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11 March 2008

Lionsgate announced this week that it is working with Apple to provide Digital Copy for iTunes. Beginning Rambo and The Eye, Lionsgate will include an additional digital copy on select DVD and Blu-ray releases that can be transferred to iTunes and then played back on a computer, iPod, iPhone or Apple TV.

LIONSGATE (NYSE: LGF), the leading independentfilmed entertainment studio, announced today that it is working with Appleto provide Digital Copy for iTunes, affording customers who purchase selectDVDs with an additional iTunes Digital Copy of the movie. Just like moviespurchased from the iTunes Store, an iTunes Digital Copy can effortlessly betransferred to iTunes and then viewed on a PC or Mac, iPod with video,iPhone or on widescreen television with Apple TV.

The first Lionsgate DVDs to debut with iTunes Digital Copy will be thespecial edition DVD and Blu-ray releases of "Rambo," the latest installmentin the popular action franchise starring Sylvester Stallone and "The Eye,"the supernatural thriller starring Jessica Alba. "Rambo" will be availableat retail May 27th and "The Eye" will be released on DVD this summer.Lionsgate and Apple will deliver numerous additional Lionsgate films on DVDwith iTunes Digital Copy later this year.

If you'd like to read more, Lionsgate's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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07 March 2008

Over the last few weeks, there have been rumors indicating that Microsoft was working on a Blu-ray addon for the Xbox 360. The Financial Times is now reporting that Sony is in talks with Microsoft about adopting Blu-ray. According to the article, Microsoft could incorporate a Blu-ray drive into the Xbox 360 or offer support via an addon, similar to their HD DVD player.

But after Sony’s victory last month in the high-definition DVD format war, Stan Glasgow, Sony Electronics US president, said the two sides were now talking about Microsoft adopting Blu-ray.

A Blu-ray drive in a 360 would make Microsoft more competitive with the PS3, but it would also mean extra revenues for Sony’s electronics division. It would also add further cost to the 360, meaning a premium edition of the console could be necessary.

A Blu-ray drive could be incorporated in its top-of-the-range Elite Xbox, or Microsoft could again offer a drive as a plug-in peripheral.

While I don't see Microsoft incorporting a Blu-ray drive into the Xbox 360, an addon drive is a probably a given at this point. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment

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06 March 2008

Circuit City has launched a new program, allowing those that purchased an HD DVD player within the last 90 days to trade it in toward a Blu-ray player. According to Gizmodo, the company is not promoting this trade in program and that consumers will need to specifically ask for it.

According to a Circuit City employee in Chicago, the consumer electronics chain is trading in HD DVD players bought into their stores "within 3 months of the announcement," as opposed to their 30-day return policy. According to the internal memo announcing the demise of the format, they will either give customers a Blu-ray player—paying the price difference, if any—or a gift card. The trade-in, however, will not be widely promoted and it will be only made available if the customer asks for it.

In order to qualify for the trade in program, you will need your receipt, the original box the player came in and all of the accessories. Hopefully, this means that we'll see similar trade in programs from other retailers, like Best Buy, in the near future. Feel free to share your thoughts in the forum. Add a comment

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06 March 2008

Samsung has reportedly cancelled their second gen Duo HD player, the BD-UP5500. In a statement issued to PC World, the company announced that, following Toshiba's decision to drop HD DVD, the window of opportunity for a dual format player is smaller than before and that consumers should move forward with Blu-ray.

The company's statement today notes that "now that Blu-ray has been chosen as the next-generation format, the consumer can move forward with confidence and enjoy the incredible experience that Blu-ray offers. Samsung believes that a multi-format player like the current BD-UP5000 Duo HD Player (Duo) offers the best and only solution for consumers that want access to all available High-Definition (HD) titles in the short term. It remains a practical solution, but the window of opportunity is smaller than it was before. In light of recent announcements, Samsung will not introduce the BD-UP5500 Duo HD Player."

If you'd like to read more, the entire blog post can be found here. Add a comment

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04 March 2008

While Toshiba lost the format war, they aren't giving up on the consumer electronics market. In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Toshiba Chief Executive, Atsutoshi Nishida, stated that the company plans to work on bringing content from the PC to the television and focus on "upconverting" DVD players.

"What people don't realize is that Hollywood studios are going to release new titles not just for Blu-ray but for standard DVDs as well, and there are a far greater number of current-generation DVD players out there. If you watch standard DVDs on our players, the images are of very high quality because they include an "upconverting" feature. And we're going to improve this even more, so that consumers won't be able to tell the difference from HD DVD images. The players would be much cheaper than Blu-ray players too. Next-generation DVD players are in a much weaker position than when standard DVD players were first introduced."

Toshiba's HD DVD players were very good at upconverting standard DVD's. It will be interesting to see if they can improve the image quality to deliver near HD DVD quality on their DVD players. If you'd like to read more, the entire interview can be found here. Add a comment

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03 March 2008

Broadcom has announced that it has acquired Sunext Design, Inc. By purchasing Sunext Design and licensing technologies from its parent company, Sunext Technology, Broadcom hopes to integrate Blu-ray Disc capabilities into its next generation consumer electronics products.

Broadcom Corporation (Nasdaq: BRCM), a global leader in semiconductors for wired and wireless communications, today announced that it has acquired Sunext Design, Inc. ("Sunext Design"), a wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary of Sunext Technology Company Limited ("Sunext Technology"), and has licensed certain optical disk reader and writer technology from Sunext Technology. Sunext Technology is a privately-held fabless semiconductor company that specializes in optical storage technologies.

High definition optical disc players are emerging as a popular platform for in-home entertainment worldwide by combining the benefits of a high definition viewing experience with the convenience and familiarity of DVD media. Sunext single-chip front-end technology is a strong complement to the industry-leading Broadcom system-on-a-chip (SoC) back-end Blu-ray Disc platform, and key to an integration roadmap that will drive the cost of these devices down to levels that enable widespread consumer adoption of high definition optical disc players and recorders.

If you'd like to read more, Broadcom's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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03 March 2008

DivX, Inc. announced today that Panasonic's Profile 1.1 Blu-ray Disc player has been certified for DivX playback. The DMP-BD30EG/EE will be released to the European and Russian markets beginning in March.

DivX, Inc., a digital media company, (NASDAQ:DIVX) today announced the DivX Certification of Panasonic's Blu-ray Disc (BD) Player (PN: DMP-BD30EG/EE).

The Panasonic Blu-ray Disc player, which joins a number of existing DivX Certified products from Panasonic, is scheduled to be released beginning in March and is expected to be the first DivX Certified Blu-ray Disc Player available in Europe and Russia. Like Panasonic’s existing DivX Certified DVD players, the latest DivX Certified Panasonic Blu-ray disc player enables users to enjoy high-quality DivX video playback.

“In order to give our users access to the extremely popular, high-quality DivX format, we have introduced the first DivX-Certified Blu-ray Disc Player for Europe and Russia,” said Yuki Kusumi, Group Manager of Product Technology, Video Business Unit, Network Business Group, Panasonic AVC Networks Company, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. “The timely launch of this strategic product is a direct response to the strong demand for DivX playback among consumers. We are very confident this product will be very popular in the European and Russian markets.”

if you'd like to read more, DivX's entire press release can be found here. Add a comment

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27 February 2008

If you've been looking to score a cheap HD DVD player at Best Buy, you're out of luck. According to Punch Jump, the retailer has already sold their entire stock of players.

Best Buy Co. Inc. this week sold out of two HD DVD player SKUs following Toshiba Corp.'s announcement that it will exit the HD DVD business.

The HD-A3 HD DVD Player and the HD-A35 HD DVD Player held a sold out status at Bestbuy.com after the retailer price cut the hardware to as low as $99.99.

While Best Buy may be sold out, my local Walmart still has plenty of players in stock. I keep checking, in the hope that they'll clearance them out for $50. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment

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27 February 2008

While Universal and Paramount have announced plans to release titles on Blu-ray, DreamWorks is still locked into an exclusive agreement with Toshiba. According to Reuters, Dreamworks is waiting to hear from Toshiba before breaking their agreement and releasing their titles on Blu-ray.

DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc said on Tuesday it was locked in an exclusive deal to distribute DVDs on Toshiba Corp's HD DVD format even though the Japanese electronics maker plans to quit the technology.

"We have a partnership with Toshiba and have an obligation to see this through," DreamWorks Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg said on Tuesday.

"As you know, we have been well-compensated for our support. It really is in their court at this point to really declare what the next step will be. We're poised either way to jump into the marketplace when the conditions are right to do so," he said.

Hopefully, Toshiba lets DreamWorks break their agreement. If not, we won't see any of their titles on Blu-ray for another year. If you'd like to read more, the entire article can be found here. Add a comment