New high-def format on the horizon
Backers could find obstacle in studios loyal to Blu
By Jennifer Netherby and Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 9/11/2008
SEPT. 11 | A home theater manufacturer preparing to launch a new high-definition disc that it promises is “Better than Blu” might have trouble convincing the major studios of the same.
Sim2, maker of high-performance home theater projectors, announced last week at the CEDIA consumer electronics convention in Denver that it would launch a new high-def format in January with startup Entertainment Experience. Entertainment Experience makes the “Better than Blu” high-end home entertainment systems, which are essentially Hewlett-Packard PCs with Entertainment Experience software that the company claims offers picture quality “beyond HD” 1080p discs.
The system will be bundled with Sim2 projection TVs and geared at the high-end home theater crowd. Prices have yet to be announced.
Entertainment Experience said it plans to offer movies from the major studios, some before they debut on DVD or Blu-ray Disc. Movies would be mailed directly to consumers on double-sided dual-layer DVDs, with pricing expected around $40 per film.
No major studios contacted by VB would officially comment on the new format, but one studio insider insisted the industry would stay loyal to Blu-ray, which just knocked out competitor HD DVD earlier this year.
“This high-def alternative is bull; it’s all about Blu-ray,” the insider said bluntly. “They’re grasping at straws. The entire industry is all behind Blu-ray.”
Another studio executive agreed that it’s unlikely any major studio would consider this technology, because it would cannibalize all of the work that has already gone into promoting Blu-ray.
The industry has pushed for one high-def format, believing it was necessary to convince consumers to make the upgrade to a high-def player.
Even Entertainment Experience head Jim Sullivan acknowledged to VB sister publication TWICE that it was a touchy area, saying films on the format would be directly mailed to consumers as a way for the studios to avoid taking sales away from Blu-ray.
TWICE’s Greg Tarr contributed
