.

You should look into getting a BR drive for your computer, and do some sort of home theater PC thing.

I've got the add-on right now because I had a 360 already. My parents came out to Korea on vacation and they brought it here. I don't even have a proper home theater setup yet (32 inch LCD), so waiting for the combo player isn't a big problem for me. I'm just kind of doubting they're going to release it. The article (kind of) mentions that Warner is going to be releasing HD DVD titles in Korea (the new Kubricks have Korean subtitles). I'm going to track down some Korean language articles and confirm, but maybe we'll see some dual format players.

This is just a puff piece ad for Samsung. In addiotn, the last paragraph says:

"In Korea, Warner and Sony Pictures are planning to release some 50 movie titles for either Blu-ray and HD-DVD formats by December, including blockbusters such as ``The Transformers.''

Key part here "either Blu-Ray and HD DVD" see the and bit, and HD DVD It's amazing the FUD panic people spin these days.

No mention of Transformers on BD. Amazing the spin put on every little article.

wow a veritable tsunami of BD support. 40 titles all selling less than 2k copies.

can I have some of your kool aid?

This is just a puff piece ad for Samsung. In addiotn, the last paragraph says:

"In Korea, Warner and Sony Pictures are planning to release some 50 movie titles for either Blu-ray and HD-DVD formats by December, including blockbusters such as ``The Transformers.''

Key part here "either Blu-Ray and HD DVD" see the and bit, and HD DVD It's amazing the FUD panic people spin these days.

No mention of Transformers on BD. Amazing the spin put on every little article.

This is very typical of a translated article in Korean news. I've found nothing in Korean sites about any Transformers release on Blu-ray. However, I still haven't found the original of this article yet.

wow a veritable tsunami of BD support. 40 titles all selling less than 2k copies.

can I have some of your kool aid?

I thought the red punch was good enough for you? :)

Here's what I was talking about with the HD DVDs here. The bottom line says "Imported and distributed by: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Korea"

So now 40 movies available is momentum?

Maybe the HDM market in Korea is equal to 1/2 of that in Wyoming.

Desperation on the Blu-Side is clearly apparent

http://stor-age.zdnet.com.cn/stor-age/2007/0907/495415.shtml

What about China? They are 95% of Asia right? If you read to the bottom of the page there is enough english so you'll get the picture.

Click the photos to enlarge and read the face plates.

with this news, the war is definitely over!

So now 40 movies available is momentum?

Maybe the HDM market in Korea is equal to 1/2 of that in Wyoming.

Desperation on the Blu-Side is clearly apparent


weinstein sold way less then 4000 hddvds in the US, hence them stop outputting movies. Besides, either way "transformers" on blu ray is a huge news for import, especially with most likely PCM track.

In a strange twist of fate, all HD DVD titles are being released by Sony Pictures Korea, who distributes Universal's film library here. On the back of every HD DVD it says "Distributed by Sony Pictures Korea" in Korean. They have released maybe 10 HD DVDs since launching the format in August this year. Blu-ray was released in August of 2006.

Edit: I'll pick up some Korean magazines and see if I can translate some articles if anybody is interested in the situation over here.

Hi Mike, do you have a link for an online retailer for Korean HD DVDs (not yesasia)?
Thanks

Blu-Ray is taking over the world. Unlike hddvd which are counting on the "walmart American".

Hi Mike, do you have a link for an online retailer for Korean HD DVDs (not yesasia)?
Thanks

There's nothing worth purchasing. All of the titles are actually repackaged European imports from Universal. There are no Korean-only titles. Hopefully this will change soon.

There's nothing worth purchasing. All of the titles are actually repackaged European imports from Universal. There are no Korean-only titles. Hopefully this will change soon.

Sorry Mike i was after western movies with chinese subs, not the local movies (not that there are not enygood movies locally).
Thanks

Sorry Mike i was after western movies with chinese subs, not the local movies (not that there are not enygood movies locally).
Thanks

I've bought six of the ten or so locally released movies and none of them have Chinese subs. I'm actually looking for high def media with either Korean or Chinese subs as well. My girlfriend is Korean-Chinese and speaks both fluently, so I'm trying to restrict my purchases to those.

How is the market in Hong Kong for high def?

So Kim Jung Ill can watch Eragon in HD. Great


JK:)

Brian,

Howzit? Are you doing ok?

As to the kool aid. Well, if it can make the Korean market look like momentum, then it must be some really good s***, and I'll try.

Heck, I have nothing against BD. If there were many movies that I REALLY wanted, I would be tempted to spring for a PS3. The thing is, there are only maybe 6 or so movies that I or the family would want right now. And it would be difficult to buy one, especially since we have to get a 360, because the wife is itching to play Halo 3. Most of what we have on the HD DVD side are Universal titles.

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/10/123_12659.html

Interesting article. Seems like Asia is really going Blu.


I own the HD DVD version of Transformers, but will definitely import the Blu-ray version, especially because it will likely have lossless audio (either PCM or Dolby TruHD).


Apples, importing for dialog in Korean? What a worthless read.

Blu-Ray is taking over the world. Unlike hddvd which are counting on the "walmart American".

What's so funny when Walmart's GDP is larger than most of the countries all over the world.

http://timworstall.typepad.com/timworstall/2004/09/the_observer_ge.html

Just a few facts and figures fill out the picture. Wal-Mart is the biggest company on earth. Its sales last year of $256 billion were more than the GDP of Poland. If it were a country, it would be ranked 19th in wealth in the world. With a staff of 1.5 million it has more men and women in uniform than the US army. Compared to that, Microsoft and News International are bit players in the game of capitalism.

What's so funny when Walmart's GDP is larger than most of the countries all over the world.

http://timworstall.typepad.com/timworstall/2004/09/the_observer_ge.html

Just a few facts and figures fill out the picture. Wal-Mart is the biggest company on earth. Its sales last year of $256 billion were more than the GDP of Poland. If it were a country, it would be ranked 19th in wealth in the world. With a staff of 1.5 million it has more men and women in uniform than the US army. Compared to that, Microsoft and News International are bit players in the game of capitalism.

Wal-mart is not located all over the world though. Mostly in North America. Blu-ray is vastly winning or is THE ONLY CHOICE in many countries around the world.

Walmart may have more money than some countries, but they are not a country. They are sellers not buyers. What they purchase in merchandise (to sell) does not figure in to sales figures like Neilsen.

Wal-mart is not located all over the world though. Mostly in North America. Blu-ray is vastly winning or is THE ONLY CHOICE in many countries around the world.

Walmart may have more money than some countries, but they are not a country. They are sellers not buyers. What they purchase in merchandise (to sell) does not figure in to sales figures like Neilsen.

Walmart is growing rapidly in China, the largest market in the world. The Chinese version of HDDVD will likely prevail resulting in very cheap manufacturing costs for HDDVD due to economies of scale. Check that up as yet another advantage for HDDVD. Europe can be conquered as soon as the HDDVD standalone prices drop considerably as they have in America. Japan has a love affair with Sony so they'll always be Blu; same with South Korea and Samsung. Those two countries alone cannot keep BluRay alive.

Am I alone in thinking that 500 disc sales in Korea is completely meaningless and irrelevant to the outcome of the "war"? ...thought not :rolleyes:

Walmart is growing rapidly in China, the largest market in the world. The Chinese version of HDDVD will likely prevail resulting in very cheap manufacturing costs for HDDVD due to economies of scale. Check that up as yet another advantage for HDDVD. Europe can be conquered as soon as the HDDVD standalone prices drop considerably as they have in America. Japan has a love affair with Sony so they'll always be Blu; same with South Korea and Samsung. Those two countries alone cannot keep BluRay alive.

Given that explanation there will also be cheaper blu-ray players. And although China is much larger than Japan, it is Japan that has a larger say in the electronics world. And Europe is mostly Blu-ray. Even some countries will or have gotten Transformers on Blu-ray.

Another reason hddvd wont survive is because manufacturers do not want to lose money on them. Blu-ray players make money. Hd players make pennies if any. Toshiba is not big enough to conquer the world themselves with their low-to-no profit players.

There was a recent survey on the format war from Asian countries in BBC world. Many who have done a pre-mature migration to HD DVD will soon become hybrid or may jump ship to BD when the BD hardware / software prices drop. Please be informed that Asia is not a cheap market for hi-end stuffs like the U.S. Average price of BD / HD DVD software is still around $32-$45 with very few players available at exorbitant rates. BDP-S1 in India/Singapore costs between $1000-$1300 and is considered to be latest. My mind says that BD will have a wide presence and more recognition due to the aggressive marketing. BDA should figure out means to get rid-off the Region Coding as Asian markets like India, Singapore, China, Malaysia, Thailand etc have an extreme aversion towards Region Coding / RCE.

Walmart is growing rapidly in China, the largest market in the world. The Chinese version of HDDVD will likely prevail resulting in very cheap manufacturing costs for HDDVD due to economies of scale. Check that up as yet another advantage for HDDVD. Europe can be conquered as soon as the HDDVD standalone prices drop considerably as they have in America. Japan has a love affair with Sony so they'll always be Blu; same with South Korea and Samsung. Those two countries alone cannot keep BluRay alive.
What. China isn't the largest market in the world, the Chinese version of HD-DVD might prevail, but theres no economies of scale involved until it actually gets scale, and its very unclear that HD-DVD will conquer NA with cheap prices, let alone the uphill battle of Europe.

Apples, importing for dialog in Korean? What a worthless read.

It will have the original english with subs that can be turned off.

My guess is you have not imported many HDM titles, 99% have the original english soundtrack.

the reason I posted this article was due to the fact that

~~Transformers is coming to Blu-ray in the same region as the USA~~

the other stuff is irrelevant.


Many people are going to import this, if it has lossless I'll definitely be replacing my HD DVD version.

I've bought six of the ten or so locally released movies and none of them have Chinese subs. I'm actually looking for high def media with either Korean or Chinese subs as well. My girlfriend is Korean-Chinese and speaks both fluently, so I'm trying to restrict my purchases to those.

How is the market in Hong Kong for high def?
Good if you like spanish subs! :rolleyes:
We have a couple of online rental stores doing BR but no HD DVD as of yet.
http://hkvdo.com/index.php

There was a recent survey on the format war from Asian countries in BBC world. Many who have done a pre-mature migration to HD DVD will soon become hybrid or may jump ship to BD when the BD hardware / software prices drop. Please be informed that Asia is not a cheap market for hi-end stuffs like the U.S. Average price of BD / HD DVD software is still around $32-$45 with very few players available at exorbitant rates. BDP-S1 in India/Singapore costs between $1000-$1300 and is considered to be latest. My mind says that BD will have a wide presence and more recognition due to the aggressive marketing. BDA should figure out means to get rid-off the Region Coding as Asian markets like India, Singapore, China, Malaysia, Thailand etc have an extreme aversion towards Region Coding / RCE.
Not true whatsoever. I pay around 23US for HD DVDs & abit more for BR titles (Fox are sometimes 5bucks more!) locally here in Hong Kong.
Then there is the 2nd hand market ;)

Am I alone in thinking that 500 disc sales in Korea is completely meaningless and irrelevant to the outcome of the "war"? ...thought not :rolleyes: How many 10's of thousands of Transformers discs are we going to buy from there? hmmmmm

Given that explanation there will also be cheaper blu-ray players. And although China is much larger than Japan, it is Japan that has a larger say in the electronics world. And Europe is mostly Blu-ray. Even some countries will or have gotten Transformers on Blu-ray.

Another reason hddvd wont survive is because manufacturers do not want to lose money on them. Blu-ray players make money. Hd players make pennies if any. Toshiba is not big enough to conquer the world themselves with their low-to-no profit players.

One company is all it takes. Toshiba at $199 is beating all the BluRay standalones combined. Same will happen in Europe once HDDVD has conquered America. Japan may have some influence but if it was a major factor, we'd all be listening to minidiscs today. Toshiba with the Chinese manufacturers will win in the end.

What. China isn't the largest market in the world, the Chinese version of HD-DVD might prevail, but theres no economies of scale involved until it actually gets scale, and its very unclear that HD-DVD will conquer NA with cheap prices, let alone the uphill battle of Europe.

Depends on the holidays, if the $199 Toshibas fly off shelves, BluRay is halfway to the grave here. And it won't be such an uphill battle for Europe once Toshiba offers the same aggressive pricing there.

the reason I posted this article was due to the fact that

~~Transformers is coming to Blu-ray in the same region as the USA~~

the other stuff is irrelevant.

Then you picked a horrible and misleading thread title.

I wonder if a Korean Blu-ray "Transformers" which included a English PCM soundtrack might actually outsell the Paramount USA HD DVD version over time.......?

Blu-Ray is taking over the world. Unlike hddvd which are counting on the "walmart American".

This is a pathetic thread, and this post is the most absurd. "Taking over the world" in Korea?!? Are you serious? NOBODY is buying into either format with the exception of the US and possibly Japan -- and even then, it's advancing terribly slow.

How many 10's of thousands of Transformers discs are we going to buy from there? hmmmmm

That article is not referring to Paramount's Transformers! It claims that Sony & Warner would be releasing films in Korea, and neither have the rights to this film. Transformers is owned all over the world by Paramount / Dreamworks, Universal, and United International Pictures, which is a joint-venture between Paramount & Universal. CJ Entertainment has the theatrical distribution for Transformers in Korea from their earlier investment in Dreamworks.

Transformers will NOT be on Blu-Ray anywhere in the world unless the HD landscape changes in the future.

Not true whatsoever. I pay around 23US for HD DVDs & abit more for BR titles (Fox are sometimes 5bucks more!) locally here in Hong Kong.
Then there is the 2nd hand market ;)

The last time I visited HK(Back in March), HD/BD were so ridiculously pricey. They were like $440 HKD a piece at Sino Centre.

It will have the original english with subs that can be turned off.

My guess is you have not imported many HDM titles, 99% have the original english soundtrack.

the reason I posted this article was due to the fact that

~~Transformers is coming to Blu-ray in the same region as the USA~~

the other stuff is irrelevant.


Many people are going to import this, if it has lossless I'll definitely be replacing my HD DVD version.

No, it is not.

This site never ceases to amaze me. Transformers will not be arriving on BD in Korea, or anywhere else for that matter.

No, it is not.

This site never ceases to amaze me. Transformers will not be arriving on BD in Korea, or anywhere else for that matter.

It hasn't been confirmed or denied (I still haven't found the original article yet), but stranger things have happened, such as Sony distributing HD DVDs here in Korea.

It hasn't been confirmed or denied (I still haven't found the original article yet), but stranger things have happened, such as Sony distributing HD DVDs here in Korea.

If you even go to the official Korean sire fot eh movie, it has Paramounts name all over the gaff.

This is the biggest bunch of FUD ever, even for this site. Someone, says, Oh I think. Next thing you know it's fact, and people start talking about selling more Korean copies than Hd DVD copies.

What a joke. This site has definately lost any credibility over this format issue. It's gotten stupid and out of hand.

The last time I visited HK(Back in March), HD/BD were so ridiculously pricey. They were like $440 HKD a piece at Sino Centre.

Iv never seen HD DVDs at that price. Right now HMV has both formats and gouges the prices, most are over 230HKD. If you head to MK (as most locals do) you can find them for 180HKD.

By the way, perhaps the BD version of Transformers is the original cartoon from the 80's. That would be a BD release.

Also the rumour is Finland also. But since the HD DVD version is being released there, with different cover art that looks less likely I'd say:

http://www.discshop.fi/shop/ds_produkt.php?lang=&id=59463&lang=fi&subsite=movies&&ref=#