Local Target Report

[StilettoViper]

The other day when I went into the Bailey's Crossroads Target in Falls Church, VA. they had totally removed all High Def discs including Blu and HD-DVD. Today for lunch I checked it out again and they had a whole new section of just Blu-Ray discs, approximately 10 rows, mostly new releases with some other catalog titles mixed in. There wasn't an HD-DVD in sight at least not yet. So it looks like Target is definitely leaning towards Blu-Ray. Good sign IMO.

[kaliraver]

Its always good to have stores Blu exclusive.

[glenn22]

Originally Posted by StilettoViper

Today for lunch I went down to the Target at Bailey's Crossroads in Falls Church, VA. and they had a new section of just Blu-Ray discs, approximately 10 rows, mostly new releases with some other catalog titles mixed in. The other day when I went in they had totally removed all High Def discs including Blu and HD-DVD. I asked a clerk where they went and she had no idea so it was good to see only Blu there today. There wasn't an HD-DVD in sight at least not yet.

I'm confused by those 2 sentences. are you saying that yesterday they had removed everything and today it was only blu-ray? should this have gone at the beginning of your post?

[StilettoViper]

Originally Posted by glenn22

I'm confused by those 2 sentences.

I guess they took down the existing shelf of HD disks to prepare for this new section so for a couple of days there wasn't ANY Blu-Ray or HD-DVD and now today there is a whole new section of JUST Blu-Ray. Sorry I didn't make that real clear before.

[JJ_L]

Yeah they said they would be blu exclusive for the holiday season. Glad too see its finally there.

[glenn22]

Originally Posted by StilettoViper

I guess they took down the existing shelf of HD disks to prepare for this new section so for a couple of days there wasn't ANY Blu-Ray or HD-DVD and now today there is a whole new section of JUST Blu-Ray. Sorry I didn't make that real clear before.

Ah ok, I got a little confused by how it was worded and such... anyways, that's good news. I wish they'd do that here.

[Porscheman]

Maybe Sony is doing a different type of bribe... Makes sense to get stores like wal-mart and target exclusive... people are more apt to fall for the "new format" based on what those places carry.

Most consumers might not even think about what studios have signed up for who unless you were really into this...

If you have to bribe, bribe the retailers... makes sense to me!! Even better if they make the move on their own.

From a retailers perspective, the volume in the grand scheme is low so it isn't about the cash of the movie sale. Maybe sony figured out a trick. Now, if a best buy or CC goes exclusive, the war is officially over...

[GarettP]

The Target finally opened here in Montrose, CO a big Blu section with about 3 rows of HD-DVD. The employees working there on Tuesday were commenting on how there should be no HD-DVD, and after talking to them a while, I noticed they had an endcap a couple rows over with a Sony BD player and some more movies! Very pleased with this!

[powerSURG]

Originally Posted by Porscheman

Maybe Sony is doing a different type of bribe... Makes sense to get stores like wal-mart and target exclusive... people are more apt to fall for the "new format" based on what those places carry.

Most consumers might not even think about what studios have signed up for who unless you were really into this...

If you have to bribe, bribe the retailers... makes sense to me!! Even better if they make the move on their own.

From a retailers perspective, the volume in the grand scheme is low so it isn't about the cash of the movie sale. Maybe sony figured out a trick. Now, if a best buy or CC goes exclusive, the war is officially over...

While I agree that the BDA should do whatever it takes (as the otherside has done... 150 mill*achem*)

Why do we assume Sony is bribing them? As it is commonly accepted that Retail chains hate format wars and prefer to have one; it makes perfect sense for them to want to drop one. Which would you keep? Naturally you would keep the format that is selling well, with good market penetration.

[Clark Kent]

Originally Posted by StilettoViper

The other day when I went into the Bailey's Crossroads Target in Falls Church, VA. they had totally removed all High Def discs including Blu and HD-DVD. Today for lunch I checked it out again and they had a whole new section of just Blu-Ray discs, approximately 10 rows, mostly new releases with some other catalog titles mixed in. There wasn't an HD-DVD in sight at least not yet. So it looks like Target is definitely leaning towards Blu-Ray. Good sign IMO.

I just got back from this exact store and can give a report. They have expanded the Blu-ray section to about 10 rows but they do have about 4 rows of HD DVD. What's interesting is the new signage that separates the two sections. It says in big print that Blu-rays can be played on the PS3 and BD players found in our electronics section, while the verbiage for HD DVD only says that HD DVDs can be played on Xbox 360 addons found in our electronics section. I think this confirms that Target will not be selling HD DVD standalone players this holiday season.

The section itself hadn't been fully stocked yet but listed much more recent releases than what Target had been carrying(like the Anchor Bay titles, the new Fox titles, etc).

[monkyman]

Originally Posted by Clark Kent

It says in big print that Blu-rays can be played on the PS3 and BD players found in our electronics section, while the verbiage for HD DVD only says that HD DVDs can be played on Xbox 360 addons found in our electronics section. I think this confirms that Target will not be selling HD DVD standalone players this holiday season.

I don't see any Toshiba products in my Target, no TV's, DVD players, nothing.
They also have 11 columns blu to 5 HD-DVD, no end caps or BD players yet.