Is Walmart going blu-ray exclusive? - Blu-ray Forum

MFGR63 · 12-28-2007, 02:34 PM

I just happened to be watching GMA (good morning America) and a full Blu-ray commercial came on, the big surprise was that at the end of it, it had the walmart signature...

Is this a sign of walmart becoming Blu-ray exclusive?

AaronSCH · 12-28-2007, 02:43 PM

^^Doubt it^^

This is like a "co-op ad buy" where a retailer is partially reimbursed by the manufacturer for the placement of an advertisement. It may also be a perk offered to Walmart or supporting Blu-ray. I don't think it is evidence of anything other than product support.

Exodus · 12-28-2007, 02:52 PM

Yeah, I saw one of these ads a few days ago and was pleasantly surprised with the Wal-Mart endorsement. Also saw one for Target, but that was not surprising.

Blu-Ray Buckeye · 12-28-2007, 02:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MFGR63

I just happened to be watching GMA (good morning America) and a full Blu-ray commercial came on, the big surprise was that at the end of it, it had the walmart signature...

Is this a sign of walmart becoming Blu-ray exclusive?

They have been pushing that ad hard on GMA & Today. It's one of the better ads they have actually but i doubt it has anything to do w/ exclusivity.

mykevermin · 12-28-2007, 02:54 PM

I've seen one ad (with the happy shopping family placing cute reminders all over the house of movie availability) in both BD and HD versions.

It doesn't mean much of anything - then again, nothing short of "we're going exclusive" will mean anything to me at this point, since we're so deluged by companies' every movement being hyperactively reacted to as an indicator of exclusive movement.

Sigmar_X · 12-28-2007, 02:54 PM

I saw that ad, it made me mad though.

When is Wedding Crashers coming to Blu???!?!?!? Funniest movie ever!!

E-Dogg · 12-28-2007, 02:57 PM

Regardless as long as Blu is being pushed I am happy.

stockstar1138 · 12-28-2007, 03:07 PM

Im not an insider, but I have had a few of my friends who work at wal-mart tell me some information, i do not know how true or accurate it is, so take everything i say with a grain of salt please. supposdely wal-mart signed a contract with toshiba a while ago over hd dvd, earlier this year, toshiba tried to re-negotiate the contract with wal-mart and it fell through (this is for the upcoming year). the validity of his comment on this seems to be correct as if you go inside the electronics dept. at wal-mart they no longer sell toshiba anything (maybe an old laptop), but hd dvd products. go look, there aren't any toshiba tvs or anything in wal-mart. contract obligations are supposedly what caused the wal-mart $98 firesale and a few other free discs with a player sales, but after that, no more special deals for hd dvd out of wal-mart.

another friend told me that wal-mart wants to make a decision, but is waiting til things are more clear. i don't really know how true this one is, it could just be a blu friend giving hope to another blu friend about the war. however, it makes perfectly fine sense that wal-mart or any retailer for that matter would want there to be only one format, but still wants to suck money from DUDers while they can.

I also had a guy at best buy, who knew his stuff regarding the hd war, tell me he heard that wal-mart was going blu-ray exclusive fairly soon. He could have had 99% of his stuff right and 1% could be rumor/misinformation (this was back in july, so i don't know what his timeline was).

penton said there was a suprise though. this could be it.

xwingsct · 12-28-2007, 03:10 PM

Walmart is known for selling cheap stuff. I don't think they'll really push it unless bluray is $99.00 a unit.

stockstar1138 · 12-28-2007, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xwingsct

Walmart is known for selling cheap stuff. I don't think they'll really push it unless bluray is $99.00 a unit.

not cheap, good value. they push a lot of $1000 hdtvs. whats wrong with selling a $199 funai blu-ray player with a $1000 hdtv, it could be a real great bunddle too.

ttriplett2 · 12-28-2007, 03:25 PM

My Walmart here in the Northwest has removed (sold out?) the limited BLU titles they used to carry. They now only carry HD-DVD movies, although very limited selection.

Paden · 12-28-2007, 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ttriplett2

My Walmart here in the Northwest has removed (sold out?) the limited BLU titles they used to carry. They now only carry HD-DVD movies, although very limited selection.

<Cough>Bullshit!</Cough>

Living Near Shamu · 12-28-2007, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paden

<Cough>Bullshit!</Cough>

LMAO

Lets see, new member, check.
Low post count, check.
HD DUD comment, check.

Troll? You decide...

Raikun · 12-28-2007, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paden

<Cough>Bullshit!</Cough>

Agreed. He's very obviously lying.

Too bad he didn't specify what city so that we could spend the 10 seconds to verify that they do in fact carry Blu-ray, and in higher numbers.

UlicBelouve · 12-28-2007, 03:50 PM

I think it is just a move similar to what a majority of other retailers are doing: they are shifting to what sells. I've been to 3 different Wal-Marts in 2 different states, and each one had them all mixed in, with about 5 slots for HD-DVD, and 20 slots for Blu-Ray (they had at least a 5x5 rack for these).

I too heard of that Toshiba/Wal-Mart failure, but I'm still marking that as speculation.

Wal-mart will stock based on what they can move, which is why there is the shift to Blu-Ray, at least in the areas I have seen.

Raikun · 12-28-2007, 03:56 PM

Wal-Mart also does earn about 1% more profit per BD sold compared to a lot of HD-DVDs. I'm sure that doesn't hurt their feelings either when selling more BDs.

jon s · 12-28-2007, 03:57 PM

it's a matter of perception too. my local walmart has about five bluray titles available and about 25 hd-dvd titles. a casual buyer might note that hd-dvd has a better selection over BR and opt for hd. the truth of the matter here tho is that my local walmart is always sold out of BR, hence the low inventory. the clerks tell me that the BR titles sell out the first day but the HD does not. they shud just order more BR but they do not have control over orders.

Neo65 · 12-28-2007, 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raikun

Agreed. He's very obviously lying.

Too bad he didn't specify what city so that we could spend the 10 seconds to verify that they do in fact carry Blu-ray, and in higher numbers.

When I was in Buffalo area of NY 6 months ago, I noticed that the walmarts in that area carried no (absolutely zero - never heard of it - nada) HDM. At least in toronto area, walmarts carried at least 30 BDs and 20 HDs in june. Recently, the toronto area walmarts carry about 300 BDs and 100 HDs in a special designed 4 sided display. The display unit appears to be consistent, but not all stores have the display. There was a walmart about a 50 minute drive away from toronto that had no HDMs at all.

JasonR · 12-28-2007, 04:02 PM

My Wal-Mart just started carrying HDMs about a month ago. It is a Supercenter, St. Louis area.

stockstar1138 · 12-28-2007, 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ttriplett2

My Walmart here in the Northwest has removed (sold out?) the limited BLU titles they used to carry. They now only carry HD-DVD movies, although very limited selection.

post a picture, im intersted to see this.

12-28-2007, 02:34 PM	#1
MFGR63 Member Member since:Oct 2007 Blu-ray reviews:4	Is Walmart going blu-ray exclusive? I just happened to be watching GMA (good morning America) and a full Blu-ray commercial came on, the big surprise was that at the end of it, it had the walmart signature... Is this a sign of walmart becoming Blu-ray exclusive?

12-28-2007, 02:43 PM	#2
AaronSCH Banned Member since:Sep 2007 Trading Score:1	^^Doubt it^^ This is like a "co-op ad buy" where a retailer is partially reimbursed by the manufacturer for the placement of an advertisement. It may also be a perk offered to Walmart or supporting Blu-ray. I don't think it is evidence of anything other than product support. Last edited by AaronSCH; 12-28-2007 at 02:49 PM.

12-28-2007, 03:07 PM	#8
stockstar1138 Banned Member since:Apr 2007	Im not an insider, but I have had a few of my friends who work at wal-mart tell me some information, i do not know how true or accurate it is, so take everything i say with a grain of salt please. supposdely wal-mart signed a contract with toshiba a while ago over hd dvd, earlier this year, toshiba tried to re-negotiate the contract with wal-mart and it fell through (this is for the upcoming year). the validity of his comment on this seems to be correct as if you go inside the electronics dept. at wal-mart they no longer sell toshiba anything (maybe an old laptop), but hd dvd products. go look, there aren't any toshiba tvs or anything in wal-mart. contract obligations are supposedly what caused the wal-mart $98 firesale and a few other free discs with a player sales, but after that, no more special deals for hd dvd out of wal-mart. another friend told me that wal-mart wants to make a decision, but is waiting til things are more clear. i don't really know how true this one is, it could just be a blu friend giving hope to another blu friend about the war. however, it makes perfectly fine sense that wal-mart or any retailer for that matter would want there to be only one format, but still wants to suck money from DUDers while they can. I also had a guy at best buy, who knew his stuff regarding the hd war, tell me he heard that wal-mart was going blu-ray exclusive fairly soon. He could have had 99% of his stuff right and 1% could be rumor/misinformation (this was back in july, so i don't know what his timeline was). penton said there was a suprise though. this could be it. Last edited by stockstar1138; 12-28-2007 at 03:09 PM.

12-28-2007, 03:25 PM	#11
ttriplett2 Junior Member Member since:Dec 2007 Location:Oak Harbor, WA	My Walmart HD-DVD Exclusive My Walmart here in the Northwest has removed (sold out?) the limited BLU titles they used to carry. They now only carry HD-DVD movies, although very limited selection.

Similar Threads
thread	Forum	Thread Starter	Replies	Last Post
New exclusive LBP Trailer for Walmart	PS3	MrVorhees	12	08-14-2008 09:21 PM
New AC/DC will be Walmart Exclusive	General Chat	hc666	5	06-11-2008 11:33 AM
Walmart to go Blu-ray Exclusive?	General Chat	Stuart_Larkin	2	02-15-2008 03:58 PM
Walmart in-store blu-ray exclusive?	Blu-ray Technology and Future Technology	onanie	5	01-17-2008 07:09 AM
walmart.com Blu-ray Exclusive?	Blu-ray Technology and Future Technology	Fozziwig	6	11-01-2007 07:27 PM

12-28-2007, 02:52 PM	#3
Exodus Member Member since:Aug 2007	Yeah, I saw one of these ads a few days ago and was pleasantly surprised with the Wal-Mart endorsement. Also saw one for Target, but that was not surprising.

12-28-2007, 02:54 PM	#5
mykevermin Member Member since:Jun 2007	I've seen one ad (with the happy shopping family placing cute reminders all over the house of movie availability) in both BD and HD versions. It doesn't mean much of anything - then again, nothing short of "we're going exclusive" will mean anything to me at this point, since we're so deluged by companies' every movement being hyperactively reacted to as an indicator of exclusive movement.

12-28-2007, 02:54 PM	#6
Sigmar_X Member Member since:Oct 2007	I saw that ad, it made me mad though. When is Wedding Crashers coming to Blu???!?!?!? Funniest movie ever!!

12-28-2007, 02:57 PM	#7
E-Dogg Expert Member Member since:Jun 2007 Blu-ray collection:159	Regardless as long as Blu is being pushed I am happy.

12-28-2007, 03:10 PM	#9
xwingsct Senior Member Member since:Nov 2007 Blu-ray reviews: 3	Walmart is known for selling cheap stuff. I don't think they'll really push it unless bluray is $99.00 a unit.

12-28-2007, 03:50 PM	#15
UlicBelouve Senior Member Member since:May 2007 Location:Menomonee Falls, WI Blu-ray collection:95 Blu-ray reviews:1	I think it is just a move similar to what a majority of other retailers are doing: they are shifting to what sells. I've been to 3 different Wal-Marts in 2 different states, and each one had them all mixed in, with about 5 slots for HD-DVD, and 20 slots for Blu-Ray (they had at least a 5x5 rack for these). I too heard of that Toshiba/Wal-Mart failure, but I'm still marking that as speculation. Wal-mart will stock based on what they can move, which is why there is the shift to Blu-Ray, at least in the areas I have seen.

12-28-2007, 03:56 PM	#16
Raikun Member Member since:Nov 2007	Wal-Mart also does earn about 1% more profit per BD sold compared to a lot of HD-DVDs. I'm sure that doesn't hurt their feelings either when selling more BDs.

12-28-2007, 03:57 PM	#17
jon s Active Member Member since:May 2007 Blu-ray reviews:3	it's a matter of perception too. my local walmart has about five bluray titles available and about 25 hd-dvd titles. a casual buyer might note that hd-dvd has a better selection over BR and opt for hd. the truth of the matter here tho is that my local walmart is always sold out of BR, hence the low inventory. the clerks tell me that the BR titles sell out the first day but the HD does not. they shud just order more BR but they do not have control over orders.

12-28-2007, 04:02 PM	#19
JasonR Super Moderator Top contributor Member since:Nov 2007 Trading Score:12	My Wal-Mart just started carrying HDMs about a month ago. It is a Supercenter, St. Louis area.

Best Blu-ray Movie Deals