The rumor is that Warner is coming aboard soon

[stockstar1138]

warner doesn't want to wreck HP numbers. so an annoucnment before xmas is not going to happen, as HP will sell well until xmas. what we need to look out for is wb delaying titles, announcing titles will come to dvd, but not to hd/bd, and not announcing anymore many more dvd/bd/hd day-and-dates. i think its very odd that there is a 5 week gap between dec. 18th and jan 29th when wb has absolutely NOTHING announced for either format. if they make an announment in early jan. they have almost a full month before a release for hd dvd would come out, and its The Invasion, so its not like something is being ripped out from under the dudsters like BoG and Transformers was for us. It looks like they are already prepping, so they won't have to deal with too much damage control.

[krispyjala]

Originally Posted by Anthony P

well what do you expect, I think it would be quite obvious if they gave dates for the BDs but not the HD DVDs (then again I am sure some HD DVD fan boys would say that it is because they are planning to go HD DVD exclusive and it is part of a surprise attack)

haha that will be pretty hilarous to see though...all blu ray dates announced but all TBD's for HD DUD release...but yea that's almost like a giveaway if they do it :P

There is still a chance for WB HD DUD exclusivity, but I mean even 0.1% is considered chance so... lol

[Marcusarilius]

Originally Posted by stockstar1138

warner doesn't want to wreck HP numbers. so an annoucnment before xmas is not going to happen, as HP will sell well until xmas. what we need to look out for is wb delaying titles, announcing titles will come to dvd, but not to hd/bd, and not announcing anymore many more dvd/bd/hd day-and-dates. i think its very odd that there is a 5 week gap between dec. 18th and jan 29th when wb has absolutely NOTHING announced for either format. if they make an announment in early jan. they have almost a full month before a release for hd dvd would come out, and its The Invasion, so its not like something is being ripped out from under the dudsters like BoG and Transformers was for us. It looks like they are already prepping, so they won't have to deal with too much damage control.

I know Warner has nothing to do with Paramount, but the dish best served cold to HD DVD would be to anounce all kinds of these great new titles for both formats and then drop the Exclusive blu bomb as Paramount did to the blu camp. Yes, I'm still peaved. I'll get over it in 08 though!!!!

[sj001]

Originally Posted by dobyblue

No, they will not comment on this at all - in fact, they're not commenting on anything, not even upcoming release dates or specs which is normally discussed quite freely.

It's a tight ship right now over there.

Wow, no comments, definitely sounds like some major is afoot!

[sj001]

Originally Posted by stockstar1138

warner doesn't want to wreck HP numbers. so an annoucnment before xmas is not going to happen, as HP will sell well until xmas. what we need to look out for is wb delaying titles, announcing titles will come to dvd, but not to hd/bd, and not announcing anymore many more dvd/bd/hd day-and-dates. i think its very odd that there is a 5 week gap between dec. 18th and jan 29th when wb has absolutely NOTHING announced for either format. if they make an announment in early jan. they have almost a full month before a release for hd dvd would come out, and its The Invasion, so its not like something is being ripped out from under the dudsters like BoG and Transformers was for us. It looks like they are already prepping, so they won't have to deal with too much damage control.

Yeah, noticed this too, very odd, these are definitely signs they are on the edge of the cliff ready to jump. I can't wait to see the numbers for Harry Potter, and Blade Runner! Hopefully we take the wrecking ball to them!

[jason_grumpy]

Originally Posted by dobyblue

I just spoke to my contact at Warner and they would not say anything about changing their stance.

They did however say that everyone in the top ranks thinks that rdjam is a complete douchebag.

I'm assuming the comments on rdjam are not covered by any NDA? Speaking of which, can you comment if there is an NDA type agreement in place with speaking about HDM outside the ranks of Warner and its HDM vendors?

If you can't answer that, of course I'd understand.

[elwaylite]

Originally Posted by SpikesBluBlooded

I went back and copied the link to Maxpower's post regarding this:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.p...postcount=6783

Again, sounds like he's a lot closer to this than any of the other posters on here, unless a Mod wants to discredit his statement (I'm looking at you, Wicky!) I think it's most telling that it's what he's not saying that makes his post so interesting...

Between his and PM's posts, I have to say it SOUNDS good for BD.

Cant wait for 2008 to get here.

[jason_grumpy]

Originally Posted by stockstar1138

warner doesn't want to wreck HP numbers. so an annoucnment before xmas is not going to happen, as HP will sell well until xmas. what we need to look out for is wb delaying titles, announcing titles will come to dvd, but not to hd/bd, and not announcing anymore many more dvd/bd/hd day-and-dates. i think its very odd that there is a 5 week gap between dec. 18th and jan 29th when wb has absolutely NOTHING announced for either format. if they make an announment in early jan. they have almost a full month before a release for hd dvd would come out, and its The Invasion, so its not like something is being ripped out from under the dudsters like BoG and Transformers was for us. It looks like they are already prepping, so they won't have to deal with too much damage control.

To be fair, before these rumors started Warner previously announced a very slim list of releases for both formats next year. Nothing substantial. After that.. deathly silence for both, minus Twister being postponed from 1/8/08 to May.

Speculation can run rampant as to why... but I do not think you will see Warner rip announced movies for the rest of the month from either format. I do believe they are committed to both until 1/1/08. After that, it's anyones guess with the format Warner choses being announced movie slate wise at CES08.

One thing is for certain, and that is Warner needs to announce a list of titles soon and setup distribution and advertising. The end of 2007 is quickly approaching, and I seriously doubt Warner only has 5 HD movies planned through May of 2008.

At this point I would assume that HD-DVD and/or Blu-Ray production lines simply have not received any fresh orders from Warner in preparation, as there is no reason to waste money on discs that will never be sold. Authoring would be stopped already or placed on standby, instead of wasting manpower. It would be glaringly obvious if new HD-DVD orders stopped coming in to lines, and new BR titles were being spun and vice versa.

This might be happening and it's starting to leak out through the grapevine. It is obvious though that something is up, from Warner to the production chain.

[spicynacho]

Originally Posted by krispyjala

There is still a chance for WB HD DUD exclusivity, but I mean even 0.1% is considered chance so... lol

My super secret inside source at WB told me that there is a chance that they will go HD DVD exclusive. Heres what needs to happen... Giant meteors need to fall from the sky and destroy all of the Blu Ray replication plants. If this happens and none of the HD DVD plants are harmed, they will issue a press release that they are going to release only on HD DVD.

They think there is still a good chance of this happening because there is supposed to be a big meteor shower later this week.

[Alan Gordon]

Originally Posted by spicynacho

My super secret inside source at WB told me that there is a chance that they will go HD DVD exclusive. Heres what needs to happen... Giant meteors need to fall from the sky and destroy all of the Blu Ray replication plants. If this happens and none of the HD DVD plants are harmed, they will issue a press release that they are going to release only on HD DVD.

They think there is still a good chance of this happening because there is supposed to be a big meteor shower later this week.

DANG YOU, MEGATRON, DANG YOU!!!

~Alan

[SpikesBluBlooded]

Well, one thing's for sure: Warner has everyone's attention. I don't think I've seen any post go up in count as fast as this one. The one common denominator is that we all recognize the importance of Warner's stance, and find it most impressive that no one has been short-sighted enough to make negative comments regarding Warner's business practices. Plain and simple, they're in it to make money, and that's just what they're doing.

That said, I think it's also safe to say that they see the same writing on the wall that we (and by that I mean industry insiders, retailers, and the public at large) all see; this format war cannot go on much longer and see the Hi-def disc format survive. A clear winner needs to be seen or both will fail.

I don't think I'll get any argument in this forum regarding the statement that that simple fact makes their decision clear if they choose a side. HD DVD will mean certain death eventually for both formats, which means it will be money and production lost and wasted in a short-sighted move. Blu-ray, however, is a superior format (it may not be complete, but it's getting closer and closer every day, and has already pretty-much met all of HD DVDs capabilities) with a very bright future ahead of it. I think the days of neutrality have been played out, and they recognize that a decision one way or the other is necessary in order to stay alive.

[blu2]

Originally Posted by jason_grumpy

To be fair, before these rumors started Warner previously announced a very slim list of releases for both formats next year. Nothing substantial. After that.. deathly silence for both, minus Twister being postponed from 1/8/08 to May.

Speculation can run rampant as to why... but I do not think you will see Warner rip announced movies for the rest of the month from either format. I do believe they are committed to both until 1/1/08. After that, it's anyones guess with the format Warner choses being announced movie slate wise at CES08.

One thing is for certain, and that is Warner needs to announce a list of titles soon and setup distribution and advertising. The end of 2007 is quickly approaching, and I seriously doubt Warner only has 5 HD movies planned through May of 2008.

Besides back catalog, what prominent WB title is "missing" from the announcements at this point?

WB has 8 titles announced for next year thus far. New Line (owned by Time Warner) has 2 more.

By comparison, Fox has 5. Disney has 7.

Doesn't seem like anything is out of the ordinary in terms of announcements.

At this point I would assume that HD-DVD and/or Blu-Ray production lines simply have not received any fresh orders from Warner in preparation, as there is no reason to waste money on discs that will never be sold. Authoring would be stopped already or placed on standby, instead of wasting manpower. It would be glaringly obvious if new HD-DVD orders stopped coming in to lines, and new BR titles were being spun and vice versa.

This might be happening and it's starting to leak out through the grapevine. It is obvious though that something is up, from Warner to the production chain.

Where has any concrete info (or even rumours) validating the above been provided?

[Strannix136]

Originally Posted by sj001

Wow, no comments, definitely sounds like some major is afoot!

Sometimes, no news is good news. Everyone knows what the rumors are, and still, no news. I kinda like it.

[SpikesBluBlooded]

Originally Posted by Strannix136

Sometimes, no news is good news. Everyone knows what the rumors are, and still, no news. I kinda like it.

Absolutely true! 'Silence is consent'. That said, we can't jump the gun by stating that they are not denying the rumor. Sometimes it's best to sit back and see the reaction before making an official announcment. A way to 'test the waters' if you will.

In this particular case, I would say that if an official denial of this rumor doesn't surface from Warners PR department by the end of the week, you can pretty much bank on the rumor having some legs. Not saying that it's definite, but if they aren't going to deny it, I would think that means that they're heavily considering it...

[sj001]

Originally Posted by SpikesBluBlooded

Absolutely true! 'Silence is consent'. That said, we can't jump the gun by stating that they are not denying the rumor. Sometimes it's best to sit back and see the reaction before making an official announcment. A way to 'test the waters' if you will.

In this particular case, I would say that if an official denial of this rumor doesn't surface from Warners PR department by the end of the week, you can pretty much bank on the rumor having some legs. Not saying that it's definite, but if they aren't going to deny it, I would think that means that they're heavily considering it...

Especially with the high-profile press, I mean it's in the NY Times, I would consider that pretty damn high profile.

[Joon]

There was an article in the NY Times today about Warner possibly going BD today.

http://www.nytimes.com/paidcontent/P...ref=technology

If this has been posted already, I apologize.

[Alan Gordon]

Originally Posted by blu2

Besides back catalog, what prominent WB title is "missing" from the announcements at this point?

WB has 8 titles announced for next year thus far. New Line (owned by Time Warner) has 2 more.

By comparison, Fox has 5. Disney has 7.

Doesn't seem like anything is out of the ordinary in terms of announcements.

The only prominent WB title missing from the announcements at this point is "Nancy Drew", and "The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford", but "Nancy Drew" may not get an HD DVD release. The "Jesse James" omission is rather odd... given the award buzz.

New Line has two more, "Rendition" and "Martian Child", but they wouldn't be coming to HD DVD now anyway due to them being Day & Date titles, and New Line's stance on "Region Coding"... so unless they were planning on going HD DVD exclusive, I think they just haven't gotten around to it yet...

www.tvshowsondvd.com heard that Warner Bros. would be releasing "Superman: Doomsday" on February 22nd, along with JL:TNF, but Warner's pretty slow with catalog announcements after the 4Q, so they still have time to announce it.

~Alan

[SpikesBluBlooded]

Originally Posted by sj001

Especially with the high-profile press, I mean it's in the NY Times, I would consider that pretty damn high profile.

That's a good point. This isn't just some blog on the net somewhere. It's being reported in major media outlets. I'm guessing that they're getting the same "no comment/no reply" from Warner that everyone else is, which is why they're choosing to run the story. I don't see the times printing something this big without so much as a phone call to try and discredit it first.

[Rob Tomlin]

Originally Posted by Joon

There was an article in the NY Times today about Warner possibly going BD today.

http://www.nytimes.com/paidcontent/P...ref=technology

If this has been posted already, I apologize.

It's funny, this thread moves so fast because there are so many posts it's hard for people to keep up.

The link to the NY Times article has already been posted a couple times previously.

[Marcusarilius]

Originally Posted by SpikesBluBlooded

Absolutely true! 'Silence is consent'. That said, we can't jump the gun by stating that they are not denying the rumor. Sometimes it's best to sit back and see the reaction before making an official announcment. A way to 'test the waters' if you will.

In this particular case, I would say that if an official denial of this rumor doesn't surface from Warners PR department by the end of the week, you can pretty much bank on the rumor having some legs. Not saying that it's definite, but if they aren't going to deny it, I would think that means that they're heavily considering it...

Silence is Golden. Or blu in this case. It's a done deal.