Physical & Digital EST: The Future of Home Video Discussion Thread

[Dynamo of Eternia]

Originally Posted by Vilya

I wasn't expecting to walk into a shitestorm today over such a silly little innocuous one liner. I prefer to see this dumpster fire burn itself out.

With Steedeel, expect the unexpected. Just when you think he can't go any farther than he already has, he somehow manages to do so.

[Vilya]

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Remo

It's a long term strategic move from the cable/media giants. Pull thier content, make thier own individual streaming services. It might knock down Netflix, prime, Hulu ECT... a bit. Then everyone will get back onboard with cable service, because it would be cost prohibitive to sucbribe to everyone's streaming services.

One of the ironies is that I actually can subscribe to 5 or 6 streaming services and still pay less than what a low/ mid tier cable TV package would cost me and without 19 minutes of commercials per viewing hour.

Streaming competes very favorably with cable TV; it quite often looks better, costs less, and collectively has a far better selection. Of course, sports fans are kinda stuck with having to have some type of TV service, but that does not apply to me.

[flyry]

Gotta add i'm still devestated over the filmstruck news. Their email is literally the first thing I saw when I woke up.

Now I'm not going to call it a wakeup call for digital per se, but it is definitely eye opening.

And a strong case for physical media. Though as an article mentioned, for less than the cost of 3 Criterions (5 if you buy during BN sales) we had access to much of their collection as well as the Warner Archive, TCM and a few other boutique labels.

I had 150+ titles in my watch list and legitimately wanted to watch all of them.

It'll be curious to see what AT&T/Warner are going to do with their streaming service next year.

Warner archive already had one before and it sucked ass and had like 5 titles.

I'm of course curious to see where the Criterion collection ends up and I have no doubts it will find a home, but no clue if the WAC or TCM films will land on warner's service. I would personally not count on it.

It's just a damn shame.

I often used filmstruck to try before I buy as many of the titles I own were mainstays on hulu and FS.

This won't stop me from purchasing the occasional digital title though as space is limited. (I'm not worried of say Thor:Rangarok ever disappearing from my collection)

[Dynamo of Eternia]

Was filmstruck a service akin to Netflix (a monthly fee to access everything they happened to have at the given time), or a service where you buy the titles individually?

I've never used it, so I'm not real familiar with it.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Dynamo of Eternia

Was filmstruck a service akin to Netflix (a monthly fee to access everything they happened to have at the given time), or a service where you buy the titles individually?

I've never used it, so I'm not real familiar with it.

Filmstruck was a subscription streaming service that featured Criterion titles. A flat monthly fee gave you access to acclaimed films, both classic and recent, from here and around the world.

[Groot]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Filmstruck was a subscription streaming service that featured Criterion titles. A flat monthly fee gave you access to acclaimed films, both classic and recent, from here and around the world.

They should have just left them on Hulu like they were before vs trying this. Most CC people are disc people, but they did well on Hulu for random people or watching some titles before buying. I'd almost bet they'll be back on something in a few months.

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by Groot

They should have just left them on Hulu like they were before vs trying this. Most CC people are disc people, but they did well on Hulu for random people or watching some titles before buying. I'd almost bet they'll be back on something in a few months.

Hindsight claims another victim. They must have thought they would earn more money launching their own service and they found out the hard way that they were mistaken. I, too, am hopeful that they will find a new home on one of the established streaming services.

[flyry]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Filmstruck was a subscription streaming service that featured Criterion titles. A flat monthly fee gave you access to acclaimed films, both classic and recent, from here and around the world.

Don't neglect to Mention the the TCM and WAC snd other boutique labels.

The "filmstruck" section of the service was arguably more exciting and interesting than the criterion section after they started adding all the warner and old Hollywood films.

I paid extra for the criterion section but still found myself more on the main page.

I will miss their double features and curated collections and star and director of the week.

This really sucks

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by flyry

Don't neglect to Mention the the TCM and WAC snd other boutique labels.

The "filmstruck" section of the service was arguably more exciting and interesting than the criterion section after they started adding all the warner and old Hollywood films.

I paid extra for the criterion section but still found myself more on the main page.

I will miss their double features and curated collections and star and director of the week.

This really sucks

Losing TCM, WAC, and others definitely compounds the loss.

Filmstruck interested me more than any other of the streaming services. I wish my TV had offered the app; had it been more widely available in more smart TVs app stores, maybe it would have fared better. I made the mistake of thinking it would appear there eventually. It was hard to find unless you had a dedicated streaming device like a Roku.

They will be missed by many.

[flyry]

Originally Posted by Vilya

Losing TCM, WAC, and others definitely compounds the loss.

Filmstruck interested me more than any other of the streaming services. I wish my TV had offered the app; had it been more widely available in more smart TVs app stores, maybe it would have fared better. I made the mistake of thinking it would appear there eventually. It was hard to find unless you had a dedicated streaming device like a Roku.

They will be missed by many.

Most serious and many casual streamers have a roku apple tv chromecast or fire stick and it was on all those.

Granted it launched without roku which i think was a mistake. But had it been on ps4 and xbox or even most native tv apps it still wouldn't have fared that much better imo. Was always going to be niche

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Remo

It's a long term strategic move from the cable/media giants. Pull thier content, make thier own individual streaming services. It might knock down Netflix, prime, Hulu ECT... a bit. Then everyone will get back onboard with cable service, because it would be cost prohibitive to sucbribe to everyone's streaming services.

The genie is out of the bottle now, no way are Netflix, Amazon and (soon) Apple just going to roll over and die. Not going to happen. Besides, people are moving away from forced ads, bundled, unwanted channels etc..

Finally, people can pick and choose streaming services, watch desired content, cancel and switch to another. Rinse and repeat.

[Remo]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

The genie is out of the bottle now, no way are Netflix, Amazon and (soon) Apple just going to roll over and die. Not going to happen. Besides, people are moving away from forced ads, bundled, unwanted channels etc..

Finally, people can pick and choose streaming services, watch desired content, cancel and switch to another. Rinse and repeat.

Only.if content is available. If the giant media corps don't license out thier content to Netflix ECT... Then what..

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Remo

Only.if content is available. If the giant media corps don't license out thier content to Netflix ECT... Then what..

Netflix are building their own content and others will continue to follow. Think shows like Stranger things that appeal to nostalgic audiences. Plenty of merchandise opportunities. Netflix have signed up some talent behind the scenes and we will see the fruit of their labours by 2020-2021. Apple are entering the game and they can afford to invest in studios and content until things are fully formed. I wouldn’t be surprised if they buy one or two studios. Maybe Paramount or Sony.

At the moment Netflix are playing it canny by co-producing some shows with the BBC in the U.K. I understand. They have also agreed to be available on our major Satelite service Sky TV and I think they are already available on our major cable service.

Having said all that, our landscape is very different to yours (although Comcast have just bought SKY ) Sky are huge here, probably as big as Comcast is in your country. Their HD is pretty good via dish but they are going all IPTV next year via a set top box. In other words, even the huge media companies here are betting on OTT for the future. I believe cable and dish is on its way out in the U.K. and given another ten years I think the majority of people will get their entertainment via the internet. Sky will still offer satellite but it’s a question of time. They reckon they can deliver 4K to homes via IPTV so let’s see how reliable it is.

Those downrezzed cable channels you mention sound horrific, especially considering they can’t be upscaled. Starved bitrates are never good. I have seen examples of that with Some channels here in the past but thankfully it’s improved.

I think even the cable companies will end up going the OTT/IPTV route in both our countries. What this means for the end game remains to be seen.

All I can say is thank goodness for Blu-ray/4K UHD and high bit rates. Everything else seems like a shit storm.

[Wendell R. Breland]

IMHO, these small niche services needs to be an Amazon channel. The Amazon app is probably on most streaming devices and would make billing easier. The downside, you have to be a Amazon Prime member.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Wendell R. Breland

IMHO, these small niche services needs to be an Amazon channel. The Amazon app is probably on most streaming devices and would make billing easier. The downside, you have to be a Amazon Prime member.

Wasn’t it on there already? I know Shudder is.

[Wendell R. Breland]

Originally Posted by Steedeel

Wasn’t it on there already? I know Shudder is.

Not that recall. A search on Amazon Prime does not turn up anything, a search of Starz, Showtime, HBO, etc. does show these services as available as a Prime channel.

[dublinbluray108]

A report from John Lewis in the UK are saying that size & sales of their TV's are getting bigger to over 70 inches.

Giant 70 inch televisions are the new normal, a John Lewis report has found, amid a growing trend for homeowners buying supersize screens for their living rooms.

According to the retailer's annual How We Shop Live and Look report, the size of households' TV sets have grown by 50 per cent since 2010.

Over the past year sales of 60-inch sets were up by 249 per cent, while 80-inch models were up by 200 per cent year on year, it said.

The fastest growing width of TV was 70 inches, suggesting it is fast becoming the new standard size of TV in homes across the UK. Back in 2010 the best selling TV set was 36 inches across.

Prices of 70 inch sets range from around £700 through to nearly £4,000 for top of the range models.

Conversely sales of sub 31-inch screens were down 34 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Sales of large TV sets were driven mainly by the World Cup in July, John Lewis said, as party hosts hoping for an England win invested in a bigger model to impress guests and ensure no-one missed sight of all important goals.

The rise in over sized TV sets comes as the latest advancements have flopped, potentially leading to consumers opting for size over the latest technology.

For example the much-trumpeted concept of 3D tv died an early death last year, as Samsung, LG and Sony all announced they were stopping making 3D sets.

Similarly to small televisions, DVD players' days are also numbered thanks to rise of streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime. Sales of DVD players tumbled by 40 per cent this year, John Lewis said.

Simon Coble, trading director at John Lewis & Partners, said: “It is fascinating to see what trends our customers have fallen in and out of love with this year and how big events like the World Cup and the Royal Wedding have such a significant impact on what we buy.

“How we shop is changing at incredible speed and shops need to combine the very best in service and experiences with unique and fantastic products. And the mobile phone is vital in both as a means to browse and research but also as a place to buy."

More customers than ever before are choosing to shop using their smartphone over a desktop or tablet. For the first time, the majority of online shoppers (42 per cent) are visiting our website via their smartphone and the number of orders placed on mobile phones is up 35 per cent.

Customers are also being much more specific about what they are looking for on our site, using more search words and filters to narrow down their options.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...rmal-uk-homes/

This statistic of bigger TV's are getting sold is magnificent news from John Lewis. There is no question that this is becoming a growing trend from shoppers buying products from this British Department store. But; I have no idea how sales of bigger TV sets are getting on from other countries outside of the UK & U.S. The article quoted above is only from major retailer in the UK.

I heard some good news about two big classic TV shows from the U.S. getting a UHD remaster on TV in Japan. NHK UHD will launch in Japan on December 1st. It will have UHD remasters of Bewitched & Columbo on the channel. It is future proofing some of it's 3,500 episodes of old 16mm & hundreds of 35mm TV shows in UHD from it's archives very soon. More details here.

Japan's NHK has future-proofed TV classics including Columbo, by remastering them in 4K UHD.

The Japanese public service broadcaster is remastering archive television in preparation for its new 4K TV service, which goes live in the country on 1st December 2018.

According to reports, NHK has around 3,500 episodes of old 16mm shows in its archive, as well as several hundred 35mm shows, but only some are being remastered. In addition to Columbo, which starred the late Peter Falk, fantasy 1960s comedy Bewitched has been chosen for the 4K upgrade.

Sadly for UK viewers, there's still no sign of any major broadcaster here going to those lengths to provide some archive content for all of those 70 inch UHD TVs consumers have been buying recently.

https://www.a516digital.com/2018/10/...to-4k-uhd.html

If they was any physical releases of those shows on UHD Blu-ray. Could you the imagine the levels of sales revenue coming for them to the studios. Their immense popularity will in no doubt fly through the roof, no puns intended.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by dublinbluray108

A report from John Lewis in the UK are saying that size & sales of their TV's are getting bigger to over 70 inches.



https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...rmal-uk-homes/

This statistic of bigger TV's are getting sold is magnificent news from John Lewis. There is no question that this is becoming a growing trend from shoppers buying products from this British Department store. But; I have no idea how sales of bigger TV sets are getting on from other countries outside of the UK & U.S. The article quoted above is only from major retailer in the UK.

I heard some good news about two big classic TV shows from the U.S. getting a UHD remaster on TV in Japan. NHK UHD will launch in Japan on December 1st. It will have UHD remasters of Bewitched & Columbo on the channel. It is future proofing some of it's 3,500 episodes of old 16mm & hundreds of 35mm TV shows in UHD from it's archives very soon. More details here.



https://www.a516digital.com/2018/10/...to-4k-uhd.html

If they was any physical releases of those shows on UHD Blu-ray. Could you the imagine the levels of sales revenue coming for them to the studios. Their immense popularity will in no doubt fly through the roof, no puns intended.

Let’s hope it continues.

Strange comments in that article though imo. The guy talks about screen size rather than technical advancements are the key factor. He is completely ignoring the fact that these sets are 4K with HDR!

[Vilya]

Originally Posted by dublinbluray108

A report from John Lewis in the UK are saying that size & sales of their TV's are getting bigger to over 70 inches.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...rmal-uk-homes/

This statistic of bigger TV's are getting sold is magnificent news from John Lewis. There is no question that this is becoming a growing trend from shoppers buying products from this British Department store. But; I have no idea how sales of bigger TV sets are getting on from other countries outside of the UK & U.S. The article quoted above is only from major retailer in the UK.

4K TV sales in particular are doing great worldwide.

"Over a third of all flat panel televisions sold worldwide in 2017 were 4K Ultra HD capable. More than 100 million 4K televisions will be sold in 2018, representing 44% of total global flat panel television shipments, with almost double that number expected to be sold in 2022. "

"The Asia Pacific region accounts for 37% of global 4K television shipments."

"ABI Research expects that consumer demand for 4K flat panel TV sets will drive the market to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 17.3% to reach 194 million unit shipments in 2022."

http://informitv.com/2018/07/15/4k-t...wth-continues/

https://www.statista.com/statistics/...tv-unit-sales/

Average screen sizes are growing also; chart includes projections as well:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/...ize-worldwide/

TV sales are showing healthy growth worldwide and indicators show that trend to continue.