BLU-RAY, sizes, codecs... and whats stopping it all.

[***Deimos***]

Hello there all... first post.

WHY
DVD is a very capable format. Look no further than Phantom Menace, or Attack of the Clones. However, not all DVDs are digitally remastered. And even if they are, they must have been done poorly, because there is ringing, blockiness, and some artifacts that even post-processing cant correct. Fortunately there are studios that do produce high quality DVD sets.

DVD isn't universal just because of movies. Console support, made a big difference in addoption. Next generation consoles will supposedly come with Blu-Ray drives, but what for? What game could possibly take up multiple DVD's. They have just started making DVD PC game versions available... but then they hassle you to pay more, and usually the rebates/promotions don't apply to DVD versions.

DVD is universal. PC storage. Consoles. Scales well to EDTV resolutions. And most importantly, the general population has been convinced now by all the marketing that DVD is digital, its extra features, angles, languages, bloopers, etc.. are better. Fast seek time, discs last very long, and quality doesn't degrade like tape (ex HD-VHS). Sooo.. what advantage does Blu-Ray have, other than size, and the quality.. the benefits of which (for average Joe) will undoubtedly be debated.

FUTURE PROSPECT
I love Blu-Ray.. finally harder material discs that are truely scratch resistant. Native support for MPEG-4 could allow whole seasons of Sopranos to fit with room to spare for the East Wing. Or just provide higher quality. And, finally there will be a suitable PC backup medium.

Not long ago I had a computer with 2.5GB drive and 12x CD. Back then, I could have archived most of my stuff on a few discs. Finally Blu-Ray will allow the same. BUT, there is the BIG problem of piracy.

Soon after everybody had VHS players in their homes, some crafty people started making bootleg copies. Hey, remember when you would buy a $30 Disney classic on VHS. Or perhaps settle for a short 30min TV show on one of them cheap 40min tapes for $5. Now you can get a full-featured Hollywood movie with all the extras on DVD for that. And most "older" people buy the cool sleak well marked DVDs... especially as gifts (ex Christmas). But, in general I find that many ('most') students in Colleges and Universities, download and watch camera recorded movies, screeners and DVD-rips (best indication is the huge volume sales of DVD/CD discs and burners.. trust me, they are not being bought for purpose of school project or home video). Why.. cause its free and and widely available. And apparently, the time it takes to download 1-2GB isn't enough of a detterent, since recently I read somewhere that such downloads account for like 1/3 of all internet traffic... Yikes!!.

Blu-Ray has a big problem on their hands. I'm sure some over-confident wise-ass thinks that a new "macrovision" or CSS will solve this problem for good. Many such "techniques" are shortly overcome. I think the studios this time are aiming to get $$$/watching of movie (some steady revenue stream). This would work great if you could get a big loyal customer base. I think it is key to go "along with the trend" rather than against it (aka look at big success of iPod and iTunes).

I cannot speak empiraclly but I noticed that once a person rents/buys a certain threshold of DVD's... they are very likely to continue doing so. I guess its around 5-10. But, these are people with jobs and money. Most teens are unlikely to be setting up home theatre and getting DVDs.. but they can always ask the parents...

Initially, the success of Blu-Ray will greatly depend on the niche early adopters (AV professionals). But, they should be marketed to younger audience. Back in the day, most tapes were bought for young children... and I just dont see enough push for that with DVD. Market for the young. Make it a cool trendy thing for teens.. indispensible like cell phones. Once well entrenched in society, people wouldn't give a second thought about getting another DVD/Blu-Ray... Well... I better stop.. I'm probably reciting every marketing strategists dreams here...

Blu-Ray

Hope to see soon...