Universal pushes HD interactivity in new titles

Studio hopes Children, Smokin' will promote format

By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 3/16/2007

MARCH 16 | Universal Studios Home Entertainment is making advances in HD DVD extras with new features on Children of Men and Smokin’ Aces, out March 27 and April 17, respectively.

These HD DVD/standard-definition DVD combos are more advanced than the studio’s September 2006 release Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift, said Kevin Collins, Microsoft director of HD DVD evangelism.

Smokin’ Aces integrates Google Earth to identify specific locations of assassins during the film.

On Children of Men, viewers get a chance to see the film’s featured video billboard advertisements in their entirety. Viewers only see clips during the film, but on the HD DVD, they can click on each of the approximately 10 billboards and watch the complete ads. Although neither title uses Web connectivity, Collins said three HD DVD titles with such connectivity will street this year.

Nevertheless, Collins said he hopes that the Children of Men and Smokin’ Aces HD DVDs will help promote the format, which has been selling fewer units than rival Blu-ray Disc over the last couple of months. To date, Blu-ray titles have featured relatively little interactivity, as its BD-Java technology is still being fine-tuned.

“We are still scratching the surface of what we are capable of doing, but Universal is leading the format in terms of exploring all the different aspects that are out there now,” said Collins. “By the holidays, there will be a lot more features.”

Earlier in the week, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment executive VP Danny Kaye said that a Web-enabled X-Men trivia game would soon be available.