Blu-ray Challenge Begins; Disney On It in 101 Ways (Hettrick)

[Jeff®]

Blu-ray Challenge Begins; Disney On It in 101 Ways


by: Scott Hettrick

Now that the format was has ended with HD DVD, the marketing of Blu-ray to the average consumer must accelerate quickly.

There is evidence that Disney, for one, is already on it.

The new "One Hundred and One Dalmatians" two-disc Platinum Edition DVD debuting on March 4 includes multiple visual and printed promotions for a variety of Disney Blu-ray titles and Blu-ray in general.

One of the multiple sneak peeks on the movie disc itself (in addition to a new DVD premiere movie I was previously unaware of: "The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning" on August 26 -- apparently not on Blu-ray) is for the fall release of the Platinum Edition of "Sleeping Beauty," which is trumpeted in the video preview as the high-definition event of the year and the first Disney animated classic to be released "on high-definition Blu-ray Disc" this fall. (Note that "high-definition" gets priority over "Blu-ray Disc.")

But the first thing a consumer will see even before popping in the disc when opening the case is another slickly produced full-color Disney 12-page news/activity/promo brochure, with a center spread devoted entirely to Blu-ray.
Interestingly, the words Blu-ray do not stand out at all. Instead "Next Generation" and "High Definition" get the bold face and large font.
The spread features a visually appealing and quick-and-easy-to-grasp list/graphics of bullet points of what makes Blu-ray important to the consumer under the attention-getting heading "Welcome to the Revolution."
Bullet points are: Pristine Picture; Superior Sound; Next Generation Interactivity; Unsurpassed Capacity; Complete Compatibility; and Advanced Durability. Each is followed by a simple and brief elaboration. This is where the term Blu-ray Disc is noted in a more subtle fashion.

The back cover of the same brochure has a printed full-page ad for "Sleeping Beauty," noting that it is "on 2-Disc DVD and Blu-ray Hi-Def" this fall. (Again, interesting that it's not "Blu-ray Disc" but Blu-ray Hi-Def.")

This is exactly the kind of marketing that all studios and CE companies need to do to reach the current DVD consumer who needs to upgrade to high-def disc. And prioritizing the words high-def over Blu-ray is not a bad idea either, especially now that HD DVD will no longer be a confusing competitive moniker to worry about.

http://www.hollywoodinhidef.com/blog_detail.php?id=174

[akadkins]

Great...now why isn't 101 Dalmations on Blu-Ray? So Disney can get me to buy it twice? Here's how it starts...

[quaylie]

at first I thought he meant they(Disney) weren't mentioning Blu Ray because they were unsure of where the market would be at that time..but then I woke up and realized it's because there will only be Blu-Ray at that time..now that victory is upon us...way to go Disney!..BTW..my girlfriend is stoked about Sleeping Beauty on Blu..it's her favorite.

[EricJ]

Umm...wow, Scott:
You not only found those ad/coupon brochures in a real Disney disk, but you noticed one of the movies had a Sleeping Blu-ty promo on it...
(What next, you just discovered that the disks are round?)

Well, okay, maybe not everyone bought Ratatouille when it came out--
How about a real rumor?: I've heard some early reports claiming that Pinocchio might be prepped for Blu for its ending Platinum turn next after SB, and that we might see some promo on the 101D disk.
Can anyone else confirm, three weeks ahead?

[Wondermaker]

Originally Posted by EricJ

I've heard some early reports claiming that Pinocchio might be prepped for Blu for its ending Platinum turn next after SB, and that we might see some promo on the 101D disk.
Can anyone else confirm, three weeks ahead?

Well, this is purely speculation, but I expect to see Blu-ray versions of every Platinum Edition release from Sleeping Beauty onward. Unusual complications aside, it only makes sense to start a regular Blu-ray PE schedule...

[jling84]

I think it's ok that they don't emphasize "Blu-Ray". There will only be one hi-def format from now on, so the emphasis on "High Definition" is the right choice. When the general consumer decides that he or she wants to upgrade to a hi-def format, they will only be able to go Blu-Ray anyway.

[WriteSimply]

Disney discs already have BD promos where the key phrase is always Blu-ray High Definition. But that's video promos. For brochures for the public, it is correct to emphasize "High Definition" first because the public have HDTVs. As Hettrick said, only in the actual text did the brochure use Blu-ray Disc. The use as it is is good marketing.


fuad

[AlexCruz]

Disney pwns the world