Monday, August 22, 2005

Edward Jay Epstein

Notices this little tidbit in his piece on Blu-Ray technology:
In addition, the Blu-Ray will allow Sony to reissue its movie titles in high definition. In fact, part of the stated justification for acquiring MGM was the profits to be realized from reissuing the 4,100 films in MGM's library in the Blu-Ray format.

In the coming hi-def DVD format war, I've been banking on Toshiba's HD-DVD over Sony's Blu-Ray, but Epstein figures differently:
I predict that the Blu-Ray will prevail for three reasons. First, Sony has a critical mass of movies that it can release on Blu-Ray. Aside from its own titles, Disney, 20th Century Fox, and Lions Gate have agreed to release their titles on Blu-Ray. Next, almost all of the leading computer manufacturers, including Dell, Hewlett-Packard, and Apple, are committed to using Blu-Ray. So, if a studio wants its high-definition DVDs to be playable on personal computers—or for that matter on PlayStation 3—it will have to issue them in the Blu-Ray format. Finally, the situations of Sony and Toshiba are not symmetrical. For Sony, the Blu-Ray is an integral part of its overall strategy. For Toshiba, the HD-DVD is just another product they manufacture. If the company reached an accommodating deal on licensing fees, it could also make money by manufacturing the Blu-Ray DVDs.

I'm convinced.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Directv ND combines America's favorite network channels, other popular networks not available from many cable services, a pay per view movie service with up to 55 choices of movies and special events a day, local channels in many markets, and an unprecedented sports subscription lineup. Check out my site on Directv ND

Anonymous said...

Hey Graet Blog, I found your Blog very intersting.
I have a Blog that deals with online lead generation

you find my blog at www.leadgeneration4u.blogspot.com