Subscribe
Paramount and Dreamworks will release their DVD titles exclusively on HD DVD, the high-definition digital movie format whose sales have lagged those of rival Blu-Ray so far this year making more clouds for early adopters.
The agreement includes all other movies distributed by Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Nickelodeon Movies and MTV Films, except for movies directed by Steven Spielberg for DreamWorks SKG, which is a Paramount unit. His films are not exclusive to either format, Paramount said.
I wonder if this means Paramount and Dreamworks new films will not be found at rental giant Blockbuster as they claimed to support only Blu-ray discs. Target, a major retailer is only stocking only Blu-ray players.
According to the NY Times, the deal between the HD DVD camp and Paramount/Dreamworks for $150 Million in incentives is for 18 months. With what looks like lots of money changing hands, is really not great for consumers.
HD DVD was developed by Toshiba and backed by Microsoft and is supported by Warner Bros., Universal Studios, New Line Cinema, HBO and the Weinstein Co. Blu-Ray discs use Sony-backed technology and are supported by most of the major U.S. movie studios.
Both formats came on the market last year. Blu-Ray outsold HD DVD by 2 to 1 in the United States in the first half of 2007, according to Home Media Research.
An estimated 3.7 million high-definition discs have been sold, including 2.2 million in Blu-Ray and 1.5 million in HD DVD through the end of July, says Home Media Research as reported by Reuters.
Notable Hollywood director. Michael Bay — the man behind “Transformers,” “Bad Boys,” “Pear Harbor,” etc. — just threw down with Paramount in his personal blog. In a forum post titled “Paramount pisses me off!”, he states, “I want people to see my movies in the best formats possible. For them to deny people who have Blu-ray sucks! They were progressive by having two formats. No Transformers 2 for me!”
I personally like probably many others, are still on the fence and have not bought either format yet! I thought I would be able to make a clear choice by Xmas, but I guess not.
[...] Paramount, Dreamworks Sold Out for HD DVD By Stephen Antonucci Paramount and Dreamworks announced that they were supporting only HD DVD movie discs instead of both that included Blu-ray. The endorsement, however, may be more about money than supporting what they see as better standard, according to the New York Times. This decision may just blow up in their faces as Blockbuster and Target basically support Blu-ray and one director Michael Bay (“Transformers,” “Bad Boys,” “Pear Harbor”) has already blasted this decision. [...]