"Club Penton" - Ask questions to Hollywood insider "Penton-Man"

[androvsky]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Long story short.
Last summerish, unbeknownst to the common public (well, at least nobody brought it to my attention as being discussed on the internet forums), a certain consumer elecTronics company (that is probably now spending more time selling refrigerators) approached the gate of the Lion with red suitcases and attempted to influence a content provider ala the Paramount pay-off.

Word has it that, Michael was so infuriated that this elecTronics corporation would have the gall to think that his studio was the weakest link in the Blu chain so as to offer them a pay-off that…… when he was interviewed by BusinessWeek and revealed that the rumor was WB was going Blu, it was an *in your face* to that particular consumer elecTronics company for misreading his studios fortitude concerning staying Blu.

Wow, Burns is awesome. I wonder if this relates to the "Fox going Red" rumors from just before the WB deal; specifically that the moneyhats were probably going to every studio out there (except maybe Sony Pictures), and some of those studios were similarly outraged, but chose to vent their anger in much more amusing and subtle ways.

[Agent Cooper]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Long story short...

Wow... that is almost beautiful and tragicomical at the same time. Had Toshiba not taken their red suitcases to Lionsgate, Michael would probably not have told the reporter what he did, and what followed is for the historybooks. You lie in the bed you make.

Btw - I asked this some time ago and forgot all about it:

Do you have any knowledge of whether Blu-ray will also be adopted by British studios/distributers/television stations, like Channel Four, Working Title, BBC etc. The Brits have made a buckload of fine movies and tv-productions, which I would love to enjoy in HD if the sourcematerial allows it.

Since you are based in Hollywood, feel free to ask other insiders more in 'the know' about the British movie/tv industri. Is it Maxpower who lives in England?

Thanx.

[Living Near Shamu]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Long story short...

Fascinating.

If you remember when this story came out, the internet forums were abuzz with tons of comments about this. How did the big W feel when this was leaked? I remember Max mentioning something about damage control and urgent meetings and such to prevent something like this from happening again.

And was it possible that MB could have jeopardized the move? I bet he was eager for all of this to be over with quickly

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by Proteus

Ironic how Rob Enderle has completely flip flopped over now: (outside quote stating the obvious)

But, has apparently decided to remain a paid shill for Microsoft:
(outside quote which is an inaccuracy regarding the motives of two retailers and esp. one studio)

What a clown... Who would believe an idiot like this? Why would anyone want to hire a consultant who is always so consistently wrong (do we all remember his days of 'The Zune will smash the iPod'). Maybe that's it... if you know he will always have it backwards, you can do the opposite and actually make money. Go figure.

I think that *professional analysts* or *insiders* of any definition should be held accountable for what they have perpetually stated or editorialized in the past. If only to question their credibility when they speak openly about new technological topics.

If people had read and remembered exactly what this *analyst* reported and opinionated about Apple from years past, they never would have even read his opinions/analysis from Day1 concerning the format war.

This is one of the reasons why I respect Bill Hunt. He’s called many things right all along, not just the high-def optical disc format war…… and he has passion for movies. The next time some controversial or debatable home entertainment media topic becomes topic of the year, read The Digital Bits first, (along with HMM) then read other *professional analysts* for laughs depending upon their past history for accurate information.

[Penton-Man]

Originally Posted by Agent Cooper

Since you are based in Hollywood, feel free to ask other insiders more in 'the know' about the British movie/tv industri. Is it Maxpower who lives in England?

Thanx.

Well I'll defer to Max, just to see if we can keep our mate around here a little longer.
Yes, he does live in England.

[MerrickG]

Penton,

Now that Paramount and Universal are now backing blu can we expect a major press release officially stating their position or can we expect them just to talk like they have been supporting blu all along?

Also, will either of these studios join the BDA Board of Directors?

Personally, I hope they treat Paramount and Universal well, so we can all take down the REAL ENEMY:

DVD.

[Bullseye]

Originally Posted by merrick97

Penton,

Now that Paramount and Universal are now backing blu can we expect a major press release officially stating their position or can we expect them just to talk like they have been supporting blu all along?

Also, will either of these studios join the BDA Board of Directors?

Personally, I hope they treat Paramount and Universal well, so we can all take down the REAL ENEMY:

DVD.

This is of great interest to me too.

[TheRealBob]

Originally Posted by Agent Cooper

Wow... that is almost beautiful and tragicomical at the same time. Had Toshiba not taken their red suitcases to Lionsgate, Michael would probably not have told the reporter what he did, and what followed is for the historybooks. You lie in the bed you make.

I don't think it's quite as tidy as that. In fact, Max suggested that the comment, though clearly meant in a pro-Blu spirit, was bad timing and led to a delay in Warner jumping:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...129#post469129

Originally Posted by Maxpower1987

...there have been talks and outlines had been made all the way back in September for this move. WB going Blu was not a rush job like Paramount, it was very well thought out and executed, if not for Lionsgate's Burns, we could have had this wrapped up a bit earlier...

It's all in the past now though.

Just to be clear, I'm not knocking Burns, as he clearly meant no harm, but you can see how it would upset Warner Brothers.

[Thulium]

Mostly a personal editorial here, but I am still holding a grudge against Payamount and as much as I really enjoy some of their movies I'm reluctant to resume endorsing their business practices with my consumer dollars.

Penton, is there any hope of Payamount making a real attempt to make things right with the consumers they abandoned in lieu of a payoff? Payamount made it quite clear that they were more interested in money from elecTronics companies than from me, and I would like them to give me a reason to change my mind.

A formal apology might suffice, but there's alternatives if they are too proud to beg. I'm thinking that any titles we missed (*cough*Transformers*cough*) should be offered at an extreme discount to make up for the delay that is explained only by Payamount's greed. Either way, I for one will refer to the company only as "Payamount" unless and until they give me a VERY good reason to change that stance.

[neo_reloaded]

Originally Posted by Thulium

Mostly a personal editorial here, but I am still holding a grudge against Payamount and as much as I really enjoy some of their movies I'm reluctant to resume endorsing their business practices with my consumer dollars.

Penton, is there any hope of Payamount making a real attempt to make things right with the consumers they abandoned in lieu of a payoff? Payamount made it quite clear that they were more interested in money from elecTronics companies than from me, and I would like them to give me a reason to change my mind.

A formal apology might suffice, but there's alternatives if they are too proud to beg. I'm thinking that any titles we missed (*cough*Transformers*cough*) should be offered at an extreme discount to make up for the delay that is explained only by Payamount's greed. Either way, I for one will refer to the company only as "Payamount" unless and until they give me a VERY good reason to change that stance.

It was a business decision they felt was right. They don't have to explain themselves to anyone - except maybe their shareholders. Paramount will put out a product, and you as a consumer will either buy it or you won't.

[DaViD Boulet]

"Payamount"

I love it. Thank-you. Business may be business, but BAD business deserves some harsh criticism, and Paramount made a blanketly bad business decision when they ignored the higher sales of their own BD software over HD DVD and suggested that "to please consumers" was the reason they went HD DVD exclusive.

Payamount indeed!!!

[db2]

Originally Posted by DaViD Boulet

"Payamount"

I love it. Thank-you. Business may be business, but BAD business deserves some harsh criticism, and Paramount made a blanketly bad business decision when they ignored the higher sales of their own BD software over HD DVD and suggested that "to please consumers" was the reason they went HD DVD exclusive.

Payamount indeed!!!

+1

Let's face it, Paramount and Dreamworks are the reason this thing dragged on for another 6 months. All the HD-DVD fanboys were mad at WB for not announcing BD exclusivity before the holiday season ...personally I think they should be directing their anger at Payamount and Dreamless.

[blitz6speed]

Originally Posted by db2

+1

Let's face it, Paramount and Dreamworks are the reason this thing dragged on for another 6 months. All the HD-DVD fanboys were mad at WB for not announcing BD exclusivity before the holiday season ...personally I think they should be directing their anger at Payamount and Dreamless.

If paramount didnt accept the offer, the light under the ass of the BDA and more importantly, Matsushita, never would have been lit and we NEVER would have the war ended so quickly and abruptly. Even tho paramount was a douchebag company to take it, im glad they did, because its what cause hd dvd to fold and die.

[JasonS]

Penton, don't know if you are able to comment now or not. But with Paramount coming back to Blu-ray, how long can we expect to wait to see their first release on Blu again? How about until they start re-releasing titles like Mission Impossible and Shooter that got pulled from shelves last summer?

[TetonWolf]

Originally Posted by JasonS

Penton, don't know if you are able to comment now or not. But with Paramount coming back to Blu-ray, how long can we expect to wait to see their first release on Blu again? How about until they start re-releasing titles like Mission Impossible and Shooter that got pulled from shelves last summer?

MI3 in stock at Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Mission-Imposs...3628685&sr=8-2

[treyw00]

so is Four Brothers...looks like all the paramount movies that made it too the shelves...not including BoG, Top Gun etc... are on amazon....shooter is there. The Italian job, Tomb Raider, Sky Captain, etc...all there

And on another note...the best buys in Louisville had MI3 in blu in stock the whole time. They never removed it from the shelves.

[Nathan P]

Originally Posted by juanleche

Does anyone have a picture of a retired insider bbq-ing crow?

No, but i bet jeff can conjure something up - His natalie portman,Hillary clinton,star wars pic was a classic

[Chaka]

Originally Posted by treyw00

so is Four Brothers...looks like all the paramount movies that made it too the shelves...not including BoG, Top Gun etc... are on amazon....shooter is there. The Italian job, Tomb Raider, Sky Captain, etc...all there

And on another note...the best buys in Louisville had MI3 in blu in stock the whole time. They never removed it from the shelves.

No Shooter, Italian Job, Aeon Flux, Untouchables etc. on Amazon

[aygie]

hey Penton, i haven't asked a question in while but what the hey before things start to wind down id love to get any info on this.....

Apple, what's going on. I know el jobso has his own agendas of the iTunes empire but (if you can say) what is the insiders perspective of Apple and their Blu-ray plans.

They've been on the BDA since the beginning and so far shown no (physical) support of the format. Any idea if they will now (that things are finally settled) start looking to add Blu support in their Macs? What is the BDA's view on Apple and their (so called) support?

FCP (Final Cut Pro) is an awesome editing program and as an indie filmmaker i just couldn't imagine using anything else, but i'm just gutted that all my HVX footage can't be put on a BD cause these guys aren't in the game yet.

Thanks for any info you can (or can't) share, i'm sorry if i sound like i'm going off on one, i'm steaming drunk cause me and the Mrs have just got engaged and the English love nothing better than a good Engagement! LOL

[Grisle]

Originally Posted by Penton-Man

Amy Pascal (Sony) is one of the most powerful (and delightful) people in Hollywood and she loves non-action films.

Penton,
I saw that earlier someone asked about "The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters"...what is the likelihood of this films like these coming to BD anytime soon? Do you happen to know if this documentary will benefit from a transfer to BD?