Archives for March, 2008
Blu-ray movie sales surpass 9 million
Blu-ray Disc sales have surpassed the 9 million mark, thanks in part to No Country for Old Men. In the first 11 weeks of the year, 3 million Blu-ray movies were sold. Adding the 6 million previously sold since the format launch in mid 2006 brings our total to 9 million, well on its way to hit 15 million by the end of this year.
On average, around 200,000 - 300,000 Blu-ray movies are sold weekly. This number spiked up to 319,000, driven by the release of No Country For Old Men, which sold 68,000 units the week ending March 16, double that of the next closest title: Hitman.
Mrs. Doubtfire Blu-ray Cover Art
Set for release on May 13, 2008, here is the cover art for the Mrs. Doubtfire Blu-ray.
132 million Blu-ray homes by 2012
According to Strategy Analytics, Blu-ray players will be in 29.4 million homes worldwide by the end of 2008. According to, “Blu-ray Devices: Forecasting Sales and Ownership,” Sony’s PS3 games console will continue to drive the Blu-ray market until 2009, after which stand-alone Blu-ray players will become dominant. By 2012 more than 132 million homes worldwide will own at least one Blu-ray device.
“HD-DVD’s withdrawal leaves the way open for Blu-ray to become a major revenue earner for technology vendors and content owners alike,” says David Mercer, Principal Analyst. “The 265 million homes that will own an HDTV by 2012, and Hollywood’s need for a new growth engine, represent huge incentives for the industry to coordinate marketing activities and demonstrate unified support for the successor to DVD.”
Top selling high-def movies for the week ending March 16
No surprises as No Country for Old Men, winner of the Best Picture Oscar, took the number one spot on the charts. Rounding out the top ten are two HD DVDs… perhaps the last time they’ll be on the list.
Wrestlemania XXIV marks WWE’s first ever Blu-ray release
WWE Home Video has announced that Wrestlemania XXIV will be the company’s first ever Blu-ray release. Scheduled for release on May 20, day-and-date with the DVD version, Wrestlemania XXIV will feature around 10 matches including the following:
Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship: Randy Orton vs. Triple H vs. John Cena
World Heavyweight Championship: Edge vs. The Undertaker
Money in the Bank ladder match: Mr. Kennedy vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Chris Jericho vs. Carlito vs. Montel Vontavious Porter vs. CM Punk vs. John Morrison
Floyd Mayweather, Jr. vs. The Big Show (Yes, Floyd Mayweather, Jr… the boxer. He apparently received $20 million for the match)
More details are expected soon. We’ll keep you posted.
Batman: The Movie gets Blu-ray release
Fox Home Entertainment has announced they will bring the 1966 classic Batman: The Movie to Blu-ray on July 1, 2008. The movie will be presented in 1080p with 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio.
Extras include: commentary by actors Adam West and Burt Ward, commentary by screenwriter Lorenzo Semple, Jr., isolated score track, pop-up trivia, original teaser and theatrical trailers, galleries and much more.
There will also be a limited edition released with only 5,000 copies made which will include a 1/18th scale Batmobile from Hot Wheels.
New PS3 firmware released
Just a heads up to let you all know that the new Sony PlayStation 3 firmware, version 2.20, launched last night. As mentioned before, the new update adds Blu-ray Disc Profile 2.0 (BD-LIVE) support. All you have to do is go to the System Update section of the PS3 menu and the download will start. It should take no more than 10 minutes. That’s all you have to do. You now have a 2.0 Blu-ray player and are ready to take advantage of new Blu-ray features.
Semi-Pro scores June Blu-ray release
New Line has announced a June 3rd release date for Will Ferrell’s Semi Pro, which will arrive in an unrated “Let’s Get Sweaty” two-disc special edition.
It’s safe to assume the quick turn around from its theatrical release to home video is due to the fact that the movie didn’t do so well at the box office, pulling in (as of this blog post) only $32 million domestically.
In my opinion, its R rating hurt the film’s potential. PG-13 would have brought in the millions of a teenagers between the ages of 13 and 16 who can’t get into a 17 and over R rated movie. Hopefully the movie will find a larger audience when it arrives on DVD and Blu-ray this June.
Semi-Pro will be presented in 1080p with DTS-HD Lossless Master Audio 7.1 Surround.
New releases for March 25, 2008
This week’s new releases are:
Bonnie & Clyde
Digital Video Essentials: HD Basics
Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Naked Beneath the Water
Steep
Via EngadgetHD
‘Enchanted’ Blu-ray Review
Remember Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and the countless other Disney classics of yesterday? Remember when you saw them for the first time how they made you smile? The films were pleasant and full of heart and were good, wholesome fun. Sadly, there hasn’t been a new Disney fairytale classic in too long a time – that is, until now. With Enchanted, Disney has returned to its roots of fairytale storytelling delivering an entertaining and delightful movie viewing experience.
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