The Table is set for a great (Blu-ray) Future

[Blu Titan]

The Economy is impacting the entertainment industry adversely, but the expectations for Blu-ray are very positive. This article, and the opinions presented are by the ACTUAL decision makers in the industry. NOT by idiots from CNET, that Robin Harris guy, or computer blogs....An intersting read. From Video Business News:

Blu-ray sales projections lowered due to economy
Overall home entertainment spending to decline 3% to 4%
By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 11/14/2008
NOV. 14 | LOS ANGELES—Responding to negative economic conditions that are unprecedented in recent decades, home video chiefs at the major studios are moderating their growth projections for Blu-ray Disc software sales in 2008.

Speaking at a press briefing organized by DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group here Nov. 14, Warner Home Video president Ron Sanders and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment president David Bishop each put their estimates for total Blu-ray software sales in 2008 around $750 million. Sanders was slightly more conservative, predicting $650 million to $800 million in Blu-ray sales, with Bishop plotting $750 million to $850 million. The estimates revise predictions by most studios earlier in the year that Blu-ray title sales would hit $1 billion this year.
Year-to-date industry Blu-ray sales have already exceeded $500 million, Sanders said.
Speaking on a panel moderated by Variety Group president and publisher Neil Stiles, studio presidents emphasized that Blu-ray’s ultimate success is not threatened. But given the environment, in which a dramatic number of jobs and amount of consumer savings have been lost, executives are trying to set realistic expectations about consumer spending during the holidays.

“The table is set for a great future,” 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment president Mike Dunn said. “There might be some logs in the way now and hazy at this second with the economy. But look at the quality [of Blu-ray] and portability and accessibility [of home entertainment in general]. Now might be unclear, but the future is set.”

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment president Bob Chapek described Blu-ray’s rollout as at the beginning of the critical mass phase, and he noted that strong catalog title sales indicate that people are replacing their DVD libraries with Blu-ray to at least some degree, despite the economy.

Blu-ray’s growth rate in 2008 will be double that of 2007, DEG executive director Amy Jo Smith said. She forecast that Blu-ray will account for 18% to 20% of unit sales of big new releases by the end of the year, using Warner’s The Dark Knight as a prime example.

Sanders described Dark Knight as a potentially “transformational” title for Blu-ray in that it might cause people to buy players on which to view it.

Overall consumer spending on home entertainment is expected to decline 3% to 4% this year, Smith said, driven by a projected 6% drop in DVD sales.

When asked when growing Blu-ray sales will offset DVD declines, both Bishop and Sanders said it might be the end of 2010. Lionsgate president and co-chief operating officer Steve Beeks predicted the industry would turn around by late 2009, when including digital downloads in the home entertainment take.

“It will be toward the end of 2010 when you’ll see us back in the growth business,” said Bishop.

Dunn noted that Fox is especially bullish on Blu-ray’s ultimate rise because of so many HDTV owners saying they want to purchase players in the format, according to studio research.

“Five million households are on the verge of adoption, and 10 million households are right behind that,” said Dunn.


Studio chiefs are additionally heartened by increasing retail marketing and support for Blu-ray. Best Buy is rolling out several new interactive Blu-ray kiosks showing off Web-enabled BD Live features, which should further influence adoption, Paramount Home Entertainment president Kelley Avery said.

“Making sure that Blu-ray is well represented at retail is key,” said Avery. “We’re still in early stages, but there is a commitment from retail to improve the [in-store] experience.”

Responding to a question from Stiles about whether studios have an incentive to develop digital distribution given their dependence on physical media revenues, Universal Studios Home Entertainment president Craig Kornblau said simply that all studios want ubiquitous distribution of their content.

http://www.videobusiness.com/article/CA6614863.html

[Clark Kent]

A really nice article. Blu-ray is going to replace dvd as the preferred home video format. That is guaranteed in a certain amount of time. If Warner keeps including lossy audio tracks on their Blu-rays, those more conservative sales totals will come to pass.

[mdm1699]

Walmart will be Blu-ray's most important driver this holiday. I was pleasantly surprised to see a Blu-ray commercial from them last night. As this economy continue to trend downward, more and more people are driven to stores like Walmart. They are not suffering like Electronic Retailers. Who would have thunk it!

[PanasonicPlasmaMan]

Just got back from Best Buy and I was shocked how many more movies they have gotten in only a month since I last went.

[owa]

Nice article. Thanks.

[Midnightsailor]

Originally Posted by owa

Nice article. Thanks.

Agreed.