Public perception about the format war (article) - Page 2 - Blu-ray Forum

Teazle · 11-28-2007, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by N2DVD

In order to get the movies I want, I have to support both formats, and in some case, I will have to settle for SD discs as well. The above mentioned article just shows what it all really comes down to - price point on players AND software.

I think you're very lucky indeed if buying one extra format gives you the movies you want in HD. BD and HD-DVD combined have only around 700 movies (not counting duplicates) so far. What a stroke of good fortune that these just happen to include the ones you want (contrast the tens of thousands of releases on DVD).

For my part the movies I want haven't been released yet -- and probably won't be so long as this stupid format war continues. (Example: Spielberg taking pains to exclude his movies from HD-DVD even though the studio releases on that format.)

Supporting the losing format, which prolongs the war, actually reduces your access to the movies you want on HD disc.

Xerious · 11-28-2007, 11:45 AM

i agree with everyone else with the pricing issue...

there are $20 mp3 players out there readily available and yet apple maintains a substantial 95% of the market share with their $350 ipod... does price matter? not of the the perception of the the public attaches an iconic status to it.

why upgrade your DVDs to HD DVD when you can go beyond and go Blu?

HeLLSpiRE · 11-29-2007, 01:48 PM

Just throwing my 2 cents, but I am under the strong impression that the "general public" seriously knows nothing about the HD format wars. I mean I was at best buy purchasing a couple of bluray movies and while at the store, an 'employee' came up to be and saw that I was carrying these movies and actually asked me whether it was any different. The other conversation I heard which was astounding was when a member of this "general public" was inquiring a staff member about the difference between HDDVD/Bluray, as the conversation went on, the employee asked what kind of tv etc etc he had. The person told him that he was still using an old 4:3 television which wasn't a HDTV, but he wanted to watch HD on it

After that I was simply shocked at what the general public really new and thought about this new technology we've all invested so much money in, but back to my other angle. I think a strong deciding factor to who wins will be what companies decide to back what. What I mean is that I know for a fact that my gf loves Disney and if she wants to watch any of the Disney films in HD, she'll have to go with Bluray. Personally I was gonna bite the bullet and buy HDDVD for Transformers (which I will someday), but it would be for a very small selection of movies which I decided wasn't worth it for the cost of the HDDVD. I'll probably go buy one of those bitstreaming players sometime next year when hopefully they're dirt cheap.

The Laughing Man · 11-29-2007, 08:45 PM

Allow me to interject another thought here.

As someone that works for a marketing/advertising firm never underestimate the power of an ad campaign and marketing prowess.

Look at the names. HD-DVD is a much better, more descriptive name than Blu-Ray. Especially with the changeover coming. All consumers are hearing are 'HD this, HD that'. HD programming, HD tvs, etc. So, when they go to the store and see HD-DVD they know EXACTLY what it is. High definition DVDs.

Blu-Ray is harder to figure out. Unless you were reasonably educated in lingo you wouldn't know, right off the bat, that Blu-Ray is, in fact, high definition.

If you notice, Blu-Ray commercials have recently changed their pitch to, 'Own it today on DVD or High Definition Blu-Ray'. Back a few months ago, they would leave off the 'high definition' part.

That's honestly my concern, consumers are easily led around (dare I say stupid?) and if I may adjust 'Occam's Razor': That which is easier to understand is what consumer's embrace.

I know the Betamax/VHS argument isn't exactly applicable, but one impressive lesson the industry learned from that is that 'perception is reality'.

Oh, sure, home theater and electronics buffs will always embrace a superior format, but the mass market is what dictates what is ultimately produced. Look at the failure of Minidiscs to CDs. Minidiscs was easily the winner. Same quality ease of use, smaller, rewritable. But the public didn't 'get it'. It was smaller so people didn't see how it could hold the same amount of stuff.

The bottom line is that the lowest common denominator of consumer will dictate the winner. And the winner must appeal to the lowest common denominator.

Gio · 12-03-2007, 07:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xerious

i agree with everyone else with the pricing issue...

there are $20 mp3 players out there readily available and yet apple maintains a substantial 95% of the market share with their $350 ipod... does price matter? not of the the perception of the the public attaches an iconic status to it.

god i love my video iPods we have 4 of them in my house

me, wife and 2 kids, they alwasys use in the car, nothing like carrying a couple hundred movies with you at a time

Frode · 11-28-2007, 02:43 AM

The article claims people were paying attention to HD DVD over Blu-ray, but where's the resulting change in sales figures? Those walmart players hasn't seemed to do a thing to the stalemate. What good is public perception, when the public doesn't follow up that perception with their hard-earned dollars? That's the real failure of the article IMO - it looks at the opinions of non-paying customers and doesn't establish a proper cause and effect for actual market changes.

11-29-2007, 01:48 PM	#3
HeLLSpiRE Junior Member Member since:Nov 2007	another angle Just throwing my 2 cents, but I am under the strong impression that the "general public" seriously knows nothing about the HD format wars. I mean I was at best buy purchasing a couple of bluray movies and while at the store, an 'employee' came up to be and saw that I was carrying these movies and actually asked me whether it was any different. The other conversation I heard which was astounding was when a member of this "general public" was inquiring a staff member about the difference between HDDVD/Bluray, as the conversation went on, the employee asked what kind of tv etc etc he had. The person told him that he was still using an old 4:3 television which wasn't a HDTV, but he wanted to watch HD on it After that I was simply shocked at what the general public really new and thought about this new technology we've all invested so much money in, but back to my other angle. I think a strong deciding factor to who wins will be what companies decide to back what. What I mean is that I know for a fact that my gf loves Disney and if she wants to watch any of the Disney films in HD, she'll have to go with Bluray. Personally I was gonna bite the bullet and buy HDDVD for Transformers (which I will someday), but it would be for a very small selection of movies which I decided wasn't worth it for the cost of the HDDVD. I'll probably go buy one of those bitstreaming players sometime next year when hopefully they're dirt cheap.

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11-28-2007, 11:45 AM	#2
Xerious Special Member Member since:Mar 2007 Location:Washington, DC Blu-ray collection:238 Blu-ray reviews:4	i agree with everyone else with the pricing issue... there are $20 mp3 players out there readily available and yet apple maintains a substantial 95% of the market share with their $350 ipod... does price matter? not of the the perception of the the public attaches an iconic status to it. why upgrade your DVDs to HD DVD when you can go beyond and go Blu?

11-29-2007, 08:45 PM	#4
The Laughing Man Active Member Member since:Nov 2007	Allow me to interject another thought here. As someone that works for a marketing/advertising firm never underestimate the power of an ad campaign and marketing prowess. Look at the names. HD-DVD is a much better, more descriptive name than Blu-Ray. Especially with the changeover coming. All consumers are hearing are 'HD this, HD that'. HD programming, HD tvs, etc. So, when they go to the store and see HD-DVD they know EXACTLY what it is. High definition DVDs. Blu-Ray is harder to figure out. Unless you were reasonably educated in lingo you wouldn't know, right off the bat, that Blu-Ray is, in fact, high definition. If you notice, Blu-Ray commercials have recently changed their pitch to, 'Own it today on DVD or High Definition Blu-Ray'. Back a few months ago, they would leave off the 'high definition' part. That's honestly my concern, consumers are easily led around (dare I say stupid?) and if I may adjust 'Occam's Razor': That which is easier to understand is what consumer's embrace. I know the Betamax/VHS argument isn't exactly applicable, but one impressive lesson the industry learned from that is that 'perception is reality'. Oh, sure, home theater and electronics buffs will always embrace a superior format, but the mass market is what dictates what is ultimately produced. Look at the failure of Minidiscs to CDs. Minidiscs was easily the winner. Same quality ease of use, smaller, rewritable. But the public didn't 'get it'. It was smaller so people didn't see how it could hold the same amount of stuff. The bottom line is that the lowest common denominator of consumer will dictate the winner. And the winner must appeal to the lowest common denominator.

11-28-2007, 02:43 AM	#6
Frode Special Member Member since:Feb 2007	The article claims people were paying attention to HD DVD over Blu-ray, but where's the resulting change in sales figures? Those walmart players hasn't seemed to do a thing to the stalemate. What good is public perception, when the public doesn't follow up that perception with their hard-earned dollars? That's the real failure of the article IMO - it looks at the opinions of non-paying customers and doesn't establish a proper cause and effect for actual market changes.

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