Retailer to sell third high-def format
By Susanne Ault -- Video Business,02/26/2007
FEB. 26 | New Medium Enterprises, marketer of a third high-definition DVD format, has signed PC Rush as the first U.S. retailer to carry its HD Versatile Multilayer Disc (VMD) players.
Online electronics superstore PC Rush will distribute and market two NME products, the HD VMD Media Player Duo and the HD VMD Media Player Quattro, for three years. These players will up-convert standard-definition DVD to high-def quality and are compatible with the high-def VMD disc, an alternative to Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD.
The Media Player Duo is priced at $199 (MSRP) and the Media Player Quattro is priced at $249 (MSRP), and both will be available at www.pcrush.com by the second quarter.
BD and HD DVD are better known high-def formats in the U.S. Yet VMD has been one of several high-def disc formats in development in Europe and China.
New Medium Enterprises has not announced any content licensing deals for the VMD format in the U.S., but it has a “content distribution deal” with German distributor VCL, covering Germany, Austria and German-speaking Switzerland and including VCL’s entire 800-title catalog. The catalog includes German-language rights to a large number of titles released by major studios in the U.S., including the three Terminator films, Dances With Wolves, Basic Instinct, The Sixth Sense, American Pie and Seven.
In August, former Warner Home Video president James Cardwell joined NME’s board as a media and content advisor.
VMD uses red-laser technology, helping manufacturers use much of the same equipment they use in producing standard-definition DVDs. NME wants its high-def technology to be sold at the same prices as regular DVD players.
“We are committed to providing U.S. consumers with an affordable and high-quality [high-def] experience via the HD VMD solution. The red-laser-based VMD format and players are a natural successor to the DVD market, allowing customers to get high-definition for a fraction of the cost of today’s HD DVD or Blu-ray discs and players,” said Mahesh Jayanarayan, CEO of NME. “Our partnership with PC Rush represents a strong step toward our goal to bring HD VMD to a wide consumer base in the U.S.”
PC Rush management is happy to widen consumer choices for high-def.
“Market forces demand solutions that couple true high-definition video playback with existing DVD technology,” said Frank Khalili, chair and chief operating officer of PC Rush. “For the past few years, the U.S. customer base has eagerly awaited a product that addresses the desire for high-quality [high-def] playback without abandoning existing investment in conventional formats. PC Rush stands ready to satisfy that pent-up demand.”
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| Submitted by: | Arif Warsi (mistermodern@yahoo.com) 9/26/2007 6:10:19 PM PT |
| Location: | Colton, CA |
| Occupation: | Teacher |
I have been reading comments all over the net about this new third party HD DVD player and people are calling it a failure before it has even come out. When a new product is released into the market many only think of how this item will affect them and those around them. People often fail to account for the markets outside of their surrounding areas that may find or use this new product more so because of various reasons. HD VMD was created first and foremost as a low cost, high performing alternative to the vastly expensive HD DVD and Blu-Ray players on the market right now, targeting countries such as Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Southeast Asia, and Africa just to name a few. When this player is launched they would love to sell as many units in the United States as they can, but fact is the U.S. is very low on its totem pole on selling units because they are more intent on selling this player to countries where even DVD today is a luxury and having a HD DVD or Blu-Ray player in a home is almost non-existent. HD VMD will focus on bring HD content from a plethora of Asian and Southeast Asian (Bollywood films) distributors primarily to countries such as China and India (and the countries that surround it), two countries with the most people on the planet who love movies and entertainment but don't have bundles of money sitting around at home. People in the U.S. don't understand how big say a Bollywood movie is when it's released, even though it might be released in its original Hindi language these type of films are enjoyed all over the world by tens of millions of people in more countries that I can even think of thanks to the advent of subtitles and alternate language tracks. A family in India can't afford a $300 to $1000 dollar HD or Blu-Ray player with movies averaging around $25-$35 a pop, but a $150 HD VMD player with movies ranging from $10-$20 a pop is more likely to attract this type of audience. In China, India, and the Middle East a format known as VCD (Video Compact Discs) are still king and players usually range between $75 to $150 U.S. if you get a decent one. I bought my family a brand new Samsung 5 disc VCD player in Pakistan for around $125 U.S. in July 2005 (I know it's probably went down in price since then). The average American has never heard of VCD, but as many know this format is probably the number one format for watching movies in lower economic countries such as Asia and India. VCD's picture quality is atrocious for the most part, but it didn't become king in Asia and India because it looked good, no it became king because it was cheap to make, distribute, and export. But content is what rules the world, if you are able to provide cheap players/content with HD picture and sound then there IS a market for it. If HD VMD can off high quality players at VCD player prices then this market is huge and it won't be formats that will be deciding the HD war, it will be people who support more affordable and readily available media for their HD players. Regardless if this format makes a dent or even fails in the HD wars in the U.S.; its vast appeal abroad will surely make this player the number one choice for providing HD content in homes around the world where HD DVD players are not as sought after as they are in the U.S. I will be pre-ordering my player in the next few weeks and will be looking forward to getting it around the end of October or beginning of November because I'm a huge Asian and Bollywood film fan. I'm going to assume that HD-DVD won't be supporting those film genres anytime soon and Sony marginally supported Asian and Bollywood titles on DVD in the states and I would bet money it would be the same for Blu-Ray if the opportunity arises.
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