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HD DVD Rallies Consumer Audience in 2007 Driving Nearly One Million Dedicated Player Sales in North America LAS VEGAS, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- At the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the companies of the HD DVD Promotional Group recapped a breakthrough year for the high definition format, reaching nearly one million dedicated HD DVD players sold in North America and delivering on the promise of affordability, quality and a consistent experience on every machine. With a leading install base of dedicated players, there are now more than 400 titles available in the US and more than 1,000 titles available worldwide. During the key five week holiday selling period, HD DVD software sales grew at nearly twice the rate of Blu-ray, which was consistent with increased player growth. "Our focus from day one has been to deliver the highest quality hardware and the best, most immersive home entertainment experiences for consumers at affordable prices," said Jodi Sally, vice president of marketing, Toshiba's Digital A/V Group. "With nearly one million dedicated players in the market in North America, and a leading position in the PC market worldwide, we're seeing software growth follow suit." As the industry looks for a format that can break into the mainstream consumer market, HD DVD continues to be the affordable, high quality leader, setting the bar for a positive consumer experience. Through a combination of quality and price, HD DVD meets the essential requirements for any format to successfully reach the mass market.
In 2007, HD DVD reached a broader group of consumers than ever before, showing strong movie title sales and high attach rates stemming from the major influx of dedicated HD DVD players on the market. Based on Nielsen data, when comparing first week consumer sales, "The Bourne Ultimatum" on HD DVD outsold "Spiderman 3" on Blu-ray. Among all high definition formats, HD DVD still maintains the highest attach rates -- more than twice the rate of Blu-ray. "The HD DVD camp has always stuck to a simple set of principles," said Ken Graffeo, executive vice president of HD strategic marketing for Universal Studios Home Entertainment, and co-president of the HD DVD Promotional Group. "Give consumers who buy into HD DVD what they paid for. In fact, give them more than they expected. Show them that quality and value go hand in hand with HD DVD. Show them what advanced interactivity really means and how it can enrich your favorite movies that you watch over and over." To this point, Toshiba's HD DVD players received several Editor's Choice and Product of the Year awards from respected media outlets, including Sound & Vision, Electronic House, E-Gear, and Ultimate AV. On the PC front, the HD DVD Promotional Group announced that by the end of 2007, HD DVD-enabled PCs represented more than 80% of all high definition-capable PCs. The HD DVD companies expect notebook PCs in particular to be the variable that helps keep quality high, but prices low, by driving down manufacturing costs for drives across all HD DVD players.
A critical milestone for HD DVD in helping to drive strong sales across the board was the strong support from Hollywood studios and global content providers. In 2007, HD DVD went from being supported by 41 studios and distributors worldwide to 65.
Using Microsoft's HDi technology, HD DVD led the way in 2007 with never-before-seen interactive experiences that have changed how consumers interact with their favorite movies. HD DVD was the first to offer true picture in picture director's commentary in 2007 with Warner's "300". This feature was not included in the Blu-ray version, and showcases a key HD DVD feature that caters directly to the fan community. Universal's "Heroes" and Paramount's "Transformers" also included picture in picture features than enhance the experience for fans. HD DVD was also the first to deliver web-connected content, offering bonus material on titles such as "The Bourne Ultimatum," "Heroes: Season 1," and "Transformers" -- all offering downloadable content that's continually updated so fans of the movie can return for new features. The interactive elements are all designed to promote an enhanced "second look" environment and to rally the fan communities around key titles. In addition, Universal launched U-Shop, an extension of the U-Control feature, letting you buy items related to a movie directly through the guaranteed internet connection on every HD DVD player. Universal's "Evan Almighty" was the first title to showcase this, illustrating what can be done when every player on the market can access these features. As the official successor to DVD, HD DVD has added to the heritage of the most successful consumer electronics format ever, bringing the highest quality HD experiences to consumers at the most affordable prices. The HD DVD Booth at CES 2008 is located in South Hall 1 (booth #21266).
HD DVD is the next generation, post-DVD standard for high capacity, high definition optical discs, approved by the DVD Forum. The DVD Forum develops and defines DVD formats. Its more than 200 strong membership brings together leaders in movies and entertainment, computing, consumer electronics and software. HD DVD is fast becoming the primary visual medium for the age of high-definition TV. The North American HD DVD Promotional Group, Inc. is an organization established to promote the HD DVD format and educate consumers in North America. For more information and a complete listing of HD DVD launch titles please visit http://www.thelookandsoundofperfect.com/. Source: North American HD DVD Promotional Group, Inc.
Posted by Shane Sturgeon, January 6, 2008 11:52 PM
Reader Commentary Enough with the rhetoric already! It is unlawful for the studios to refuse to license or sell to any disc producer, especially for Warner's admitted purpose of putting HD-DVD out of business. Toshiba: if you don't understand the phrase "Sue the bastards," contact me at phil@malterlaw.com, and I'll be happy to explain it to you.... Please understand that I'm no lawyer. I'm just asking for a little clarification on your comment. I would assume that Warner has the right to distribute its own product in any way it chooses. If I understand you correctly, you're saying that Warner does not have the right to refuse a third party buying the product and then releasing it in a different format. Do I have that right so far? I would also assume that Warner would not only have to be paid for the intellectual rights to begin with, they'd also be entitled to a percentage of the sales. If this is true, are you saying that Warner has refused to license their product to a third party that intends to sell their product in the HD DVD format? Henry... You forgot to mention that the HD Consumer Group canceled its news conference there, but perhaps that's not as important as some would make it out to be. Toshiba certainly denies this is the death knell for HD DVD. It would seem to me that the most positive number is the number of titles sold. In February it was 98.71 to every 100 Blu-ray titles sold, much too close to call a winner. And of course the 5 to 1 ratio of Blu-ray to HD DVD players sold is distorted by the popularity of the PS3. And even my own opinion is suspect. I bought a Betamax instead of a VHS machine. Is this payback for seeing an inferior standard adopted in the past? Am I tired of hype succeeding over technical standards? Absolutely. Henry... Henry, The antitrust laws prevent Warner, or any other producer, from refusing to deal for anti-competitive purposes (which, in effect, Warner has admitted). You are correct that Warner would have to be paid by an HD-DVD producer the functionally same amount it is paid by a BR producer. My invitation was purely rhetorical, I presume that Toshiba has already been extensively briefed on this by its lawyers. There are many reasons why it would hesitate to do battle with the movie studios. I for one would like to encourage them as much as possible; breaking the studios current monopoly powers would ultimately reduce disc prices for everyone. Phil... On the face of it, reducing the price of a disc is a worthy goal, especially if it resulted in more sales and income for the artists that created the material on the disc. But I wonder if this goal is offset by the cost to the consumer of having to purchase different machines for different products? Perhaps this wouldn't be a problem if it was like buying music on records, cassettes, CDs or DVDs. The difference between this example and video would seem to be only cost. But until the cost comes down, it would seem there is an economic advantage to the consumer in having one machine that can handle videos, games and any other high volume content. I have no doubt that the march of technology will eventually make this question moot, but until then it would seem to me there is a definite advantage to the consumer in having one standard and one machine for all applications. Henry... I posted the following in another forum and got 'laughed off the board' but it seems that many here had the same basic idea.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As we know the home video rights for movies are many times sold by the studios to a third party for home video release. What would prevent such a third party such as "Criterion Collection" or even a new company from purchasing movie rights for release on HD-DVD in the future? Toshiba use to have a movie releasing division, what would prevent them from recreating this division and purchasing the rights to press HD-DVD's from Warner Bro's or other studios, for retail through like Amazon? This would leave the studio as backing their "HD" and allow HD-DVD owners to have copies of movies. --David... The history of competing formats, for example Betamax versus VHS tape, would suggest that content providers don't like multiple formats and tend to only support what they view as the format most acceptable to the public. The recent announcement by Warner to only support Blu-ray seems to confirm that a majority of content providers have made up their mind in this case. Although I wouldn't say what you suggest is impossible, I think it would be extremely unlikely at this point in time. In the case of Betamax versus VHS, for example, the decision was based on perceived public acceptance and not the quality of the recording. Personally, I think the content providers are making the right decision this time because Blu-ray better supports a larger range of applications and is therefore more future proof, a factor I suspect was part of the reasoning that led to their decision.... David, You are right on the money; but without a lawsuit first, the studios won't permit it. Henry--there are so many reasons why the beta/vhs analogy is inapplicable. The only thing now preventing HD-DVD from continuing to undercut and outsell BR is a lawsuit.... If you mean this is really all about money, you're right. The studios don't want to support two formats, especially in a possible impending recession. They view the continuing existence of two formats as confusing to the public and having a negative impact on total sales of high definition players. For whatever reason there seems to be the attitude of let's cut to the chase and decide for the public. Toshiba is not happy about this decision because in hardware sales they're doing pretty good right now. Consumers who have already bought HD DVD players are not happy. Microsoft is not happy because of the X-box. The reality here is that there's no solution that can satisfy everyone and, like it or not, ultimately content is king. Henry... It depends on where you sit. If you are among the 2 million+ who have invested in one side or the other, then the best thing for those consumers is for all studios to distribute In both formats. The only consumers wanting a single format are those who have not yet invested. Sure, there are more consumers that have not invested than those who have ... But you are still alienating a large group of consumers by going to a single format this late in the game. Bottom line, the solution that makes everyone (the consumers) happy is for all studios to release in both formats. My opinion. - Shane... More in Category: Blu-ray
About Shane SturgeonShane Sturgeon is the Co-Publisher and Chief Technologist of HDTV Magazine, an industry publication with HDTV roots going back to 1984, when Dale Cripps founded The HDTV Newsletter. Today, HDTV Magazine is a leading online resource for HDTV news and information and captures the eyes and imaginations of over 3 million visitors annually. Mr. Sturgeon has a background in information technology and has served in various consulting capacities for Fortune 500 companies such as J.P. Morgan Chase, Verizon Communications, Proctor & Gamble and Nationwide Insurance. He has a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Wright State University. |
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