Warner is in the initial stages of investigating the possibility of BD-R MOD releases

[Akijama]

Lol,i didn't know what to do with this info,where to post it,so hey -make a damn thread about it

From The Digital Bits:

What's more, Warner is in the initial stages of investigating the possibility of BD-R MOD releases in high-def, although many obstacles remain as the current BD-R spec isn't universally supported.

This news is coming from the this year Comic-Con and it was revealed by George Feltenstein.

[Petra_Kalbrain]

What is "BD-R MOD?"

More importantly, why should I care?

[zafisher94]

Originally Posted by Petra_Kalbrain

What is "BD-R MOD?"

Blu-ray Movie on Demand

[MifuneFan]

BD-R = A burned BD disc with minimal or no artwork
MOD = Made on Demand

Warner does this with niche DVD titles so I expect it'll be the same kind of stuff that they make MOD and not anything major.

[BluPat]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

BD-R = A burned BD disc with minimal or no artwork
MOD = Made on Demand

Warner does this with niche DVD titles so I expect it'll be the same kind of stuff that they make MOD and not anything major.

The dvd artwork Warner puts out with their MOD now looks great. Like the original poster art. When they first started they didn't. It was just a blue cover with a miniscule picture in the middle but, now, it's really nice.

[HeavyHitter]

I think this is good news as obscure titles that would never see the light of day on Blu-ray now have a chance. That's the bottom line some people are missing as well as the market and economic realities which really dictate this sort of thing.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by Petra_Kalbrain

What is "BD-R MOD?"

More importantly, why should I care?

MOD = Manufacture on Demand

As for why it's interesting or relevant, Warner has a hell of a deep catalog and they don't like to license. Right now Warner either does full direct releases or nothing.

Some sort of middle ground would be nice.

[Petra_Kalbrain]

Obviously I knew what "BD-R" stood for. I was asking more about the concept of the entire designation.

So, is this Warner saying that they will have some system setup whereby the consumer somehow decides that they want a film on Blu-ray, pay for the respective digital file and are forced to create their own disc?

That's the impression that I am getting.

[Adam4Rizzel]

It will be exactly like Warner Archive, but instead of DVD its will be Blu-Ray.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by Petra_Kalbrain

Obviously I knew what "BD-R" stood for. I was asking more about the concept of the entire designation.

So, is this Warner saying that they will have some system setup whereby the consumer somehow decides that they want a film on Blu-ray, pay for the respective digital file and are forced to create their own disc?

That's the impression that I am getting.

No....The discs are made by Warner still and shipped to you with a case and artwork and everything (albeit still pretty barebones). Take a look at the Warner Archive collection, they've done this for years on DVD:

http://www.wbshop.com/category/wbsho...ion.do?nType=2

[Seymour]

I guess even WB is coming to the end of the line with legit catalog releases, albeit not until next year at the earliest.

[Vw Driver]

So they would remaster a film just for me?

Otherwise, that's what the online stores are for.

[EricJ]

Originally Posted by Petra_Kalbrain

What is "BD-R MOD?"

In Warner's case, the Archive, only now on Blu-ray.

More importantly, why should I care?

Because over the next few years, if anything pre-1975 catalogue comes out from the studio, that's where you're going to find it!

(Even though there's talk of restoration, I just KNOW "Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm" is going to be exiled to the Archive sooner or later right next to Dr. Lao, so might as well be on Blu. )

[silverlakephil]

I bought Urgh! A Music War at Amoeba Records.It was one of those Warner Archive MOD DVDs, so I'd be stoked if it's again available as a MOD blu-ray.

[ImStylinOnYaBro]

so, if i understand right....say warner owned "deadly prey" a bd-r mod means they would turn it into a blu ray for me ?

[bgart13]

Originally Posted by ImStylinOnYaBro

so, if i understand right....say warner owned "deadly prey" a bd-r mod means they would turn it into a blu ray for me ?

Only if it was a HD transfer and they made it available to release. At this point you can't just order whatever title they have in their catalog. They release groups of titles every week to every other week. If the title you want is available, then you would be able to order from them or whichever online store has it. Go here to see what's already available from them: *http://www.wbshop.com/category/wbsho...ner+archive.do . I've got a number of their discs and have been pretty happy with the quality. MGM, Sony, Universal, and now Fox are all doing it. Even some indie labels are going this route for their back catalogs. I'd certainly prefer pressed discs with more effort put into them, but if this is the way I'll be able to get some more obscure movies or movies they simply don't want to release pressed in any format - hey, it's better than not getting them at all!

[PuppyJonathan]

Does anyone else think this is bad timing with everyone still experimenting with MOD DVDs? Personally I said the other day about MOD that to me it doesn't feel like a true release. It is more do the studio gives you the rights to burn the movie (or they burn it as soon as you buy it, I never looked into how it was made) with no bonus features, bad cover art, and who knows? A bad condition print. You know blank bluray discs are still relitively new and hard to find, i mean how many of you already have your family vacation DVD burned by Walmart on bluray now? Granted this is the only way lesser known titles get released but they deserve better than this crappy treatment. And if a third party liscenser wants to release it, theyre just going to use the MOD disc as the model! I saw shout factory do it with the nickelodeon releases, the followed the original model which was DVD-R single layer discs, copied to Shout. Some releases ended up getting 4 disc single layer releases. Then shout says that they'll reduce disc count to two since they think no one is buying the four because its so expensive. Well no shit a four disc release is more expensive than a two disc release. This is what's going to happen to Warner. They're not going to play smart with these releases and end up losing on a potentially big investment on blank bluray discs. I will admit I'm proud that Warner is doing releases, but at the same time Warner is doing these releases, couldn't they have just done it themselves? I'll just wait for the mega thread here to see all the hate comments when their terrible condition edition comes out

[AgentOrange]

Originally Posted by ImStylinOnYaBro

so, if i understand right....say warner owned "deadly prey" a bd-r mod means they would turn it into a blu ray for me ?

Not just any title you want. They still have to "release it" to the Warner Archives. It has to be listed there for you to buy it.

All it means is they don't carry inventory for those "on demand" titles - and they also don't send them out to retailers. It's "Manufactured on demand". So if you click an order, their guys will burn the disc, slap the cover art on it, and ship it to you.

It's definitely a good thing to make titles available that are uber-obscure, or maybe in not quite pristine shape. However I hope if they do adopt this it doesn't eat into any "proper" releases. Since it seems like they are in the exploratory stages, it sounds like it's a ways off anyway...

[McCrutchy]

I'm really not comfortable with the idea of on-demand media entirely. Yes I finally bought a few Archive titles, but no matter how many people say it, I simply cannot believe that recordable media is of comparable quality to its pressed counterpart. To me, supporting on demand media is little better than supporting streaming, which is another format I'm growing increasingly wary of.

The other issue I have stems from the lazy, uniform covers, menus and (often, but not always) a lack of extras. Part of me wishes these films would stay unreleased until companies are ready to release them "properly", which to me means on pressed media, with a quality presentation and any available or newly-created extras.

I suppose I am just old fashioned.

[pro-bassoonist]

Originally Posted by McCrutchy

I'm really not comfortable with the idea of on-demand media entirely. Yes I finally bought a few Archive titles, but no matter how many people say it, I simply cannot believe that recordable media is of comparable quality to its pressed counterpart. To me, supporting on demand media is little better than supporting streaming, which is another format I'm growing increasingly wary of.

You don't need to worry. Physical, pressed media isn't going away.

Pro-B