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Analyst Attacks Paramount for High Prices for UltraViolet Movies[teaser]When the studio launched UltraViolet, there seemed to be a bit of potential in the idea. Based on pricing though, it seems like Paramount doesn’t actually want to sell anything. Frost & Sullivan analyst Dan Rayburn says that Paramount’s way of doing things is completely wrong.[/teaser] “What studio executive thinks consumers are going to pay $22.99 to stream a movie when we can buy the DVD for $7 or rent it for less than $2?” he writes. “The economics don't make sense.” A fine example is the 2010 movie ‘The Fighter,’ which sells for $22.99 for an HD version and $16.99 for standard definition. For just a dollar more than the SD UltraViolet version costs, you can order the Blu-ray and enjoy special features and a better picture. For $7.99 you can watch ‘The Fighter’ on Netflix in HD and have an entire month worth of other movies. “At some point, the studios are going to get burned just like the music industry did,” says Rayburn. “They need to wake up and realize that consumers are demanding digital content for a fair price.” Source: Home Media MagazinePosted Mon Jan 30, 2012 at 11:00 AM PST by: -
Disc Replicators Survive by Adapting to the Digital Market[teaser]Companies that once provided services for disc based media have made the transition to the digital age. [/teaser] Replicators – the folks that turn data into a fully pressed Blu-ray disc – aren’t getting the business they once used to. While some are feeling the pinch, others are finding a great deal of success by adapting to the new environment and embracing digital needs. Sony DADC was one of the early adapters. They formed a New Media Solutions group which works to create content, automate digital distribution and more. Cinram has similarly adapted and now creates bonus features and works in the gaming, mobile, digital and 3D fields. Technicolor hasn’t been left in the dust – they’ve expanded to solutions that ensure that all your devices play nice when used together. They’ve been working on applications for laptops, tablets and even a 3D certification program. Read more about the path that replicators have taken in the new landscape at ‘Home Media Magazine.Posted Mon Jan 30, 2012 at 09:00 AM PST by: -
Samsung Pulls in $4.7 Billion Profit in 2011[teaser]That’s $1.8 billion more than 2010. [/teaser] It’s no secret that Samsung’s been doing well, but as it turns out, the company is on a steep incline. They pulled in $42 billion in sales, $4.7 of which was pure profit. That’s a huge step over last year when they brought in $2.9 billion in profit. Leading the charge was the cell phone division. Over 300 million phones were sold for a whopping $2.3 billion profit. The semiconductor business was no slouch either, bringing in $2 billion in profit. That’s $4.3 between the two, leaving TVs to make up much of the remainder. Samsung’s LED sets boosted the company’s sales considerably and helped the division to increase numbers by 20 percent. They boasted $7.6 million in sales in 2011. Source: EngadgetPosted Mon Jan 30, 2012 at 07:00 AM PST by: -
Aaron's Sundance 2012 Journal: Day 7[teaser]We're getting down to the end. Today was Day 7. It's hard to believe it's almost over already.[/teaser] This morning I had to perform some ticket requesting magic. My wife is coming up on Saturday to visit me, and I'd like to take her to a movie. The catch is that we as press can only request two public screening tickets a day and they can't both be for the same movie. So, I texted my buddy and asked him if he was using his requests for Saturday. He said no, and wondered if I was using mine for Sunday. I said no, so we simply traded some requests, which works out nicely. Now my wife and I can go to 'Celeste and Jesse Forever' on Saturday night without having to try the waitlist for tickets. After requesting tickets it was back to the press tent to take in a screening of 'Shadow Dancer.' Directed by James Marsh and starring Clive Owen and Gillian Anderson, 'Shadow Dancer' tells the story of a young mother caught in the IRA conflict. Played by Andrea Riseborough the mother fights to keep her son safe as her brothers are deep within the IRA. They even recruit her for missions, but it's all getting tobe too much. It's a lot like 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' where there's suspense, but not a whole lot of action. This is more silent tension, and it works quite well. I really enjoyed the movie. Once the film was over I hopped on a bus back to headquarters to pick up the ticket my friend had requested for me. I decided I'd write for a while, so I went into the lounge area there. Sitting a table over from me was Brie Larson from 'United States of Tara' and 'Scott Pilgrim.' She was leaning over her coffee talking to someone I didn't recognize. She was talking about a "good script" and starting another project. What it was, I have no idea. I simply overheard a few words here and there, but it's just fun to watch Hollywood business get done across a creaky old table. There's nothing special about it. Then it was back over to the theater to take in a recently announced screening of 'Beasts of the Southern Wild.' This is like the 'Winter's Bone' of 2012. Everyone is buzzing about how good it is and no one can get into any of the screenings because it's so popular. They set up a press screening, so I really wanted to see it. Just to see what the entire buzz was about. While I was walking through the hotel to the press tent I was stopped by a lady who asked if I had a marker or pen that she could use. I pulled the pen out of my pocket and handed it to her. She said, "Thanks. He's going to sign an autograph for us." She was holding a DVD copy of 'Rubber.' That's when I noticed the man she was having sign her DVD case was 'Rubber' director Quentin Dupieux. I won't bore you with my stories about waiting in lines for just as many hours as I've spent watching movies. I will, however, cut directly to the chase and tell you that 'Beasts of the Southern Wild' is really friggin' good. It's a story about a group of people who live in the Bathtub. It's an island community off the coast of Louisiana. More specifically, the movie is about Hushpuppy, an eight-year-old girl trying to deal with the death of her mother, the danger of an impending hurricane, and her seemingly crazy father. Wow. This movie floored me. It's beautiful, evocative and has one of the best Sundance acting performances I've ever seen. Quvenzhané Wallis, who plays Hushpuppy is absolutely astounding. It's giving me chills just thinking about her performance. Fox Searchlight bought the movie, so expect to see it in limited release and then on Blu-ray soon. Then it was time for the nightcap. I really shouldn't be staying up so late, but who cares. The festival is almost over anyway. Tonight they had a hitRECord.org presentation with Joseph Gordon-Levitt talking and demonstrating his new website which invites artistic collaborators from all over the world to make movies together. Some people will score the film, some will write, some will animate. Everyone gets in on the process to create art together. It's an interesting concept, and the night was full of Gordon-Levitt showing us short films created by his collective of artists. Some were funny others a little boring, but all in all it was an interesting night. I sat dead center in the front row so I was able to snap quite a few really good pictures. I didn't get home until well after midnight. I'm writing this journal the next morning and I'm really feeling myself dragging. Friday is an easy enough day though. Only two movies to go to. I'm going to see the documentary 'Big Boys Gone Bananas' and then it's off to see 'Smashed' at 3:00pm to see if I agree with Luke. He says that's been his favorite film so far, so we'll see if it lives up to the hype.Posted Sat Jan 28, 2012 at 09:00 AM PST by: -
Aaron's Sundance 2012 Journal: Day 6Remember in my last journal when I commented about seeing an early movie the morning after staying out for a late movie? Well, that's what happened to me today. I stayed out last night for a screening of 'John Dies at the End.' I didn't get home until well after midnight. I had to wake up only a few hours later to meet Luke at the Park and Ride so we could get back into the city to catch the early morning screening of 'Goats.' [teaser]Have you ever been able to feel your pulse in your eyeballs? I swear I can right now. I'm that tired.[/teaser] We got to the 9:00am screening of 'Goats' in plenty of time. We found our favorite seats in the Eccles Theater, which are located in the front row. I love the front row in the Eccles because the screen is pushed far enough back to allow for great viewing and you're right there for the Q&A after the movie. 'Goats' starred David Duchovny, Vera Farmiga, and Ty Burrell. It was about a young boy who has to deal with the moronic adults in his life. I thought it was alright, but nothing special. I liked Duchovny as Goat Man (really, that's his name in the movie), but everything else felt a little phony. It all felt like it simply meandered around for 90 minutes. Or maybe it's just that every year at Sundance the festival is full of coming-of-age tales and it's very easy to become jaded against them. Maybe that's what happened here. With that said, 'Goats' is a very generic coming-of-age tale so it didn't even have much originality going for it either. We stayed for the Q&A where Vera Farmiga talked quite a lot about inspiration for her hippie, new age mother she plays in the movie. Duchovny only gave simple one word answers to the questions he was acted. Most of the time he made wise-ass remarks and then smirked that Hank Moody smirk. There was nothing special about the Q&A, but it was fun for me because I got to see Duchovny again. Honestly, he's the only actor that I've seen up here that I've been starstruck around. Luke and I decided to hit up the Sundance Channel Headquarters on Main Street. The rumor is that the place not only has free coffee and hot chocolate but also free gourmet sandwiches. I didn't really believe Luke, because the last time we tried to go there all the food was gone. This time, however, the legend proved true. There were mountains of free sandwiches available to anyone who liked Chase Bank on Facebook. That's all they had to do, and they got a free lunch. Luke and I simply got the lunch pass because we're with the press. At least that's what I assume. It was a good time. I never usually make it down to Main Street. I don't really enjoy the atmosphere down there. It's too crowded and there are too many gawkers walking around hoping to catch a glimpse of a celeb. But that didn't matter, getting free food was worth it. My original plan was to go to the early morning screening then head over to headquarters and write until my 6:30pm screening. Then I found out Luke was going to a 1:00pm showing of 'The Words' starring Bradley Cooper, Dennis Quaid, Olivia Wilde, and Jeremy Irons. I wasn't planning on seeing it until Saturday, but I decided to join him anyway, and boy was I glad I did. 'The Words' is a thoughtful, emotional journey told 'Inception'-style. A story, within a story, within a story. Quaid is an author who's written a story about a man who plagiarizes a novel from a discarded manuscript he finds and then it becomes a best-seller. It was bought within the first day of the festival so it'll for sure be in a theater near you soon. I've got to say, I'm sick of seeing movies with Industry people. The screenings we go to as press are also reserved for people in the industry. I'm convinced that most of these people – whether they be buyers, distributors, or cinema owners – don't really care all that much about movies. They simply want to know what is going to be marketable and because of this they are, for lack of a better term, asses in the screenings. The industry people constantly have their cell phones out emailing people. They walk out of screenings ten minutes into the movie just because. Most of them behave fine, but some of the worst offenders are ridiculous. I had a lady sitting next to me in 'The Words' who simply fell asleep and started snoring loudly. She was one of these old ladies that piles everything on her lap – huge down coat, purse, and water bottle – and then has some of it spill on over onto my lap. I'm not sure what it is, but most of these older industry people have no concept of personal space. They're oblivious and it drives me bonkers. We're nearing the end of the festival and people are starting to get a bit snippy with each other. The buses, once places of wide-eyed optimism for future movies, have now turned into dour log jams of body parts as people yell at other people to "scoot in" or "move out of the way!" It's always around this time where people start to lose it. They've been in Park City a week. They haven't slept much. They've probably eaten mostly from fast food joints. Simply put, everyone's patience is wearing thin and you can tell. As I was writing a few reviews in the Festival Headquarters a pair of industry folks walked into the lobby I was in and started yelling at each other. I think they may have been married, but I'm not sure. She was yelling at him for not "protecting" them, and he was yelling at her for I'm not sure what. All these people walking back and forth and they're yelling at each other. If I had to be stuck solely around industry people for that long, I'd probably be yelling at them too. Tonight I had a screening of 'Price Check' starring Parker Posey at 6:30pm. I was planning on being home around 9:00pm. A very early day for me. In the line for 'Price Check' I met some wonderful people from Utah who wanted to know all the movies I'd seen over my time here and what my favorites were. It was fun talking to them, and just reaffirmed how I feel about the spirit of this film festival. Nowhere else are you going to run into complete strangers and simply start talking about all the movies you've seen in the past couple days and what you thought about them. 'Price Check' was marginally funny and never really turned out to be anything more than a phony workplace comedy. I felt cheated when, at the moment of the movie where all the tension and mistrust is coming to a head it decides to fade to black. When we come back everything is perfect. Nothing horribly bad has happened and we get a warm, sappy ending. It was a major letdown. I didn't stay for much of the Q&A because I found the movie to be generic and uninteresting. I did however stay long enough to snap a couple pictures of Posey. Tomorrow I'm planning on seeing the movie 'Shadow Dancer' at noon which stars Clive Owen and Gillian Anderson. After that I'm headed to 'Wrong' which I've heard good things about. Finally, for the nightcap I'm going to check out Joseph Gordon-Levitt's HitRECord.org special and see what it's like. Oh, and I may fit in a free lunch in there somewhere. Everyone loves free sandwiches.Posted Fri Jan 27, 2012 at 11:30 AM PST by: -
The Logitech Revue is Sold Out – New Remotes are on the Way[teaser]Logitech is getting back to doing what it does best. [/teaser] The Revue, while an interesting idea and a risk that could have paid off big, wasn’t a winner for Logitech. The company had to drop the price shortly after release and has only just now sold out of Revue units. They’ve already announced that they’re getting out of the Google TV game and getting back to the usual Logitech business – remotes. The company has revealed that several of its remotes will be getting a refresh in 2012. Among the new remotes will be a follow-up designed to replace the Harmony One. Logitech admits that they’re a little late getting around to making new remotes, so they’re hoping the launch will spur on sales. It’s unlikely that we’ll see Logitech take such a large risk again in the near future since this one damaged them significantly. Source: EngadgetPosted Fri Jan 27, 2012 at 11:00 AM PST by: -
SIM2 Announces a Projector That Doubles as Mood Lighting[teaser]You can create subtle ambience or go full bore with digital images of your choice. [/teaser] The latest projector from SIM2 boasts some impressive stats. This single chip LED LCD M.150 gives off 1,100 ANSI lumens and offers a contrast ratio of 100,000:1 thanks to DynamicBlack technology. It offers PureMovie and PureMotion and even handles 3D if you add a SIM2 VISUS system. What’s unique about SIM2’s projector is its ability to double as incidental lighting for your home. You can use the projector to add some ambient lighting to your room or kick things up a notch for a more colorful wall. You can even use the projector to showcase digital images of your choice. Thanks to the LED lighting in the M.150 has an estimated lifetime of 30,000 hours, or just less than three and a half years. Source: eCousticsPosted Fri Jan 27, 2012 at 09:00 AM PST by: -
Time Warner Subscriptions Down by 129,000[teaser]The numbers for Time Warner Cable are indicative of the cable business as a whole – except for Verizon of course. [/teaser] Cable providers, in general, aren’t doing too well. Customers are cutting the cord in favor of streaming or over-the-air content and companies like Time Warner are starting to feel it. Time Warner Cable (TWC) lost 129,000 video subscribers in the final quarter of 2012. Over the course of 2011, 453,000 customers dropped the service. That’s a significant part of their subscriber base, which almost certainly has Time Warner a bit worried. Though subscribers were down, Time Warner is actually sitting at a happy place in terms of revenue. The company says that revenue stayed about the same in 2011 thanks to raised prices and more customers adding additional tiers of service. Customers are subscribing to bigger bundles, but, interestingly enough, they’re dropping premium channels like HBO and Showtime. Source: Home Media MagazinePosted Fri Jan 27, 2012 at 07:00 AM PST by: -
Aaron's Sundance 2012 Journal: Day 5[teaser]I'm convinced that the toughest part of Sundance is catching a screening that goes until midnight, and then turning around and going to a 9:00am screening the next morning. I don't do it very often, but that's what happened to me today.[/teaser] Last night I was up until midnight watching the teenage girl edition of 'Shame,' 'Young and Wild.' I was about to head over to an early screening of 'The Bachelorette,' but being up so late just floored me. I couldn't do it. I slept in and didn't make it out until noon. When I got into Park City I could hear the distant booms of the avalanche control blowing up charges in the back country to help prevent avalanches. My first order of business was to head on over to the Festival Headquarters to do some writing. Seeing movie after movie doesn't provide for my writing, so I've got to fit it in where I can. I have a bone to pick with the way they do balloting here. Some of you may have seen the picture I posted on the High-Def Digest Facebook page of the ballots they use for in-competition films here at the festival (if not it's pictured above). As you can see, the lowest score you can give a film is "fair." It's understandable why they do this. They don't want ballots being passed around with "terrible" or "this movie sucks so bad you may rethink ever watching movies again" printed on them, so instead they just say "fair." It's silly. If anything they should leave off the words and just do it by stars. Everyone knows how stars correlate into scoring movies. It's like they don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. While I was writing, a documentary was being filmed next to me. I'm not sure what it was about, but a couple of filmmakers were interviewing an Indian gentleman about the political state of India. Although I had no idea what the documentary was about, it was neat seeing something being shot right next to me. These types of things happen often up here. There have been numerous times when I've been sitting next to distribution people as they discuss the details of buying movies that the general public are going to be seeing during the next year. It's kind of crazy watching these movie deals taking place over a cup of coffee at a small table in a hotel lobby. Later I went to my first movie of the day called 'For a Good Time, Call…' There have been a couple raunchy movies starring women at this year's festival. 'For a Good Time, Call…' a movie about two girls who start a phone sex line, owes a lot to 'Bridesmaids.' It almost seems like this movie, featuring two girls behaving like horny guys, couldn't have been made and accepted if it wasn't for a movie like 'Bridesmaids.' I actually enjoyed the movie. It's funny, and has some great cameos. It could probably be helped by an additional edit, but it's definitely going to be seeing a wide audience at some point. When the movie was over Luke and I decided to head up to Main Street to check out the Sundance Channel Headquarters, and to also see Luke get his hair done by the Axe hair people. Luke was in the middle of his haircut when they made him get out of his chair. We waited for a while, then David Duchovny came walking down the stairs and sat in the chair. He was funny, but you could tell he didn't want to be there. They only wanted to take his picture of him in front of Axe product. He even said, "You can give me a product to hold if you want." Then the hairdresser who was doing Luke's hair, asked, "So, what are we going to do here?" Duchovny looked distressed and quickly blurted, "Huh?! We're doing something? No I'm fine." We found out a bit later that he's a stickler for his hair and he was genuinely freaking out because he thought they were going to style his hair for him. Soon after that Vera Farmiga walked by (she's even hotter in person). When we were leaving Ty Burrell (Phil Dunphy) was being mobbed outside on the street by a gang of fans. Oh, and Brie Larson was walking around Main Street talking on her phone. I've seen more celebrities this year than any of my other years at the festival combined. After that we headed back down to the theaters for 'Safety Not Guaranteed.' Starring Aubrey Plaza, Jake Johnson, and Mark Duplass, this is probably my favorite movie at the festival this year. I've seen 15 or so films this far, and this is the one that felt like the most complete narrative. So many of the full-length features have felt good, but in need of one or two edits. This one is perfect the way it is. A quirky movie about the concept of time travel. It's definitely one you should keep a look out for. 'The Surrogate' was my next movie. You know you're at Sundance when you see a John Hawkes film. This is probably the performance of his career, and considering his body of work, that's saying a lot. He plays a paralyzed man who lives his life in an iron lung. He's a brilliant poet, but types every word with a rod he holds in his mouth as he taps keys on a keyboard. His only dream is to have sex. He comes into contact with a sex therapist played by Helen Hunt, who helps him achieve his goal. It's an extremely moving film. I know I said 'Safety Not Guaranteed' was my favorite movie, but 'The Surrogate' comes really close. I had planned to head back home after that movie, but for some reason decided to stay for the late showing of 'John Dies at the End.' It didn't start until 10:00pm and I debated a few times about stepping out of line and heading home. I was planning on seeing a 9:00am screening the next morning, but I really wanted to see this one. So, I decided to do it – a decision I would regret in the future. The only way to explain 'John Dies at the End' is this: 'Supernatural' on acid. It's hilarious for the first 40 minutes, but soon overstays its welcome. Still, a decent effort for a comedic horror/supernatural film. It kind of has a dark 'Donnie Darko' feel to it. That was it. I was beat. I'd only planned on staying for three movies and being back at home before 9:00. Instead I was getting home at well after midnight, completely smashed, and ready to wake up at 6:45am the next morning to make it for my 9:00am screening. I'll let you know tomorrow if I actually survived.Posted Thu Jan 26, 2012 at 02:45 PM PST by: -
Analyst Says Same-Day Theatrical and VOD Releases Would Help Industry[teaser]He says that folks who are planning on seeing movies in theaters won't be swayed by the VOD offerings. [/teaser] Despite the recent outcry from movie theaters, Richard Greenfield of BTIG says that same day VOD wouldn't hurt movie theaters a bit. If anything, he says, it will help the industry as a whole. Greenfield says that offering a same day VOD release is a great step toward cutting down on piracy. After all, some piracy occurs simply because there isn't another way to get the product digitally. He also says that this will create far more income for the studios, giving them 80 percent of the money coming in, rather than the 50 percent they get from theaters. "The reality is most people who were planning to go out to the movies would still go out," says Greenfield, suggesting that movie going is about the social experience and not just the movie itself. With premium VOD, he says that "studios would now capture consumers who were not/could not get out to a movie." Source: Home Media MagazinePosted Thu Jan 26, 2012 at 11:00 AM PST by:
