Aussie DVD while International get Blu-ray

[Rick Grimes]

Just found out today that Eastbound & Down S4 + Veep S2 are not getting BR releases in our country.

This after Orange is the New Black S1 did not get a BR release.

All three titles have UK releases, but distributors in Australia have neglected the Aussie BR community.

What's worse is Eastbound S1-3 & Veep S1 were released on Blu here. It is annoying when an Aussie BR collector wants to finish off (or continue) their collection, then the only option is to import!

Other examples: Weeds S1-6 released in Oz on Blu, 7 & 8 DVD only.
Bates Motel, Defiance did not even DVD releases, let alone BR!


I just don't get it. BR TV looks fantastic in native 1080p (and looks way better than any upscaled DVD). PLUS, for US titles, you get the correct speed that the show was filmed at. No PAL speedup (US shows on DVD are 4% quicker). The voices of male actors don't sound like they've been toking on helium. Soundtracks are the correct tempo.

What is happening to BR TV in Australia (and BR in general for that matter)? Is the scourge of piracy to blame? Or the archaic practice of Australians refusing to adopt Blu-Ray (where ignorance plays a big role). I can't believe our technologically ignorant country when I hear such questions as "What's the difference between DVD & Blu-Ray" and statements like "Blu-Ray is a dying medium, DVD is way better". Does the latter statement ring true for our country when a combination of deriders, naysayers & proles spread such crap?

With brand name BR players only $80, BR titles only a couple of dollars more than DVD, I just don't get why people aren't getting on the BR band wagon like our US and UK counterparts.

O.K., so Europe is slow to accept BR. We don't' have to follow them. It annoys me, when I'm in JB HiFi and I see the bulk of disc buyers still hovering around the DVD section. And I know that some of them are still using composite cable connections in the back of their HDTVs and braying "I enjoy watching DVDs in High Def on my HDTV".
I whole heartedly believe that ignorance plays a big role in the aborted start to Australia's HD revolution & has thus led to DVD only releases for TV shows that have BR transfers overseas.

I guess the bulk of people in Australia must be happy to continue to utilise a technology that will be 20 years old next year… Even for those who have some HD tech knowledge, who tout 1080p upscaling as DVDs saviour, must not be able to appreciate true HD quality that you only get with Blu-Ray. With upscaled DVDs, you get digital artefacts and anomalies that are always prevalent, ruining the benefits of upscaling. And with 4K coming, I couldn't imagine the issues a DVD has when upscaled to 4K (with a jump from 576i to 2160p!)

DVD upscaling is an affront to my viewing pleasure. 99.9% of Blu-Rays look way better than their DVD upscaled counterparts + you only get lossless audio with Blu-Ray.

I know I'm preaching to the converted, but I had to start this thread as a way to vent. Also, I want to know how many out there are also upset with the neglect of BR TV releases by Aussie distributors, when DVD isn't the only option. It must be due in the most part, to the fact that most consumers aren't adopting Blu-Ray in Australia. A sad state of affairs that makes my blood boil.

Thank the gods for Amazon. Aussie distributors are not getting my $ for their inferior DVD releases.


Still reading! or skipped to here. Either way, as an appendix to this rant (which has cathartically subdued my anger… for now), outside the colony, it appears that Netflix 4K streaming is available. But, with Australia's ancient internet, with an average 4.6 Mbps streaming for most and only 4% having access to >10 Mbps, 4K streaming is way off in Oz.
Ultimately, does this have any impact on Blu-Ray TV releases here? Not bloody likely, but it is still troubling to the author.

Here are some articles that BR aficionados may find disturbing (albeit heavily editorialised):

Why the 4K Blu-Ray format could be dead in the water http://www.techradar.com/au/news/vid...-water-1246497

Why Netflix in Ultra HD will ruin TV http://www.techradar.com/au/news/tel...uin-tv-1241142

4K streaming is leaving Blu-Ray in the dirt http://www.techradar.com/au/news/tel...e-dirt-1247111

[drouyn]

I did email Warner a couple of weeks back to ask about Veep, but got no response. The price is certainly a factor, they're crazy to expect anyone to pay $50 for 10 30-minute episodes. I got S1 from the UK a few months back for about $25, and will wait until S2 hits the same price.

Most HBO stuff obviously does alright on BD, but Veep does not appear to have had the same exposure as GoT or True Blood. I'm surprised about Orange is the New Black, as that has been quite popular in my circles, at least House of Cards S2 is scheduled.

[granty]

if you cant get the set in HD then there is really no point in getting any of them either incomplete or on lesser formats. its too bad that companies never seem to learn from there mistakes.

[Saints 2010]

Defiance: Season 1 has a release date of July 03 and is available on both DVD and Blu-ray.

I'm pretty annoyed Veep: Season 2 isn't getting a release on Blu-ray since I bought the first one locally. Shame for Eastbound and Down as well as I was looking to buy the complete series on Blu-ray. They did the same thing for Bored to Death as well whereby the final season only got a DVD release. I just hope they get a release somewhere down the line.

[Kirben]

Local Blu-Ray releases have never been that good, outside of movies. So many old and new TV series are still lacking local Blu-Ray releases. It is ridiculous when I still see overpriced local DVD releases (i.e. Poirot) for sale, when the series is available on Blu-Ray in the USA for cheaper.

My main interest is animation, but barely anything get released on Blu-Ray, outside of the major movies. Even worse, is the few Australian Blu-Ray exclusives for animation (i.e. Pokemon movies) never seem to last long, due to poor sales. I'm still annoyed the Blu-Ray release of the Moshi Monsters movie was cancelled, which would have been Australian exclusive too.

The only choice is to continue buying overseas, and make sure to look worldwide for Blu-Ray releases. Several animated DTV movies (i.e. Dino Time, Echo Planet, House of Magic) have only been released in English on Blu-Ray in Italy, and the Eureka science fiction series has only been released in English on Blu-Ray in Germany for example.

[Linbro]

Great post, and I agree 100%. It's funny/sad that people pay $1000's for a beautiful flat screen, then couldn't give a stuff about the pic quality.
In my experience, the majority of people don't know that BD players can play their existing DVD's.
Is it my imagination, or is the BD(disc) display at JB getting smaller?
And, what's the go with streaming(something I have zero interest in) - can you still access special features?

[DocNYz]

We need Rake on Blu-ray here in the States! Such a phenomenal show from you guys in Australia!!

[deepbreathsanddeath]

I don't have anything valuable to add to this conversation but I felt the need to point out the abbreviation for Blu-ray Disc is BD, not BR. "BR" is the sound one makes when they're very cold.

[Rick Grimes]

Originally Posted by deepbreathsanddeath

I don't have anything valuable to add to this conversation but I felt the need to point out the abbreviation for Blu-ray Disc is BD, not BR. "BR" is the sound one makes when they're very cold.

Yes. Yes it is. My anger clouded my proper use of acronym punctuation… And it was a little chilly when I wrote the post.

Originally Posted by granty

if you cant get the set in HD then there is really no point in getting any of them either incomplete or on lesser formats. its too bad that companies never seem to learn from there mistakes.

Mate, that nails my sentiments into a nice succinct paragraph. Too true. Especially, when TV is broadcast in 1080i on Foxtel and then we get 576i discs we have to resort to upscaling for HD… It's bloody ridiculous to have to watch inferior PQ.

Glad Defiance is finally coming to BD (heard recently that commercial TV had to play it first, before they could do a BD/DVD release… Sons of Anarchy fans should know this frustrating truth).

Just purchased Orange is the New Black S1 from Amazon UK (at a reasonable price) and it's on its way. Wanted US copy (cheaper), but is Region A locked and while I have a Region A BD player, I wanted playability across my PS3 & PS4.

Now I have found that The Bridge (US) is DVD only in Australia. I shouldn't be surprised, but this is another show I started, got 2/3 of the way through (got busy) and then later, had to delete it off my Foxtel for space. Wanted to view the last few eps on a BD transfer. Now, once again I am forced to import!

And what is with The Sopranos Complete Series on Blu-Ray (which I have wanted for "donkeys").
https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=14140
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=242485
I have been waiting for pre-orders to come up on Amazon US & UK. But nothing.
And there doesn't appear to be any confirmation of an Aussie release… Which I think we might just miss out on as well, to add to the list of BD releases our US & UK brethren get, that we won't.

[drouyn]

Originally Posted by Rick Grimes

And what is with The Sopranos Complete Series on Blu-Ray (which I have wanted for "donkeys").
And there doesn't appear to be any confirmation of an Aussie release… Which I think we might just miss out on as well, to add to the list of BD releases our US & UK brethren get, that we won't.

EzyDVD have had it listed for ages, local release August 27:
The Sopranos

[Blueherring]

I have been waiting for weeds season 7 & 8 on blu, looks like will never happen.
I contacted the company through facebook last year, got no response.
It's very annoying when we get releases on blu for some seasons then not others, I don't want to have to get dvd releases for the last 2 seasons, but I also don't have any region A blus or a player so cant get the US releases...

[OceanBlue]

Is the Australian (Region B) Blu-ray release of the first season of US drama series Rectify a legit release, and if so, would people recommend this Blu-ray release? Just wondering about the transfer, sound and aspect ratio.

[xxmatthewxx]

Originally Posted by Blueherring

I have been waiting for weeds season 7 & 8 on blu, looks like will never happen.
I contacted the company through facebook last year, got no response.
It's very annoying when we get releases on blu for some seasons then not others, I don't want to have to get dvd releases for the last 2 seasons, but I also don't have any region A blus or a player so cant get the US releases...

Im doing the same with some other releases where they started to come out on Blu then stopped yet the DVD's continue. Why must we be so simplified here in Australia. DVD's kill me now.

[FilmFanSam]

Originally Posted by DocNYz

We need Rake on Blu-ray here in the States! Such a phenomenal show from you guys in Australia!!

Not relevant to this thread.

[akiralx]

Yes, Boss was never released here or anywhere in Reg B either - I have now got a multi region player so picked up the US release of S1...

[McCrutchy]

Originally Posted by akiralx

Yes, Boss was never released here or anywhere in Reg B either - I have now got a multi region player so picked up the US release of S1...

Both seasons of Boss were released in France:



And also in some Scandinavian countries (Norway, as an example):

[akiralx]

Cheers, didn't know that.

[stevo4264]

Was at a mates place on the weekend he's got a lot of dvd's and a fair selection of Blu's and he said to me, "I cant really see the difference between them". In all honesty I didn't know what to say, his tv is a 60 incher is about 4-5 years old so I'm assuming it's 1080p.

So if people can't see the difference on a 60 inch screen then, well they'll stick with their dvd's I guess.

I should also point out while we were talking he had the tv on watching I think it was ABC 1 or 2. To me the picture looked unwatchable it was that bad, but he didn't seem to notice or care

[McCrutchy]

Originally Posted by akiralx

Cheers, didn't know that.

[Russ103]

Another factor has got to be price of local releases - especially TV shows.

I remember when I got my first Blu-Ray player, I really wanted to buy Lost. I had the first few season on DVD, and viewed the last couple of seasons downloading them each week - but I couldn't wait to watch it in HD. It's a show I thought would look absolutely stunning on BD.

It couldn't be purchased as a complete set - I think the final season or two were yet to be released - but each individual season was anywhere from $90 to $110. For one season! I kept waiting in hopes they'd drop in price once the entire series was released, yet it never happened (at least not for a long while).

I ended up buying the complete 7 seasons, new, from Amazon, for about the same price JB HiFi were still trying to sell season 1.