Are Germany and Japan the answer for more TV Blu-ray releases from US majors?

[McCrutchy]

Hey guys,

So, I am wondering what you think about this.

There has been a lot going around about cancelled TV series Blu-rays, mostly from Fox, but also elsewhere.

I noticed something interesting, most (possibly all) of the series that were cancelled were North American and English-language exclusives, so they only released in North America, and possibly, the UK and Australia. These are mostly comedies, which don't translate well across languages, and they skip Europe and Asia, at least on BD.

But one show remains: Glee. And Glee is released on Blu-ray in North America, the UK, Australia...and Japan.

And guess who just recently added a Glee Season 5 BD pre-order to their site? Fox Japan.

Say what you will, but I think Japan is the key to getting further TV releases (and any significant release) on Blu-ray from an American major. In Japan, the list price for Season 5 of Glee is ¥20,000, which is $200. That means the discounted price on Amazon.co.jp of ¥16,689 translates to roughly $165. When people have enough to buy a season of television for $165 (and the DVD is around $130, too), then clearly that economy is meaningful.

One surprise: Bones is not released on Blu-ray in Japan, either (only DVD), but 24 is (and that is released everywhere anyway). I can't help but think that if Bones got Japanese releases, then we would still be getting a Season 9 release from Fox in the US.

And while Modern Family airs in Japan, it hasn't yet made it to video there at all. Again, I can't help but feel that if Japanese BDs were available, then US versions still would be.

Look also at The Big Bang Theory, which is not released in Japan (DVD only), but is released in Germany, and Germany is the largest Blu-ray market in Europe. Crucially, Bones and Modern Family are only on DVD from Fox in Germany.

This isn't limited just to Fox, either. Sony is releasing The Blacklist internationally in September, and in Japan in December (the Japanese edition costs over $120 on Amazon Japan). I wonder if the US release would have happened otherwise. WB and Fox's Batman (1966) set is also releasing internationally, including in Japan, where the list price is over $320. And Universal is releasing US series on Blu-eay (Columbo, House M.D., Knight Rider, Suits) outside the US!

All of the cable series, which have continued to release on Blu-ray from US majors, are also released internationally, and especially in either Germany or Japan, or both, like American Horror Story, Breaking Bad, Mad Men (in France and Scandinavia), Sons of Anarchy Spartacus (handled by Fox in Europe/Japan) Vikings and so on, and so on. Clearly, shows on premium channels (HBO/Cinemax, Showtime, Starz) also come to these countries, as well.

So I truly think that the key to more TV shows on Blu-ray is to monitor how they do internationally, especially Japan and/or Germany. I think any show that could do well there has a good chance of continuing on or coming to Blu-ray, and series that are only big in English territories (like many comedies) are not going to be as lucky, in general.

Discuss.