2005년 08월 29일
Studios Are Less Than Forthcoming
http://www.dvdfile.com/news/viewpoints/editors_desk/2005/08_23.html
Studios Are Less Than Forthcoming
I overlooked a terrific article in the New York Times on January 31, 2005 entitled “Video Sales Abroad Are Good News in Hollywood. Shhh.” by Ross Johnson. As you all know, the MPAA and the studios have been complaining bitterly about how they've been losing $3.5 billion in annual sales of their intellectual content. This is, of course, the rationale behind the draconian copy protection measures that are going to punish the innocent. Johnson writes that those lost sales are overwhelmingly in the form of video compact discs (VCDs). And almost all of those losses are overseas. This begs several questions . . .
Can't the MPAA make up its mind? (I thought Hollywood claimed that file sharing was the culprit.) Does Hollywood really believe that people who are apparently willing to accept the awful quality of highly compressed motion pictures on discs that can only hold a small fraction of the storage capacity of DVD would spend over ten times more for DVD, HD-DVD, or Blu-ray Disc if the counterfeits weren't available? Does Hollywood believe that the economies of the Asian countries where such counterfeits are readily available would support $3.5 billion in annual sales? And just what percentage of Hollywood's total income from film on home media is represented by that phantom $3.5 billion?
Ah, now that last question is one we may not expect to be answered any time soon. When MPAA spokesperson Barbara Berger was asked about Hollywood's income from foreign sales of film on home media, the Times was told, “Those figures are confidential, and we don't release them." Hmmm. I may be paranoid, but whenever I hear that type of answer, I get a little suspicious. What's Hollywood hiding?
There are no reliable, multinational organizations that track overseas sales, so trying to circumvent Hollywood's reticence is a bit difficult. Johnson suggests that the most reliable source for an estimate of such income may be available from Screen Digest, a British firm. Screen Digest estimates that legitimate overseas spending on home video formats from which the studios profit amounted to $24.6 billion in 2004. And in the September issue of Sound & Vision, it was reported that the MPAA's Digital Entertainment Group cited $21 billion in domestic DVD sales and rentals in 2004. So adding those two figures together yields approximately $45 billion worldwide. And if we accept the highly dubious notion that Hollywood could recover all $3.5 billion in estimated lost sales, the studios might increase their film-on-disc income by 7.8%. And for that gain they expect nearly seven million domestic owners of analog-input-only HD-ready displays to throw away their nearly $17 billion dollars worth of equipment. I'm having trouble appreciating the justification. How about you?
“I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!” - Howard Beale, Network
On August 10th, JupiterResearch released a report in which they found that only 6% of online consumers plan to buy new or upgraded DVD players during the next twelve months. The report states that there is minimal consumer interest in the imminent high definition DVD formats. And that “backward compatibility and low price points are the key success factors for any next-generation DVD format.”
I'd be willing to put good money on the table right now that the majority of those who responded positively are early adopters (or adapters, depending on your point of view, let's call them EA's). And it's the EA who propels a new format forward, with demos for friends and neighbors, proselytizing the new format, spreading the good word through forums and enthusiast sites like ours. So what are the studios doing? They are abandoning the EA's. I can't understand it. I can't understand the self-defeating logic of it all.
And apparently, I'm no longer alone.
Over the course of the next few weeks you will begin to see the emergence of a more organized effort dedicated to influencing Hollywood's approach to high definition on optical disc and dedicated to helping make high definition on optical disc a success for consumer and Hollywood alike. Stand by for more information as it becomes available. Your proactive support will be critical.
Studios Are Less Than Forthcoming
I overlooked a terrific article in the New York Times on January 31, 2005 entitled “Video Sales Abroad Are Good News in Hollywood. Shhh.” by Ross Johnson. As you all know, the MPAA and the studios have been complaining bitterly about how they've been losing $3.5 billion in annual sales of their intellectual content. This is, of course, the rationale behind the draconian copy protection measures that are going to punish the innocent. Johnson writes that those lost sales are overwhelmingly in the form of video compact discs (VCDs). And almost all of those losses are overseas. This begs several questions . . .
Can't the MPAA make up its mind? (I thought Hollywood claimed that file sharing was the culprit.) Does Hollywood really believe that people who are apparently willing to accept the awful quality of highly compressed motion pictures on discs that can only hold a small fraction of the storage capacity of DVD would spend over ten times more for DVD, HD-DVD, or Blu-ray Disc if the counterfeits weren't available? Does Hollywood believe that the economies of the Asian countries where such counterfeits are readily available would support $3.5 billion in annual sales? And just what percentage of Hollywood's total income from film on home media is represented by that phantom $3.5 billion?
Ah, now that last question is one we may not expect to be answered any time soon. When MPAA spokesperson Barbara Berger was asked about Hollywood's income from foreign sales of film on home media, the Times was told, “Those figures are confidential, and we don't release them." Hmmm. I may be paranoid, but whenever I hear that type of answer, I get a little suspicious. What's Hollywood hiding?
There are no reliable, multinational organizations that track overseas sales, so trying to circumvent Hollywood's reticence is a bit difficult. Johnson suggests that the most reliable source for an estimate of such income may be available from Screen Digest, a British firm. Screen Digest estimates that legitimate overseas spending on home video formats from which the studios profit amounted to $24.6 billion in 2004. And in the September issue of Sound & Vision, it was reported that the MPAA's Digital Entertainment Group cited $21 billion in domestic DVD sales and rentals in 2004. So adding those two figures together yields approximately $45 billion worldwide. And if we accept the highly dubious notion that Hollywood could recover all $3.5 billion in estimated lost sales, the studios might increase their film-on-disc income by 7.8%. And for that gain they expect nearly seven million domestic owners of analog-input-only HD-ready displays to throw away their nearly $17 billion dollars worth of equipment. I'm having trouble appreciating the justification. How about you?
“I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!” - Howard Beale, Network
On August 10th, JupiterResearch released a report in which they found that only 6% of online consumers plan to buy new or upgraded DVD players during the next twelve months. The report states that there is minimal consumer interest in the imminent high definition DVD formats. And that “backward compatibility and low price points are the key success factors for any next-generation DVD format.”
I'd be willing to put good money on the table right now that the majority of those who responded positively are early adopters (or adapters, depending on your point of view, let's call them EA's). And it's the EA who propels a new format forward, with demos for friends and neighbors, proselytizing the new format, spreading the good word through forums and enthusiast sites like ours. So what are the studios doing? They are abandoning the EA's. I can't understand it. I can't understand the self-defeating logic of it all.
And apparently, I'm no longer alone.
Over the course of the next few weeks you will begin to see the emergence of a more organized effort dedicated to influencing Hollywood's approach to high definition on optical disc and dedicated to helping make high definition on optical disc a success for consumer and Hollywood alike. Stand by for more information as it becomes available. Your proactive support will be critical.
# by | 2005/08/29 00:51 | Gizmo | 트랙백 | 덧글(0)
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