Screen Media goes low on Blu-ray pricing

Releasing titles with recognizable stars

By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 2/6/2009

FEB. 6 | Screen Media’s first Blu-ray Disc slate, including March 10 release Battle in Seattle, will use price and personalities to compete with major studio releases in the new format.

To break into the business, the indie label will selectively release its highest-profile titles at pricing less than $30.

Battle in Seattle, priced at $29.98, features Charlize Theron and Woody Harrelson. The title’s price is about $10 less than the SRP attached to many major studio new Blu-ray releases.

“The price differential on Blu-ray is really huge” compared to standard-definition DVD, said Suzanne Blech, senior VP of sales and acquisitions at Screen Media. “For some consumers, the must-have titles can warrant the cost. But for lesser known titles, it needs to be realized that people’s pocketbooks aren’t as open as they used to be.”

With Screen Media’s strategy, Blech believes the studio can become a profitable player in the format.

“With the high cost of authoring, it can be a fine line to break even,” said Blech. “But we think we will not only break even, but we’ll actually be profitable.”

Other titles coming to Blu-ray this year from Screen Media include dramas Personal Effects, starring Ashton Kutcher and Michelle Pfeiffer, and Lymelife featuring Alec Baldwin and Cynthia Nixon. Neither title has exact pricing specified. Personal Effects and Lymelife are slated for May and July/August Blu-ray bows, respectively.

Screen Media normally streets about 22 to 24 features on DVD each year through distributor Universal Studios Home Entertainment.

“Blu-ray is gaining more presence with consumer households, and now is the time to jump into it,” said Blech. “But we are realists … and we’re looking at cast-driven [titles], because consumers are drawn to films of this stature.”