Warner Bros. launches 'on demand' DVD sales

[molly1216]

http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/dvd ... mand_N.htm

Warner Bros. is launching an innovative "on demand" DVD initiative in which fans eventually will be able to order any of the 6,800 theatrical features in the studio's library not available on disc and receive a custom-made DVD within a week for $20.



oh MY gods!!!

Doc Savage Man of Bronze baby.

Jacques Tourner's Wichita w joel macrae

[Dark Knight]

You may want to gander at this 'ol thread.
http://www.dvdverdict.com/juryroom/viewtopic.php?f=50&t=3230
And, yeah, Doc Savage, but not for the same thrills as yours I'm thinking.
I have a nice DVD copy of the laserdisc, but I think it's full screen.
Still waiting for that sequel.

[molly1216]

You may want to gander at this 'ol thread.
http://www.dvdverdict.com/juryroom/viewtopic.php?f=50&t=3230
And, yeah, Doc Savage, but not for the same thrills as yours I'm thinking.
I have a nice DVD copy of the laserdisc, but I think it's full screen.
Still waiting for that sequel.

yes i saw that thread...but this announcement is kinda buried
and i believe it deserved a thread of it's own.
a lot of early grant and gable are being released under this project
and its a completists wet dream
i am looking forward to Tug Boat Annie with Marie Dressler and Wallace Beery

[Boba Fett]

Early report of one batch purchased (including Doc Savage)
http://www.avmaniacs.com/forums/showthr ... 24&page=14

$20 is way to steep for that quality, IMO.

[HGervais]

I agree, 20 bucks is a little steep and if the titles are indeed interlaced that would be a major factor on how many titles I purchased but you kind of have to think they are in fairly new territory as far as a business model is concerned and we will see some tweaking on the price end. Interesting how the discs will play on a Mac but not on a PC DVD drive.

[mkiker2089]

Everytime I read this I keep thinking that I can do better with my home computer. They could charge maybe 5 dollars for the download content including posters and supplemental material where available, invest a few bucks for a blank case, and make it yourself.

[HGervais]

If your computer had access to 8,000+ plus movies and countless episodes of TV you might well want to do that. The simple truth is there are too many movies sitting in the Warner vaults to even think a fraction of them will ever see the light of day. I get Warner is a business and I don't have a problem with them exploiting an easy revenue stream as long as the quality is off good to better quality. This will be pretty much the only legal way of getting my hands on a lot of these films. Would I like to see them a lower price point? Hell yes but if it is a movie I really want to have, I can live with it while Warner fiddles with price point.

[Boba Fett]

On a related note, how good is this Doc Savage movie? I've heard it mentioned here and elsewhere a few times and it sounds fun.
i think i have seen it twice and the ONLY thing that stands out in my mind is Ron Ely's chest.
so basically i would call it an acquired taste.


i think these should hold their value well in the resale market, since they would be limited to how many are manufactured.

[Steve T Power]

The idea is sound, and i have no issues with the packaging, but $20 is just too much.

[barnaclelapse]

I agree...and does that even include shipping?

[HGervais]

I think I noticed in the message thread Boba linked to that shipping was free.

[molly1216]

i certainly don't think $20 is too much for a film that would otherwise NOT be available.
believe me i have spent more than that.
obviously films with mass appeal will be released through regular channels
and films that only a collector would love would be print on demand.
but if you really WANTED one of these films $20 for the SERVICE is quite reasonable.
of all the releases so far i am only interested in 2...but i can see the others showing up on Netflix instant watch and the like quite quickly.


the excitement of this announcement is NOT the list of obscure unintersting titles,
it is the introduction of a new distribution venue!
what if other studios opened their vaults like this?
what if these digital copies were made available to watch it now as well as buy a dvd.
it really is the NEXUS of physical media meets digital download.

i am very excited to see how this evolves.
i like the capability of watching things online i don't want to own
but i truly like OWNING copies of things I love.
I was afraid for a while there studios were stop making discs entirely.

[HGervais]

You have to think this one of the waves of the future. It's the great untapped market for studios. Studios such as Warners Universal, Fox & Paramount have these huge vaults full of movies that very specific groups of people are looking for and will be willing to pay for. All I need to know is that the discs are of high quality and are not interlaced. It is 2009 and a disc needs to be both anamorphic, if widescreen and progressive. Anything else is unacceptable.

[Ptolemy]

I ordered a single disk as a test... Once Upon A Honeymoon. Ground Shipping was free. I could have paid for expedited delivery. $20.00 is a lot for a movie of this type - but I imagine the price will drop. We'll see. If the price doesn't drop I don't see myself shopping here too much.

I'll check it out and report back here.

[Future Man]

How is the PQ (and sound for that matter) across the board? Is there any effort to clean up prints that need it?

[Boba Fett]

Supposedly the code 'XB392' will give you 25% off at checkout for orders of 5 or more.

[barnaclelapse]

You have to think this one of the waves of the future. It's the great untapped market for studios. Studios such as Warners Universal, Fox & Paramount have these huge vaults full of movies that very specific groups of people are looking for and will be willing to pay for. All I need to know is that the discs are of high quality and are not interlaced. It is 2009 and a disc needs to be both anamorphic, if widescreen and progressive. Anything else is unacceptable.

I agree.

I think I'm going to have to give this a test run myself.

[mkiker2089]

If your computer had access to 8,000+ plus movies and countless episodes of TV you might well want to do that. The simple truth is there are too many movies sitting in the Warner vaults to even think a fraction of them will ever see the light of day. I get Warner is a business and I don't have a problem with them exploiting an easy revenue stream as long as the quality is off good to better quality. This will be pretty much the only legal way of getting my hands on a lot of these films. Would I like to see them a lower price point? Hell yes but if it is a movie I really want to have, I can live with it while Warner fiddles with price point.

That's why I said they should charge 5 dollars for access to and burn privledges of the movies instead. Doesn't Netflix have unreleased movies on demand? Then there's the Gutenberg (sp) project for public domain movies. The precedent is set, Warner could offer us the same option that many software companies do. Buy it via download, and have the option to pay extra for a disc to be mailed later.

[Shmoooooo]

If your computer had access to 8,000+ plus movies and countless episodes of TV you might well want to do that. The simple truth is there are too many movies sitting in the Warner vaults to even think a fraction of them will ever see the light of day. I get Warner is a business and I don't have a problem with them exploiting an easy revenue stream as long as the quality is off good to better quality. This will be pretty much the only legal way of getting my hands on a lot of these films. Would I like to see them a lower price point? Hell yes but if it is a movie I really want to have, I can live with it while Warner fiddles with price point.

That's why I said they should charge 5 dollars for access to and burn privledges of the movies instead. Doesn't Netflix have unreleased movies on demand? Then there's the Gutenberg (sp) project for public domain movies. The precedent is set, Warner could offer us the same option that many software companies do. Buy it via download, and have the option to pay extra for a disc to be mailed later.

In the article it states that they ARE offering a download option ... only it's not for five dollars ... it's for fifteen.