Launch titles for HD DVD and Blu-ray

[Grubert]

Hi! I come from avsforum and n2blu asked me to come over here. It is my pleasure to be here.

The other day I made a color-coded list of all the launch titles by the major studios, to make it easier for the forum members to see exactly was going to be available in each format at their respective launches. I tried to be as objective as possible, especially considering the level of animosity reached there. Therefore, for Fox, I only considered the 5 named titles, even though there are supposed to be 20 titles. Similarly, I included the whole Waners launch release, even though it spans two months.

Then I included the studios releasing each title, and the release date when it is known.


40-Year-Old Virgin (U)
Aeon Flux (P)
Apollo 13 (U)
Armageddon (D)
Batman Begins (0328) (W)
Behind Enemy Lines (F)
Blazing Saddles (0509) (W)
Bourne Supremacy (U)
Bram Stoker's Dracula (S)
Brothers Grimm (D)
Charlie & The Chocolate Factory (0516) (W)
Chronicles of Riddick (U)
Cinderella Man (U)
Constantine (0328) (W)
Dark Water (USA remake) (D)
Desperado (S)
Devil's Rejects (L)
Dinosaur (D)
Doom (U)
Dukes of Hazzard (0509) (W)
Dune (mini-series) (L)
Everest (D)
Fantastic Four (F)
Fifth Element (S)
For a Few Dollars More (S)
Four Brothers (P)
Full Metal Jacket (0509) (W)
Goodfellas (0425) (W)
Great Raid (D)
Green Mile (0516) (W)
Guns of Navarone (S)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (0411) (W)
Hero (D)
Hitch (S)
House of Flying Daggers (S)
Ice Age (F)
Italian Job (P)
Jarhead (U)
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (D)
Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (D)
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (0425) (W)
Kiss of the Dragon (F)
Knight's Tale (S)
Kung Fu Hustle (S)
Ladder 49 (D)
Last Samurai (0411) (W)
Last Waltz (S)
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (F)
Legends of the Fall (S)
Lethal Weapon (0411) (W)
Lord of War (L)
Manchurian Candidate (remake) (P)
Matrix (0425) (W)
Million Dollar Baby (0328) (W)
Oceans 12 (0516) (W)
Phantom of the Opera (0328) (W)
Punisher (L)
Rambo: First Blood (L)
Reservoir Dogs (L)
Resident Evil Apocalypse (S)
Robocop (S)
Rumor Has It (0509) (W)
Sahara (P)
Saw (L)
See No Evil (L)
Sense and Sensibility (S)
Serenity (U)
Sky Captain & the World of Tomorrow (P)
Sleepy Hollow (P)
Species (S)
Stealth (S)
SWAT (S)
Swordfish (0425) (W)
Syriana (0425) (W)
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (L)
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (0509) (W)
Tomb Raider (P)
Total Recall (L)
Training Day (0411) (W)
Troy (0516) (W)
Twister (0328) (W)
U2: Rattle and Hum (P)
U-571 (U)
Unforgiven (0411) (W)
Van Helsing (U)
We Were Soldiers (P)
XXX (S)


Blue: launch in Blu-ray only
Red: launch in HD DVD only
Green: launch in both Blu-ray and HD DVD

Where D=Disney; F=Fox; L=Lionsgate; P=Paramount; S=Sony/MGM; U=Universal; W=Warner

Disney, Fox and Sony are Blu-ray exclusive.
Universal is HD DVD exclusive.
Paramount releases the same titles on both formats
Warner releases in both formats, but more on HD DVD (for the moment). Warner release dates have only been given for HD DVD.

Total titles = 87
Available in BD only = 43
Available in HD DVD only = 19
Available in both = 25

Total available in BD = 43 + 25 = 68
Total available in HD DVD = 19 + 25 = 44

Hence,

A buyer of a player, at launch, will have access to:

Buyer of a Blu-ray player: 68/87 = 78% of all launch titles
Buyer of an HD DVD player: 44/84 = 51% of all launch titles


So I don't think you'll see any 'blue' titles change color. Unless Universal concedes in the following weeks, the only development we can reasonably expect is some 'red' titles by Warner changing to 'green'. A good example of this would be Goodfellas, which was displayed at CES in the Blu-ray booth.

Edit to clarify: it may be argued that comparing the two launches does not make any sense, as they are not likely to be simultaneous and by the time both formats launch, the lineup may be different. Fair enough. But considering that, apart from those initial titles, we know very little about the title rollout during the rest of 2006, this is one of the very few ways to establish an accurate frame of reference.