Research/analyst firm Understanding & Solutions has issued a report today saying that Paramount's switch to go exclusive HD DVD has failed to turn the market in favor of that format and that Blu-ray continues to dominate the market with stronger studio support and sales volumes.
If they can't get it done with the cheapest players and three of the biggest movies of the year in "Transformers" and "Shrek the Third" from Paramount/DreamWorks and "Bourne Ultimatum from Universal," it's hard to see how them improving their chances. I wonder how Microsoft/Toshiba are feeling about that $150 million investment, especially since Toshiba's earnings have taken such a hit.
Here is the U&S report in full:
The fast-approaching holiday season is a key milestone in the success of High Definition disc formats in the USA, according to a timely market report by Understanding & Solutions. Performance of both Blu-ray and HD DVD during this second holiday season is crucial in establishing the new generation of optical discs, and may bring the market a step closer to resolving the war between the competing formats.
“Blu-ray and HD DVD player prices have been falling since the summer, culminating in Toshiba’s loss leading sub-$100 HD DVD player, available in the USA last month for a limited time,” says Jeremy Wills, Consultant at Understanding & Solutions. “Price reductions in the USA have continued into December, with Blu-ray players dropping below $300 for the first time, and HD DVD players below $200.”
Understanding & Solutions’ Senior Technology Consultant, Bill Foster adds, “Drive, chipset and other system components are now benefiting from economies of scale. In early 2008 we’re going to see the Bill of Materials for a basic High Definition player, in either format, weighing in at less than $150, and that’s going to impact the high street very soon, providing the consumer with a choice of low price players that allow CE companies a margin for profit.”
In Western Europe by the end of 2008, Understanding & Solutions predicts average player prices (as opposed to entry level model pricing), for HD DVD and Blu-ray of $275 and $475 respectively, with the yet-to-be-launched European 80GB PS3 retailing at just over $500.
Furthermore, by 2011, if both formats still remain, HD DVD and Blu-ray players will both retail at below $100.
“Crucially,” says Wills, “Blu-ray benefits from stronger Hollywood Studio support and represents a greater proportion of High Definition disc production volumes and disc sales. To date, Paramount’s move to sole support of HD DVD has failed to turn the market, despite the HD DVD exclusivity of key titles ‘Transformers’ and ‘Shrek the Third’. Notably, Blu-ray still represented over 70% of High Definition video sales in the USA during the week ‘Transformers’ was released on HD DVD.
“As demand grows and manufacturing volumes build, we’re going to see the costs of releasing on two different formats really start to bite. There may be surprises just around the corner, and we could see a lot more format clarity in 2008.”
Despite all this action in the disc market, consumer confusion still persists. The importance of providing a coherent message through strong retailer support is essential, as many buyers still don’t know what additional inputs are required in order to view High Definition content on a High Definition TV. That said, consumer interest in displays continues unabated. By the end of this year, 34% of US homes will own a Hi Def display, rising to 90% by 2011. In Europe, uptake is slower, with 20% ownership by the end of this year, rising to 66% by 2011.
The British Board of Film Certification announced Friday that it has been granted permission to judicially review the decision by the Video Appeals Committee to overturn the Board's rejection of Manhunt 2.
The news follows Monday’s announcement that the BBFC was seeking a judicial review of the VAC's ruling, a move met with disappointment by the game's publisher Take-Two, and confirms that Manhunt 2 will definitely not see a UK release until the case is heard sometime in January.
"The BBFC was today given permission to judicially review the decision by the Video Appeals Committee to overturn the Board's rejection of the video game Manhunt 2,” the BBFC said in a statement.
“The Board has also been granted a stay on the classification of the game. It is expected that the case will be heard in January.”
After an hour or so, DJB (with a little bit of help from Forahobby) has enabled Youtube in all of the forums on the HQ Network.
A button has been added in the forum posting section which will set up the tags for you, for you people that want to enter them manually, here are the tags:
Nokia has announced a fresh delay to its revamped N-Gage First Access platform, which was originally scheduled to go live in November.
In early November Nokia told Next-Gen that a delay in software testing meant that the launch would be pushed back to December. Nokia looked true to its word when a statement popped up on the N-Gage official blog last Thursday announcing that Nokia N81 and N81 8GB owners would have “exclusive access to the pre-release version of the N-Gage application and one or more N-Gage games” by the end of this week.
However, a new post reveals that the service has been pushed back to 2008. "We know all of you are eager to get started with N-Gage First Access, and we are just as eager to get it into your hands and start hearing your feedback. Unfortunately, as can sometimes happen in software development, unexpected difficulties can occur. We have been doing an internal run with more than 1,000 global testers this week, and during this process we uncovered an issue we feel we need to address.
"Overall, the games and service are working smoothly, but because of this issue, we feel we could not release N-Gage First Access before the holidays as planned.
“As we work on a solution, we will continue to polish the overall experience, ready more games for N-Gage First Access, carry on our extensive internal testing over the holidays, and prepare for the new year and the new wave of mobile play.”
The reworked N-Gage operation, which Nokia says represents a shift in “focus from a dedicated game phone to a gaming service”, will focus solely on a digital distribution model, allowing users to try all N-Gage games for free from any compatible Nokia device before downloading full titles to such devices and PCs.
Major publishers are already lined up to back the service. EA is set to offer titles including FIFA 08 and Tiger Woods PGA Tour while Vivendi, Capcom and I-play are also on board.
Saint’s Row 2 is going to be off the chain and that’s not an empty boast. Right now all any sandbox loving gamer can think about is GTA IV and for good reason, but after you’ve claimed Liberty City in the name of Niko Bellic, you might want to take a trip back to the Stillwater and once again tread The Row. In a newly revamped and larger (45%, to be exact) city with 130 playable interiors, you’ll be able to take your revenge on those who wronged you in helicopters, speedboats, jet-skis (a first for any open-world game) and even planes, which can literally plow through buildings!
Plus, there will also be a story mode that’s completely co-op (in yet another first). Furthermore, players will have the option of playing as a character of either gender or as character who has a non-specific gender. Groundbreaking!
Two things are certain; first, in a game where you can crash through buildings in a plane, some uptight politician is going to call it a training simulator for terrorist and second, this game is going to rock!
As it looks to grow its market share in 2008, Microsoft has pinpointed Europe as the key battleground, and identified Sony as its main rival.
Jeff Bell, head of global marketing for Microsoft's games business, told Reuters that he expects the platform holder to shift more Xbox 360 units in 2008 than in 2007, primarily in Europe, but also in Japan.
Bell said that the Xbox 360 was strong in Britain and increasing its market share in both France and Germany, but that the recent PlayStation 3 price cut had given Sony a boost in Europe.
"We will sell more consoles next year than this year," Bell said.
"Europe for us is still the swing," he added. "The biggest challenge is that Sony as a brand has had greater staying power than in other areas. Not just PlayStation 3, but Sony as a brand."
Bell also said that in Japan, the territory in which Microsoft has struggled most to establish the Xbox brand in the face of stiff competition from Sony and Nintendo, upcoming games from popular domestic designers should help increase hardware sales during 2008.
Finally, Bell noted that Microsoft was poised to benefit from a shortage of Wii units this holiday season.
Metro Simulator 2 is coming soon for Xbox and PlayStation consoles Ultimate Games (@ULTGames) confirmed that Metro Simulator 2, the realistic and relaxing simulator with faithfully reproduced subway realities and train control mechanics from KishMish Games, will laun..
HQ Network: 7,917 | 
Guests: 5139 |
Members: 0
I wonder how Microsoft/Toshiba are feeling about that $150 million investment, especially since Toshiba's earnings have taken such a hit.
"The BBFC was today given permission to judicially review the decision by the Video Appeals Committee to overturn the Board's rejection of the video game Manhunt 2,” the BBFC said in a statement.
