Cheap players and incentives a bad sign for Blu Ray! (lol)

[Elandyll]

http://www.thestandard.com/news/2008...g-market-share

Bad signs for Blu-ray: Free discs, cheap players, and declining market share
Ian Lamont

In this month's issue of Wired magazine, Sony and Microsoft splurged on a full-page insert that includes a Blu-ray DVD. The disc is the "director's cut" of Coma, a seven-part noir-esque crime thriller. On the back of the insert, there's a plug for Vista and the Sony Vaio. I don't know how much this is costing Sony and its partners, but it can't be cheap -- Wired's paid circulation is 706,494, and this press release indicates that other magazines may be involved.

Have Sony and its Blu-ray backers come to this -- using a marketing tactic reminiscent of 90s-style software and music giveaways in an attempt to boost Blu-ray? Remember, this was a technology that people were supposed to rush out and buy after Blu-ray won the HD format battle with HD-DVD. Sony president Ryoji Chubachi even expressed a goal back in April that Blu-ray would grow to a global market share of 50% in 2008. There's already strong evidence that Blu-ray's market share is declining, at least in the U.S., according to recent data from Nielsen VideoScan published on EngadgetHD.

In The Industry Standard's prediction market, there's a prediction that Blu-ray's market share will not break 50% by the end of this year. That's a no-brainer. Our readers are largely behind this prediction, with community consensus currently standing at 82%. Another prediction that Blu-ray player prices would drop below $250 by Thanksgiving was judged three months early after one model hit $249.47 (with a rebate). How low can prices go for the players? This morning, another reader pointed us to news that models by Sony and Samsung are selling for less than $200, including shipping. The Engadget author calls the Sony BDP-S300 deal "unquestionably delectable." Sony better hope that mainstream consumers feel the same way, or the company risks another weak Christmas for Blu-ray this year -- and losing out in an even bigger way when consumers begin to turn to the Internet for their HD content.

Of course, Gamepro hurried to use this article to make a "PS3 and Blu Ray are doomed" article

http://www.gamepro.com/article/news/...ue-to-decline/

Laughable to the max...

[Kyo28]

The marketing tactic they talk about? Same thing was done when DVD was launched. I can't even count the number of free movie DVD's I got with magazines.

Anyway, the internet speeds up the diffusion of info, but at the same time brings a whole bunch of garbage journalism with it (if you can still call it journalism). One site posts something and soon 50 other sites run with it, without anyone checking the original source and/or whether the conclusions the original author makes actually make sense ... they just see something that will attract attention and go with it.

Sad, really sad ...

[Elandyll]

Aye, this is typical garbage journalism...

People still recently were screaming their heads off for player prices (and films) to go down, but now that this is happening, it's a sign of Apocalypse?

[fighthefutureofhd]

isn't it a bit fast though for players to be discounted at these low prices? i thought another couple of years before we saw players for lower than $200. it seems to be moving a lot faster than dvd when it started out.

[Anthony P]

you know, normal prices no rebates and BD is doomed because it is too expensive.

Normal rebates and incentives and then BD is doomed because it is too cheap.

My guess is start with BD is doomed and pick some dumbass reason from the hat.

[Valore]

Originally Posted by Anthony P

you know, normal prices no rebates and BD is doomed because it is too expensive.

Normal rebates and incentives and then BD is doomed because it is too cheap.

My guess is start with BD is doomed and pick some dumbass reason from the hat.

you also forgot to note that oil is going up...ergo, blu ray is doomed

[Blu Titan]

Originally Posted by Anthony P

you know, normal prices no rebates and BD is doomed because it is too expensive.

Normal rebates and incentives and then BD is doomed because it is too cheap.

My guess is start with BD is doomed and pick some dumbass reason from the hat.

Agree Anthony that article is just absurd. Obviously, Gamepro carries it...and now we have NOT one but TWO threads on it. https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=64615

[Anthony P]

Agree Anthony that article is just absurd. Obviously, Gamepro carries it...and now we have NOT one but TWO threads on it.

well, you know that it is not a new day unless there are at least 5 (serious or not) threads on why BD is doomed.