Despite selling more movies on the Blu-ray format, Paramount has announced today that they will begin supporting HD DVD exclusively. This move, rumored to be driven by a $150M exclusivity deal with the HD DVD group, comes after Paramount began favoring Blu-ray releases with higher quality video encodings and more HD features. The deal covers all of Paramount's properties excluding those directed by Steven Spielberg.
The move will inevitably lengthen a format war which should never have been. Consumers will unfortunately suffer the most, as they will be forced to support a format which is being supported by corporations instead of consumers. No word was given as to how long the exclusivity agreement is for, but rumors indicate through 2008.
High definition enthusiasts can now only hope that a DVD-A/SACD situation hasn't been initiated by this decision.
I must admit that this stings. didn't paramount just say last month that hd dvd didn't have the space needed to put an hd picture, uncompressed audio, and special features on their discs? I swear I read that somewhere. well it hurts. but i'm not sure how many of their movies I have already. they started as hd dvd exclusive didn't they? then neutral, now exclusive again. very odd.
You have got to be kidding me! This is HUGE news! You've got to give the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray camps that this war is EXTREMELY interesting. I really wasn't expecting this.
Well if this is true its time for Sony to play nasty, screw it. I think they should go out and pay Warner to be Blu-Ray exclusive I think that would be a bigger blow to HD-DVD than any studio that supports that format. As far as Paramount goes I think this move will come back and bite them in the ass. I guess Paramount now is on my boycott list including their themeparks.
sorry I am a little P****d off right now! Where are the Paramount headquarters? Boys pick up those picketing signs. The only thing that could be worse would be Disney going ne- sorry I just can't say it.
Paramount Home Entertainment will launch its exclusive HD DVD program with the release of the blockbuster comedy hit "Blades of Glory" on August 28th and follow with two of the biggest grossing movies of the year "Transformers" and "Shrek the Third". These three titles alone represent more than $1.5 billion in box office ticket sales worldwide.
WOW, just WOW! NOT COOL! Official BOYCOTT HAS BEGUN!
Got to give the devil his due. MS and their folks opened their wallets wide and made something happen. Aggressive. Ruthless.
Anyone who knows MS's history in the PC marketplace for the past 30 years really should recognize this m.o.
This is some kind of amazing flip flop by Paramount, though. A while back, their language and stance suggested a mild favoritism towards Blu.
Now this.
There's no logical, factual reasons for them doing this past taking money because sales figures and everything else clearly favor Blu and have done so for many months now.
Wow...the HD-DVD format just made a seriour coup, and has once again saved itself for oblivion for the time being. In the long run, while Paramount is a huge studio. Unless Disney or Fox go format neutral HD-DVD doesn't stand a chance...but if for some reason, they did too....I just bought a PS3 for nothing. I can't stand it!
HD-DVD needed a miracle to survive the Blu onslaught of Christmas and they found a way to do it.
How much cash did they pay Paramount off with? There are NO concrete facts on the ground to support ANY studio to outright make a choice to start shunning Blu entirely. NONE!
Transformers was Steven Speilberg (well he produced it) could that change anything? And my best buy has a back room full of Bldes of Glory on Blu.... What will happen to those?
I don't get it. I just don't get it. For a studio to go from neutral to HD DVD exclusive at this stage in the game--when the end of the war was in sight--is just sheer stupidity. I guess Paramount wanted the short-term profits from the bribes, without regard to the massive profits they could realise when the war is over. :-(
Question is: what's the BDA's response to this gonna be...?
Unless you are in the boardroom, or a very large stockholder, it’s impossible to say how long the exclusiveness will last; it could just be a matter of months and a deal they could not refuse, knowing it will not make a difference in the long run, why not take the money from HD-dud while they have it to offer.
It is a pretty big blow to blu-ray, but I don’t think it will help much, sony will come out strong ASAP and over Christmas with its own surprise.
Yeah, hopefully since Transformers was produced by Spielberg it might get both formats. That's a big stretch in interpretation of the exact wording though. One can hope.
For those talking about behind door deals, I would like to point out two things. What makes you think that Blu-ray hasn't done the same? Also, what makes you think it even it, just because it is the format you don't support?
I would also like to point out to those who are talking about HD-DVD extending this war. If it weren't for Sony and the BDA, we would have never had a format war in the first place.
I am format nuetral since I just want to watch movies in HD. I don't care who wins, I actually don't care if both formats stick around like SACD and DVD-A. I just would like to seem cheap, but quality dual format players to suit my needs.
I think it is really sad that everyone has forgotten about the main point behind these formats is. HD Video and Audio... not about picking sides and bickering back and forth. I have seriously found it funny reading comments on this site, mainly all the people that have been walking about saying that HD-DVD is deal. I have not for a second that this format war would be short and I really think you are ignorant if you did this it would be. This announcement today just proves that.
god fucking damn it( I DONT WANT A FUCKING HD-DVD PLAYER ) what is going on im lost this hurts, shitty ass toshiba here i come FUCK NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This can't be happening!! Paramount & Dreamworks!?
Quote from Transformers the Movie - " Oh, shit! What're we gonna do now?!"
Quote from Shrek the Third - "Honey, let's try to be rational. Have you seen a baby lately? They just eat and poop and they cry, and they cry when they poop and they poop when they cry. Now, imagine an ogre baby: They extra cry, and they extra poop!"
I have always been format neutral, but this is getting ridiculous. I am NOT going to buy a whole bunch of movies twice when one format wins! Pick a side Paramount and stick to it!
It's obvious that they did this just to get a couple million dollars from Microsoft. I'd do it too! Why make customers happy when you can just get handed $150 million bucks under the table?
Oh well...I guess I'll be keeping my HD-DVD player and my PS3 side by side for a while. In the long run though, I sure am going to be careful about the movies I buy on the formats. I'm less likely to purchase any movie now for fear of having to repurchase it again at the end of the format war. Is this what you wanted, Microsoft!?!!?!
This was a huge mistake by Paramount. All Theatrical, DVD, and Blu-ray movies from Paramount should be boycott until they switch back. Toshiba and GE/Universal are trying to buy a win instead of letting consumers make the decision. We need to through stronger support behind Blu-Ray by purchasing 5 Blu-Ray movies each month. If we all did that HD DVD will be dead by Christmas. Let’s send a powerful message. Click if you agree. Cheers,
Ok i dont really post vary many things but this one just tops it. This is starting to be all about the
money. They are saying they want to go to only HD DVDs because of the price drop so they think it
will be the way to go. I still dont think it will work. Thank God that it doesnt apply to Steven Spielbergs
movies because then we would be dead; meaning no Transformers. This just says that when it does
come out we all need to buy the one on Blu ray to show them were they should have stayed.
No David, according to several annoucenments on future titles, like Blades of Glory and Face Off, there were more features on Blu-Ray then HD-DVD. But those titles were cancelled, so it's kind of a mute point. But I wouldn't call it a fabrication...that's a little harsh.
This really dosent suprise me, anyone remember Divix? Paramount was a huge supporter of that pile
of junk (as was Disney) seems like they would have learned there lesson. I guess not.
jknight553...Transformers is Blu-Ray exclusive. Speilberg produced it, but he didn't direct it.
Only films that he DIRECTED are format neutral. Speilberg is part owner of Dreamworks, so in a way he is part of producing any film released by them, but It says in the press release that Transformers will be HD-DVD exclusive...so there really isn't any argument there.
Well, They made a bunch of money from whoever paid them off, but they will no longer be getting any of my money. Looks like they will lose lots of money from all of us here. This sucks and so does Paramount.
Has anyone every thought about this?
Paramount, Fox and Disney were a huge part of DIVX and that format died.
DVD was really driven by Warner, Universal and Sony.
Here we've got a different paring of studios with different skills.
I think Warner and Disney are the huge key players here...which ever format they go exclusive with first will win the war in my opinion.
If Warner goes Blu exclusive, that format will win. If Disney goes Neutral or HD-DVD exlusive, then HD-DVD will win.
"Just go format neutral and make your life easier!"
I don't go format neutral because I believe in quality. I'm not going to waste my money on crap. Why don't you go format exclusive and get this stupid war over faster?
Like everyone else is saying on this thread- this is going to prolong the war and definetaly a huge blow to Blu-Ray. I kind of find it ironic that my PS3 just arrived to my house today. I was so looking forward to Transformers. Lets hope that other Blu-Ray exclusive or format neutral studios do not flip and go HD-DVD exlusive. If that happens, the Blu-Ray is in deep trouble. I think we can pretty much count Universal out for going format nuetral any time soon. Totally sucks. The Blu-Ray supporting studios have to counter this fast.
Come on guys, you know what this means... we have to step up our Blu-ray purchases to combat the effects of this awful news. Don't get angry (even though it is very disappointing), but rather support the inferior format. Think ahead: PS3! Not only is this the next generation optical player, but there are millions and millions of them out there. Millions and millions more to come. We haven't seen anything yet. The HD market is still a very tiny niche, so keep your heads high, and go Blu!!!!
***Remember:*** Blu-ray BUY-A-THON on September 18th 2007. Now is the time to get your name added to the list, and show the HD-DVD'ers who is boss!
I am not suprised by this at all though, why wouldn't DVD/HD-DuD put up a huge fight, there is a lot of long term money at stake that Sony is trying to take over from DVD.
HD DVD has only sold 300,000 players compared to 6 or 7 Million Blu-Ray players world wide (Including PS3). Not to mention Blu-Ray is still the Superior Format. This Changes Nothing..............Cheers
I smell a lot of trolls on here. gizmodvd and other. new members popping up to comment on this news only maybe troll a few threads then probably disappear. go back to avs. or you could learn to read. then maybe you'd buy a blu ray player. go in peace trolls.
This is getting out of hand everyone know blu-ray is a better format just by looking at the specs 15gb = HD-DVD, 20 gb = blu-ray is just obvious more data is better quality. What the hell is Paramount thinking I hope Sony is planning to retaliate to this sooner than later.
Just when I thought HD-DVD was gone they pull something stupid like this.
Wassup with LOTHR trilogy and other New Line movies is new line ever going to release in blu-ray??? Sony should be all over that.
This will not affect the eventual outcome of the format war, it will only prolong it.
Paramount and Dreamworks are incredibly foolish to make this decision, but it obviously shows how unimportant the HD discs are to them at the moment.
Sad.
Troll? Nah, Im new here but Im not a troll. Im just to here to say:
What is up Blu-ray bruthas? After months of bashing, HD DVD is dead, BD is superior technology, blah, blah, blah we HD DVD guys can throw our hands in the air and wave em like we just dont care.
"Regarding the decision by Paramount Pictures and co. to release movies exclusively on HD DVD: You have made a terrible mistake.
The only possible reason to do this would be money. The $150 Million that you all profited from this will eventually come to nothing.
Target is only selling Blu-Ray players, Blockbuster will only rent Blu-Ray movies and current market sales indicate that Blu-Ray outsells HD DVD 2:1.
Myself and many hundreds of thousands of others will never invest in HD DVD, and many have stopped buying normal DVDs altogether. Therefore, your $1.5 billion in ticket sales will be released on a format that 2 out of every 3 Hi-Def consumers will never purchase.
Thank you for taking away many movies that I would have otherwise enjoyed watching on Blu-Ray, such as Transformers, Iron-Man, 1-18-08 and many more. I will not be buying or renting these on DVD.
All you have done is to prolong a dispute that should have ended by now between the competing formats. Had you gone Blu-Ray exclusive, you would have made much more money not only in the short term, but also in the long term market.
I sincerely hope that someone is fired in the near future and that more economically sound decisions will be put forth by Paramount and DreamWorks Pictures.
Then:
Although it had announced its support for Toshiba’s format, Paramount has decided to switch sides, the company announcing on Sunday that it will endorse Blu-Ray.
"We have been intrigued by the broad support of Blu-Ray, especially the key advantage of including Blu-Ray in PlayStation 3," Lesinski said in a statement. "After more detailed assessment and new data on cost, manufacturability and copy protection solutions, we have now made the decision to move ahead with the Blu-ray format", he added.
Among the studios announcing its support for Toshiba’s format, the only ones left are Time Warner and Universal, but given the circumstances, it is uncertain whether they will remain loyal to it or leave the increasingly small HD-DVD boat for Blu-Ray’s ocean liner.
Now:
"Part of our vision is to aggressively extend our movies beyond the theater, and deliver the quality and features that appeal to our audience. I believe HD DVD is not only the affordable high quality choice for consumers, but also the smart choice for Paramount."
"We decided to release "Shrek the Third" and other DreamWorks Animation titles exclusively on HD DVD because we believe it is the best format to bring high quality home entertainment to a key segment of our audience -- families,"
Paramount is like a battered woman, she will be begging to come backs soon! (I appologize in advance )
Everyone needs to step up their Blu-ray movie purchases. Don't get mad….get even. If we all purchase a bunch of Blu-Ray movies, it will make Paramount look really stupid and the board of directors at Paramount really up-set and force a reversal. Go spend as much as you can afford on Blu-Ray movies. Let show these idiots who really has the power!!!............Cheers
Yes...the trolls are here for sure.
Big deal.
Oh well...I hope Paramount comes back...until then I won't be purchasing any of your movies on HD-DVD or Blu-Ray, just renting. See you when you make up your mind, flip-floppers!
Please please please FOX, make an annoucement soon!
go to hell gizmodvd transformers is a bluray movie too its a spielberg produced movie. Also im def with Shark buy as much bluray as we can guys and gals we will show Paramount their own stupidity!
Of all the lowdown things to do. Transformers is going to be one of the biggest movies this holiday season and it deserves to be on Blu. So long Paramount, enjoy your blood money.
hitechiowa, before you tell someone to Go to Hell....
the press release clearly states that Transformers is a HD-DVD exclusive release.
It states that films DIRECTED by Speilberg are neutral, NOT produced by.
If it was any film PRODUCED by him, that would include half of the Dreamworks catalog!
Going "format neutral" is very easy to say and may not be a problem for some folks, but I had a hard time convincing the rest of the family about spending the money for a PS3 and there is absolutley no way that I would be able to bring in another box unless it was less then 50 bucks.
I am right there with you cawgijoe. I went format neutral and I'm a poor college kid. It has not been fun for me. This war is really taking it out on my wallet. This really is all going to have to come to a halt soon. I'm kind of angry with Paramount and Universal for prolonging this war. Blu-Ray's disc size is larger and the coating on the back prevents the discs from scratching. It also has the 7.1 PCM potential, and supports all major video codecs. These were my favorite reasons for joining Blu-Ray outside of studio support. I don't understand why we couldn't all just agree on one format, or why all the studios couldn't be format neutral and let the public vote with their wallets. I hate hollywood so much right now. If it weren't for some incredible movies this summer, I think I'd just abstain. 8 )
I purchased 3 blu-ray movies today, have you?
There is no doubt in my mind blu-ray still has this thing won, at the very least we will end up with 2 formats for a long time, but sony is going nowhere and sales will turn them all blu!
Where do we go to voice our displeasure with Paramount? Anyone have a link. I think they need to be bombarded by a pro Blu-ray universal message--that for the good of the consumer and the HD market--their actions cannot stand. It is ridiculous what they have done here.
What a horrible sellout move at this stage in the format war. Think about the damage now inflicted on the Paramount brand, worldwide?? All the blame and Consumer piss off factor for a prolonged format war will now rest solely on the Paramount brand and plague it for decades to follow. This will only reinforces my commitment to the Blu-ray format, and to lobby friends and family members with which I have great influence (including their purchases of PS3s), to boycott this short-sighted studio. As a gesture of my distaste for the sellout move -- no, others placed their bets early, Paramount, your move was a pure sellout and Consumers and journalists will call you out for it! -- I will gladly pull every DVD in my collection and have it hand delivered to the front lawn of Paramount studios. You with me?
For those stating the costs issues in supporting blu-ray (or going nuetral), just rent more BD movies from blockbuster/netflix/etc, it still supports the format since those companies have to buy more discs.
I can and will boycott Paramount: by not buying South Park Season 10 tomorrow, not seeing their
movies in theaters and spending my money on more blu-rays. The masses have spoken and they're
deciding to take the quick money and prolong this format war. I still don't shop at Circuit City after the
DIVX debacle. Our memories are long, Paramount.
Not a very objective "news" article. Following that logic it makes just as much sense to say that Sony is extending the format war and should bow out (isn't Sony a corporation?). Other than those drinking from the Kool-Aid on this site, every objective and/or multiplatform owner (like myself) keeps saying that neither format has hit critical mass and the war is far from over. The extra features HD-DVD allows (notably in-movie experience) are particularly lucrative.
It's entirely possible neither format will "win" (I still suspect downloadable movie services - like on Live Marketplace, AppleTV, etc. may win out) as, frankly, sales of both formats have been pathetic to date.
I have sent in my email, thanks for the address, goBR. And deseb1985, it may not do any good, but there's nothing wrong with letting Paramount know that they've let us down, even if it changes nothing. It makes me feel better to know that my voice has been heard...if not listened to.
marzetta7, If you want to show your support for Blu-Ray and send a message to Paramount go out today and buy a bunch of Blu-Ray movies, none from Paramount or their affiliates. Then come back and tell us what you bought to motivate others to do the same..........Cheers.
People, we might be blowing this out of proportion.
Once Paramount realizes that their HD-DVD sales are lackluster, they will turn heads and run back to the BR camp.
We just have to stay strong and realize that BR has the majority of studio support.
What in the hell just happened? I go to sleep after watching "Disturbia" and "Flags of our Fathers" on Paramount/Dreamworks Blu-ray, and wake up to find that they've decided my money's not good enough for them any longer. Given the over 2:1 sales ratio favoring Blu-ray that has emerged on titles released on both formats, the "rumored" payout seems the only logical conclusion.
Moreover, they specifically exempt all of their "Spielberg-films," saying that his films are format-neutral. I have to wonder how this is playing out with him and the other Dreamworks people. Although I am sure the animation division can use the much needed influx of cash, this definitely doesn't seem to be the direction they were wanting to head.
I guess I won't be getting "Blades of Glory" next week.
Everyone needs to band together and send as much mail to them as possible. They do not supply an email address, they only accept snail mail. I've written to Paramount in the past and this is the address I have:
Paramount Home Entertainment
5555 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA
90038-3197
I received a response from them when I wrote about another matter. If anyone has a different address then add it.
It they get deluged with mail, then maybe they might go back into discussions. Dropping Blu Ray is crazy. I've watched both formats and Blu Ray is superior hands down!
this is seriously wrong. how can they support on purpose an inferior format ???
PEOPLE LISTEN PLEASE IF WE WANT THE BETTER FORMAT TO BE THE ONE OF THIS NEW GENERATION WE MUST HELP WITH ALL WE CAN, EDUCATE THE PEOPLE AROUND YOU (FAMILY, FRIENDS, COLLEAGUES) EXPLAIN TO THEM HOW A DL BLU RAY AS A WHOPPING 20 GB OF EXTRA SPACE WICH WILL BE NICE WHEN HIGH DEF LONG MOVIES AND EXTRAS ARE WANTED. DONT GO EXTREME ON THEM OR YOU WILL SCARE THEM INTO BUYING HD DVD, JUST EDUCATE THEM LET THEM UNDERSTAND THAT WHEN THEY DO THE JUMP TO THE NEW GENERATION THAT THEY WILL BENEFIT FROM BLU RAY.
AND TO THE BLU RAY CONSORTIUM: GET WARNER TO EXCLUSIVITY, THEY HAVE BY FAR THE BIGGEST CATALOG, DO IT BEFORE THOSE DANGEROUS IDIOTS FROM HDDVD DO IT BEFORE YOU. ITS A NO HOLDS BARRED WAR SO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO WIN IT. GET CHEAPER BLU RAY PRICES IN EUROPE, PROMOTE IT IN EUROPE WHERE A LOT OF NEX GEN IGNORANCE STILL STANDS. THE WAR IS NOW SO DONT WAIT PLEASE
dseb1985, don't underestimate the power of the press, and the blame for consumer piss off that Paramount will inevitably fall on Paramounts shoulders as a result of this short-sighted move. Is this movie studio facing bankruptcy and in that dire need of a cash injection??
I noticed there is an email address posted here. However, snail mail still makes a great impact. I'm sending both. Email is too easily deleted, plus when I wrote before, they wrote me back. So, I know they read their paper mail.
Common. No need to get our panties in a bunch. You can get the A2 for around $250 with 5 free HD DVD's. So sit back and enjoy your Transformers in wonderful HD... Good stuff.
This does really suck. I guess this is really going to ground a lot of people including me. I got into the habit of jumping up and down and sticking my tongue out when the Blockbuster and BJ's news came out, but it just goes to show how quickly things can change. I guess it now means 2 different players and a HDMI converter because my tv only has 2 HDMI's. SO now all we really have exclusive is Disney and FOX which hasnt put anything out in forever. This is worse than the Phillies losing 2 out of 3 to Pittsburgh.
I can't believe Paramount is playing stupid games with the consumer and we the consumer have to pay for their stupidity. HD DVD SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Plain and Simple. We have to recommend to everybody Blu-ray, the format of the future. REMEMBER: Blu-ray is BEYOND!!!!! High Definition. Today I will buy an HD DVD from Paramount and send it to them by mail in a thousand pieces and tell them what a crappy decision they made.
Boycott Paramount! oink! oink!
Warner, sadly, will have NO incentive to go exclusive to Blu-ray. Why? They are the only neutral studio remaining and they will now mint money because their movies already sell better than Paramount... A pro-longed format war, in this new scenario, means huge genuine, real sales and revenue opportunities for Warner (no short term burn money like Paramount just sold out for). Paramount made the move because they suck, they must be in some kind of undisclosed financial trouble, and they couldn't hold a candle to Warner in a true sales arena anyway (and at some level, they know it)...
I am tired of people of saying go format neutral it is easy. Lets see I would have to buy an HD-DVD, analog and video cables a switcher for 5.1 or 7.1 analog outs, possibly another rack to accomodate 2 more components and to top it off explain to my wife after I spend all this money to go neutral how to now operate the TV with 2 different disc players. Other than that seems pretty simple.
Mike
People need to chill out a bit and email the people at Viacom and Paramount. SUpport Blu-Ray and let your wallet do the talking. I just wrote this email and have sent to three people already at Viacom, Paramount & dreamworks. Here is what I wrote to those jerks:
"Hello, I am writing this email in disgust to the news that I read today (http://www.viacom.com/NEWS/NewsText.aspx?RID=1042073) about Paramount going HD-DVD exclusive. I guess money talks since Paramount has decided to support a dying format which is technically inferior to Blu-Ray. As a matter a fact Paramount was having issues with including lossless audio on their new HD-DVD releases including Blades of Glory. I can't be more disappointed in Paramount since they decided to boycott me from buying their products. As a consumer your company is only prolonging the inevitable that Blu-Ray will win this ridiculous format war. I have several releases from Paramount on Blu-Ray and now I won’t be able to purchase any more Blu-Ray discs from Paramount because they decided to boycott me. There is a way bigger Blu-Ray player install base compared to HD-DVD’s numbers (2 million vs. 350,000). Numbers don’t lie and even Paramount’s own releases their the Nielsen numbers don’t lie with movies such as Distrubia outselling their HD-DVD counterpart 2.04:1 and also shooter on Blu-Ray as well selling the HD-DVD version 1.71:1.
I for one will no longer buy any Paramount product nor watch any movies from your company in the theaters, and theme parks (Great America). The sales numbers are to obvious to ignore with Blu-Ray having the sales of 2-1 over HD-DVD. Will see you in the finish line when Blu-Ray will win this stupid format war! I hope that Paramount studios is pround of themselves for making this format war more difficult for consumers to adopt to."
If '300' did 100,000 copies on HD DVD and it was not exclusive, then we're looking at big numbers for Shrek and Transformers. Blu-ray will have their hits as well.
I support HD DVD, but have a Blu-ray player. I have not been buying Blu-ray movies because I want HD DVD to win. But if things pull even and it becomes clear that both formats are here to stay, I might start buying Blu-ray movies again. Seems odd, right?
Guess we should have seen this coming with the announcement that all things Star Trek will be HD DVD exclusive. Paramount always used the MPEG2 codec and they never had lossless audio on anything. So why are they for all this interactive crap. I want to watch the movie. Not interactive crap that spoils everything about how the movie was made. I watched the making of a movie once and it just spoils the scenes for me. Now I really know what is fake in the movie. I know what to look for. Just crappy Paramount...
You can't even make a good movie for $150 Million these days. That's a drop in the bucket for a major studio. Paramount would make more money staying neutral and feeding both beasts. When you can't make up your mind, don't!
My email letter to Kelley_Avery@ Paramount.com (thanks to previous post):
My family's wallet is officially closed to Paramount Studios. Thanks for selling out, pledging exclusivity to a dying format, and needlessly prolonging a passionate and near ending high definition format war. Think of the millions upon millions of Consumers worldwide you have now pissed off as a result of your short-sighted move, this late in the game. Others placed their bets early; your move away from format neutrality at this stage in the game will do irreparable harm to the Paramount brand, shouldering all the blame; certainly costing you more than the placement fee you just signed up for. I can't imagine the negative press and Consumer distaste the legacy of your decision and the Paramount brand will experience for decades to come.
fuck yeah! now i don't have to drop $600 for a blu ray player! screw ratatouille and spidey3, you can have that shit. spidey3 sucked. its all about bumble-bee and bourne, baby! hell yeah!!!
GoBR,. 1080i, man thst sucks. If you do have a 1080p set with a good deinterlacer (many do), it won't matter anyway. And the A20 (1080p) can be had for only $80 more if you do have a 1080p set with a crappy/no deinterlacer. But anyway, just tossing out a couple options to get people off the ledge..
I'll tell you guys one thing. Price be damned, this makes me one hell of a lot more supportive of that Close Encounters release. Can we all agree to buy that???
just boycott paramount/dreamwork stuff. No more dvd or theater tickets from them. blu-ray has enough consumer strength to hurt them financially. Show them the consequence for sleeping with the enemy
the sales advantage i think is still gonna be 2:1 regardless of paramount...they havent released that many good movies on blu ray expect for the mission impossibles and Disturbia. Transformers will hurt but with the major firestorm from Disney and such, the numbers will remain the same. They'll be closer then if Paramount was still neutral. They sold out for short term money for a long term failure. I wonder if this will keep the Weinstein Company from going neutral?....hmm....hope not
I was just discussing this with a fellow colleaque and we are in total agreement. Why would any studio support a format that has about 300,000 players vs standalone BR players + millions of PS3 even if the PS3 owners are not avid BR movie buyers. The numbers still workout in favour of BR.
limelight_df: Well, I'll admit that it's not quite as impressive as having sold five times as many players, no. lol Funny how the HD DVD camp ignores the PS3 entirely when figuring player sales but then turns around and counts them when figuring player to software sales ratios. Can't have it both ways.
Croweyes1121 -- I will contemplate driving a wedge in the Paramount camp with Spielberg only support. Let Spielberg's sales outright embarrass the rest of the mismanagment cleary residing at Paramount. I think Viacom owns Paramount - dumping their shares in protest is without question the quickest way to make them pay another $150 million for the bonehead move...
lol, nice attempt on that one. Both you and I know that it's ps3's and even though theres a margin that actually uses it for blu-ray's, the vast majority doesn't. I have no problem with Blu-ray, but why would you complain about HD-DVD doing something to support themselves.
Let's not get carried away here. Paramount is a "major" studio in name only. If they hadn't bought Dreamworks, their major hit would have been...... "Jackass: The Movie"! Plus the Indiana Jones series will all be directed by Spielberg, so they cannot be HD-DVD exclusive. I for one would be happy if New Line starts supporting Blu-Ray. Who needs Paramount?
limelight_df: you didn't actually disprove (or even really disagree with) anything I said...guess facts are facts, eh? And you yourself said there were "five times more players" out there for the Blu-Ray camp. They're either Blu-Ray players or they're not, damn it! You can't say there's five times as many players out there to prove the 2:1 software sales advantage isn't impressive and then turn around and say "well, but only a tiny fraction of those players are being used to play movies" to prove a tighter hardware sales ratio. If that's the case, then so goes away your "there are five times as many players" argument (since so few of them are used for movies) and the 2:1 software sales margin again looks impressive. As I said, you can't have it both ways.
I have been an avid reader of this site for quite some time now and am a huge supporter of Blu-
Ray. I have not posted until now only because my opinion was already voiced somebody else, there
are many amazing members on these boards.
Reason for posting now? Zargon. My utmost apologies Zargon, but you're an a$$hole. We choose
Blu-Ray because it IS better then HD-DVD. We choose Blu-Ray because of the amount of storage...
have you thought about backing up your computer system at home, or in the office. Blu-Ray is ALL
about HD Video AND Audio on the SAME disc. HD-DVD does not give us the highest quality
possibly. Which reminds me, we choose Blu-Ray because we choose QUALITY. And we stand by
that quality.
Pardon me. I can rant a bit when upset, and I have not been this upset since first reading this
forum. Paramount, I feel, is making a HUGE mistake. They want there cake, but seem not to want
to eat it to. It will just sit there and rot, grow mold, then they'll finally realize that they should just
throw it out and buy new cake. Except everybody around them has actually been slowly eating this
nasty cake. I, for one, do not want any. I will not sell-out. I promise.
Thank you for letting me vent. Cheers.
25 Blu_Ray's and growing.
7 PS3 games and growing.
LOL I find it funny that people say Blu-ray is sony's format and hd dvd is everyone else's format. How is it that the only makers of hd dvd player is Toshiba and there are a couple blu ray makers?
teunis: I'm looking forward to Heavenly Sword and Ratchet and Clank these coming months
BugsBunny1m: I believe NewLine does support Blu-ray as Lord of the Rings will be out on both formats with the floating rumour that only BR will get the Extended Edition.
goBR, where did you find any information about Lord of the Rings coming to any HD format?
I would love this...but I think it's to soon for a release on HD.
spam.curitiba: Because Toshiba is subsidizing the hd-dvd players and that's why they're much cheaper than BR players.
Another brand is coming out with a hd-dvd player (the name of the brand escapes me right now) but it's price is much higher because of the lack of subsidy.
I hope the stand alone BR players will have a price down during the holiday season to boost sales.
Again, I think Disney, Warner & Fox are really the key players here. Nearly 75% of my DVD titles are from those three studios. I think that it's an easy choice for me. Which ever format has both studios exclusively is the one I will choose. Paramount & Universal are great, but in my opinion, Warner has kept the format war going by staying neutral this long. Universal could not stand on it's own, that is why Microsoft is bringing in Paramount to bat as well. Warner easily has the best titles. By creating mass confusion with the HD-DVD format, Microsoft is making their intentions clear, they believe that packaged media is on the way out, downloading is in. This has been their stance from the beginning of this war. As one who loves packaged media, I think it's time to fight Microsoft. I'm angry with both formats and all the studios at this point. Stop trying to be clever about how to take my money, and then take it AGAIN. I'll eventually stop offering. :-(
Initially this news was upsetting, but when you take a deep breath and realize it's not as bad as it seems you will see the light. Give credit where credit is due and HD-DVD caught Blu-Ray with sucker punch to the back of the head people. Wait til this holiday season when you see Blu winning this High Def war! In November alone there are 3 Pixar films coming out exclusively for Blu-Ray. Trust me when I tell you HD-DVD will not be able to handle the onslaught of great pictures coming exclusively to our side. The consumers have already spoken and will continue to speak when even the neautral companies will see their movies sell more on Blu-Ray than on HD-DVD.
Alright Blu-Ray...the ball is in your camp. Lower those player prices, cut software prices, get FOX back on board, try and get Warner to go BR exclusive, and Disney; keep up the awesome transfers and audio support.
shame this is. i dont see why people would bother with paramount anymore. i just bought disturbia and shooter on blu ray. if they cant fit all the hd extras on dvd that they cud on blu then it seems to me its a half arsed released on a half arsed format. hd dvd can only handle a hd main feature and no hd extras and lossless sound etc. so why bother with it. i wont buy any hd dvds. tempted not to buy them on dvd or blu ray if they ever come out either! why shud they deserve the money for fucking around with everyones money. its a real shame considering some of the movies are really good. theyre wankers/jerks. does this mean that all the currently existing blu rays by them will be pulled? or will they remain? alot of dissapointed fans of films.. i too was waiting for transformers being a fan since the 80's. shame that a stupid company and rubbish format (hd dvd) has even dishearted such fans of topics they loved as a child and is even makin me think not to buy it. doesn't matter i guess since i downloaded it the other day! awaiting blu rya release which will now never come. only reason i downloaded it was i wasnt willing to pay $20 to go see it at the cinema over here.
Here is what we aren't hearing.. Microsoft is reaching into it's deep pockets to try to kill Blu-Ray this holiday season.
Whats makes Paramount abunch of dirty bastards is that people may have made their decision to buy Blu-Ray based on upcoming content. So to switch sides is screwing the current consumer base.
Damn, this thread got to nine pages quickly! You guys really telling me we can't make a difference if we email / call / write to Paramount about this in force? Thing is, everyone needs to get involved.
I am very upset over Paramount's decision. I just purchased a blu-ray player thinking they were on board and that Universal was the only holdout. I would have waited 6 more months for this format war to play out had I not thought it was a foregone conclusion it was already over...
This violates every FTC rule in the book. I'm gonna sue. In reality, everyone should just boycott Subpar-amount and Puny-versal. Hit 'em where it hurts - their deep pockets.
I have been blu-ray exclusive since my wife bought me a ps3 in April. I try to buy all the blu-rays I can - but I am very picky about what I own. To date I have 3 of the four Kubrick BD's on pre-order and The Lives of Others and the Ultimate collector's edition of Blade Runner also on pre-order...I agree with some of the other posters and think that the only way to slap Paramount in the face is to boycott them and pre-order and buy as many blu-rays as possible. Anyway - who cares - Tartan is going to be exclusively blu and I can't wait to buy Oldboy!
Anyone have any contact info with Paramount, I'd like to give them a piece of my mind. I'm sooo depressed about this. I really wanted Transformers on Blu-Ray so I could watch it with my son. I dont buy SD DVDs anymore so now I cant/wont.
Screw all all of the paramount movies coming out this year, I'll watch it when thyey come out on message boards. I really am not giving them a stinking dime!!
This to me sounds like a quick way for Paramount to recieve money for their under-achieving titles. Outside of Spielburg films, there is really not much to market. Especially if any film where Speilburg has anything to do with. ie: Transformers, and a bunch of others he we excutive producer on. and Indiana he directed. So all in all, this really isn't that big of a deal.
It really does sound like a quick way to get some revenue on titles that probably have poor sales to begin with. And HD DVD were the suckers to pay for it.
I can't blame Paramount for this deal. HD DVD really bought a dead market of titles. Without the Speilburg titles it is really a paper tiger.
God effing damn it! I've been looking forward to that release for 3 months now! If htey've already produced the discs, which they must have since it's scheduled to be released next week, why wouldn't they send them out if you've pre-ordered it?
I don't know if it will do anything, but EVERYONE needs to write to PARAMOUNT to let them know how UNHAPPY you are. This move makes absolutly no sense to me
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My sides are splitting...
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As a Blu-ray supporter and buyer this does come as a shock to me.
Perhaps what must be considered is the overall cost to manufacture one format vs another. Blu-ray while MY choice may not reap the profits for a studio to continue publishing in that format. While the reports of BR sales over HDDvd appear 2 to 1, maybe HDDvd is still more profitable.
Hopefully in the end the sheer numbers of BR supporters will drive this battle, but unless the $s are there the studios will shift allegiances to the best business investment.
Well this is shocking news! So we will not be getting Transformers or any other Paramount movies on Blu-Ray for now on? Ok Paramount is dumb! Transformers would of been a huge seller on Blu-Ray.I tell you Paramount sucks now.First it was CBS taking over Paramounts TV libery and releasing edited episodes of TV shows on DVD because CBS was to cheap to pay for the music on some of the TV releases.And now Paramount decides to dich Blu-Ray.Way to go Paramount! Also who is going to pay $200 for Star Trek season 1 on HD DVD-$200 thats crazy!!
HD DVD extras are more functional that blu rays? what does that prove. the limited space for cinema type sound quality and true 1080p extras and feature beat "functional" features. id rather have the best main feature and extras over functional ones whatever that means.. and if ur posting pro hd dvd bollocks why are you listing on blu ray.com?
Keep in mind that a studio that is so easily swayed one way can easily be brought back. This isn't the end of the road. This may only be a holiday deal that was struck.
This may drive other studios to make a tough choice.
a quote from the official report on viacoms site said "I believe HD DVD is not only the affordable high quality choice for consumers, but also the smart choice for Paramount." that made me PMSL. it seems like a dumb choice when their blu ray sales are much greater!, no mention about the lovely pay off they were given which in turn may just about compensate for a years worth of revenue lost through not releasing on blu ray!. Transformers alone would of been a huge seller! and also it seems its not about what the consumers want but what the film company wants. They say hd dvd is what you want which is the opposite of what consumers are actually wanting. So they're making your choices for you apparently, stupid choices at that. thanks Paramount and Dreamworks. Makes me happy knowing I've supported a asslicking sell out company by buying disturbia and shooter. shame the producers etc of films have to suffer for shit sales of their films.. although i guess they've all been paid already so it doesn't matter to them.
On the flip side of this horrible news...HUGE KUDOS to Fox or coming out and recommiting themselves to Blu-Ray. They said they will have another announcement later today to for future titles and dates. Fox's initial Blu-Ray titles may not have been on my Must Have list, But my heart has opened for them for reacting swiftly to this Paramount "Buy Off". Go Fox!!
Hey! Let's just relax. Just because Paramount made a mistake, doesn't mean Blu-Ray is going to lose! Blu-Ray still has more support than HD-DVD! Blu-Ray will continue to stomp HD-DVD into the ground! Say goodbye, Paramount! I'll be waving as I walk away with my new Blu-Ray player! Say goodbye to Paramount, everybody!
Well like i said to my freind when he showed me the news "Looks like i'm emailing them congratulating them on taking bribes and telling them looks like they get no money from me for transformers" Email them as much as you can.
Despite selling more movies on the Blu-ray format, Paramount has announced today that they will begin supporting HD DVD exclusively. This move, rumored to be driven by a 
) 
In reality, everyone should just boycott Subpar-amount and Puny-versal. Hit 'em where it hurts - their deep pockets.
