So Blu Ray is dead ... WRONG... Read this

[lordsmurf]

What is the current financial data for the porn industry? Until we get some relistic and accurate data (estimates are between $1Bn and $10Bn a year) not just for total revenue but breakdown into VHS/DVD/interenet, the effect of the porn industry cannot be counted on.

This is why the "porn reason" is so bogus and misleading, a modern myth, as it relates to "being the reason" anybody gets into a certain technology (Internet, video formats, etc). I can flip past my cable channels now and it's about $10-13 to rent a movie. I can rent a cinema movies for $4. So porn costs 3-4x as much. Using financial figures does not equal circulation size.

I think "conceited" or "narcissism" can pretty much sum up the thought that the Internet/VHS/DVD exist because porn wanted it. Also "bullshit" would be a good term.

[Heff]

I heard the porn did $8B more in sales then mainstrean on AVN ....this was told to me by BB guys. Also HD-DVD is also working on a 3-4 layer disk. AnyDVD is in a alpha stage of doing a HD-DVD version. And you can reencode this stuff on a regular DVD with a MS AV1 codec and is playable on a HD-DVD player.

[FulciLives]

Don't underestimate PORN though ...

A friend of mine owns a movie rental store geared towards horror/cult/exploitation/sci-fi/anime etc. and he carries a large amount of movies that would fall into the skinamax soft porn arena (such as those cheap direct to video movies with Misty Mundae) and he has customers that will rent those movies and nothing else. Oh and they always keep asking him if he will ever consider renting true XXX PORN.

I'm not saying that PORN killed Beta but I am saying that there are a lot of sickos out there that probably watch nothing but PORN or at least a hell of lot of what they watch is PORN or PORN LIKE.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[Heff]

Don't underestimate PORN though ...

I'm not saying that PORN killed Beta but I am saying that there are a lot of sickos out there that probably watch nothing but PORN or at least a hell of lot of what they watch is PORN or PORN LIKE.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

Hey I resent that remark!

[JustPlainDon]

Don't underestimate PORN though ...

I'm not saying that PORN killed Beta but I am saying that there are a lot of sickos out there that probably watch nothing but PORN or at least a hell of lot of what they watch is PORN or PORN LIKE.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

Hey I resent that remark!

Damn Heff...you beat me to it. I guess I'll just have to reply with:

Hey, I ressemble that remark!

L8r,
JustPlainDon

[msspurlock]

Laserdisc - Closed Format - DEAD
Betamax - Closed Format - DEAD
BluRay - Closed Format - Up to Sony. Better hurry up!

[Specialist]

Laserdisc - Closed Format - DEAD
Betamax - Closed Format - DEAD
BluRay - Closed Format - Up to Sony. Better hurry up!

Hey, are you the Spurlock who did the documentary about McDonald's?

Jerry Jones
http://www.jonesgroup.net

[nick101181]

I thought they still used beta today. I thought TV stations used a form of beta, except it was bigger in size. I also heard even an old beta tape doesn't have Audio Hiss as compared to a vhs tape

[lordsmurf]

I thought they still used beta today. I thought TV stations used a form of beta, except it was bigger in size. I also heard even an old beta tape doesn't have Audio Hiss as compared to a vhs tape

You're confusing Betamax with Betacam. They are not the same.
Audio hiss is inherent to consumer grade tapes made on consumer equipment.

I...this was told to me by BB guys. .

Best Buy employees? Since when are they a reliable resource for anything?
Most of them are uneducated, no degrees, often no diploma or GED yet either.

[rhegedus]

I heard the porn did $8B more in sales then mainstrean on AVN ....this was told to me by BB guys.

Did they give a source, breakdown etc?

There was huge deal about one porn film a few years ago (?Pirates) breaking the $1m production cost barrier - if porn is generating revenues in the billions, it is not because of individual sales numbers but because of over-profiteering.

[InXess]

So how would porn industry and movies exactly benefit from HDDVD? Is it because porn belongs to one of these specific movie genres that highly value picture clarity (no fuzzy pictures pass the test) or rather because of outstanding sound properties of HD format?

[FulciLives]

So how would porn industry and movies exactly benefit from HDDVD? Is it because porn belongs to one of these specific movie genres that highly value picture clarity (no fuzzy pictures pass the test) or rather because of outstanding sound properties of HD format?

Assuming the PORN industry moves to 720p or 1080p production (I see 720p probably being used at first due to cheapness) then yeah ... the extra detail will be ummm ... very nice LOL

I know some PORN guys use 16mm film ... I think Andrew Blake makes all of his movies that way ... also I think Michael Nin. I sorta been out of the PORN loop for ages though LOL

Seriously I don't think I bought nor rented a PORN movie in the last 10 years.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[mwkurt]

Until either or both formats come down to a more realistic price in the under $100.00 range for a player, and a dual format player at that, and the movies come down to the under $20.00 mark, both formats are dead to me and I would think to the vast majority of the Joe Sixpack consumer. The first format that becomes comparable with the prcies of DVD's and DVD players will be the winner in this format war and will be the one for me to buy. As of right now, to me, DVD is fine and will be for a while yet.
Mark

[FulciLives]

Until either or both formats come down to a more realistic price in the under $100.00 range for a player, and a dual format player at that, and the movies come down to the under $20.00 mark, both formats are dead to me and I would think to the vast majority of the Joe Sixpack consumer. The first format that becomes comparable with the prcies of DVD's and DVD players will be the winner in this format war and will be the one for me to buy. As of right now, to me, DVD is fine and will be for a while yet.
Mark

Most of the people that I know (most of them with "low" incomes) didn't buy into the DVD format until players got to the $199.99 price point.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[BirdDaddie]

Blu-ray media currently only is one layer there is where the arguing is coming from-HD_DVD is currently using two layers.The argument is that HD-DVD is better looking because BD is limited currently to only the first layer therefore HD has at least a 4GB advantage.

[Sam Ontario]

Until either or both formats come down to a more realistic price in the under $100.00 range for a player, and a dual format player at that, and the movies come down to the under $20.00 mark, both formats are dead to me and I would think to the vast majority of the Joe Sixpack consumer. The first format that becomes comparable with the prcies of DVD's and DVD players will be the winner in this format war and will be the one for me to buy. As of right now, to me, DVD is fine and will be for a while yet.
Mark

I support it. The quicker those prices come to this level, the better of their survival chances. If it were to take over 2 years to come down to this level, they were all looked dead to me.

[MozartMan]

Blu-ray media currently only is one layer there is where the arguing is coming from-HD_DVD is currently using two layers.The argument is that HD-DVD is better looking because BD is limited currently to only the first layer therefore HD has at least a 4GB advantage.

Oh man, you are living in 2006.

[RLT69]

BirdDaddie wrote:
Blu-ray media currently only is one layer there is where the arguing is coming from-HD_DVD is currently using two layers.The argument is that HD-DVD is better looking because BD is limited currently to only the first layer therefore HD has at least a 4GB advantage.

Oh man, you are living in 2006.

No doubt.

Do some basic research. A single layer of Bluray holds 25GB of data. The current spec allows for two layers with a combined 50 GB of data. Beats HD-DVD hands down.

How this for capacity:

"Although the Blu-ray Disc specification has been finalized, engineers continue working to advance the technology. Quad-layer (100 GB) discs have been demonstrated. And TDK announced in August 2006 that they have created a working experimental Blu-ray Disc capable of holding 200 GB of data on a single side, using six 33 GB data layers.[6] Such discs would almost certainly not work on some of today's Blu-ray Disc players, as these devices are only designed and tested on discs that meet the current specification"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu-ray_Disc

And what was HD-DVD talking about again....right 3 layers. Good luck with that.

[RLT69]

So much for no porn on Bluray:

Porn company protects name of Blu-ray partner
http://www.afterdawn.com/news/archive/8587.cfm

:P

[Specialist]

And what was HD-DVD talking about again....right 3 layers. Good luck with that.

They seem to be already "having good luck" with that:

http://tinyurl.com/v4m5m

Toshiba's closed the gap between HD DVD and Blu-ray releases with the triple-layer 51GB HD DVD disc. That's one more than currently marketed 50GB Blu-ray movies.

One of the main ticks in the comparison sheet between Blu-ray and HD DVD was the higher storage capacity of BD (50GB discs just debuted a few months ago) compared to HD.

Going up to 51GB, the HD camp can finally say they're equal to BD in storage, even though it takes three layers to do it—which in turn amps up the price to make these discs. However, the 51GB disc doesn't exactly level the playing field, seeing as Blu-ray has discs of up to 200GB (8 layers) coming.

I think the cheaper alternative will win... if any optical disc is going to "win" at all.

And I'm beginning to suspect neither will win.

Jerry Jones
http://www.jonesgroup.net

[shelbyGT]

33% higher bitrate and 60% more capacity is going to effect a lot of films in the 2-3 hour range and all the extras they come with.

Going from 720x480 to 1440x1080 is a 4x increase in resolution - going from a 9Gb to 15Gb disc isn't a 4x increase in capacity/bitrate......

Obviously you haven't ever watched King Kong on HD-DVD. What is that, like a 3+ hour movie? And it looks stunning.

I don't care who wins, I'll end up having both. But seriously, specs don't mean everything. BR isn't a clear winner just yet.

[RLT69]

51 GB pulls HD even with Bluray. BFD. It took HD-DVD 3 layers to come even with Bluray. Now Bluray is coming out with 4 and 6 layer discs with 100 to 200 GB capacities. Where's HD-DVD?

Maybe next time.

:P

[shelbyGT]

51 GB pulls HD even with Bluray. BFD. It took HD-DVD 3 layers to come even with Bluray. Now Bluray is coming out with 4 and 6 layer discs with 100 to 200 GB capacities. Where's HD-DVD?

Maybe next time.

:P

But can current gen players read these discs? That's the question that hasn't fully been answered yet (goes for both HD and BR formats, too).

[Cornucopia]

"Toshiba's closed the gap between HD DVD and Blu-ray releases with the triple-layer 51GB HD DVD disc. That's one more than currently marketed 50GB Blu-ray movies."...

"What makes these amps better?"

"Well, most amps only go up to 10, but this one you can take all the way to 11! It's ONE MORE!"

"Couldn't amp manufacturers just change the numbers and make '11' the new '10' with the same volume?"

"But this one goes to 11!!!" ---SpinalTap.

Kinda reflects my thoughts on the goofiness of thinking in this "Space-Race"... :P

Scott

[JohnnyMalaria]

Think I'll wait for the 3.9TB - yes, terabytes - HVD.

Makes HD-DVD and BR look rather small...

Wonder how long I'll have to wait, though.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holographic_Versatile_Disc

[RLT69]

But can current gen players read these discs? That's the question that hasn't fully been answered yet (goes for both HD and BR formats, too).

Excellent question. The 6 layer Bluray disc will not play in current generation players. I don't know about the 4 layer disc. I don't know about the triple layer HD-DVD disc.

Think I'll wait for the 3.9TB - yes, terabytes - HVD.

Makes HD-DVD and BR look rather small...

Wonder how long I'll have to wait, though.

One of the manufacturers of HVD is making the discs now and supposedly they are being used. The question is will Hollywood pickup on this and run with it. It would make sense considering the capacity and since there's only one format. HVD has the advantage of killing two birds with one stone - capacity and no format war.

[rumplestiltskin]

After the bleeding edge buys their units, will there even be enough volume to make it all worthwhile?

I can't even find a convincing reason to give up my SD TV. All the cable shows are in SD (though there are a handful that come in HD -IF- I pay my cable company an extra $50/month -AND- can accept the three HD cable boxes I'll need for my house). If I -do- decide to make the jump, will it make the TV shows any better?

I'm reminded of Gallagher: "There's a brightness knob on the TV but turnin' it doesn't make it any smarter."

[MOVIEGEEK]

Best Buy employees? Since when are they a reliable resource for anything?
Most of them are uneducated, no degrees, often no diploma or GED yet either.

I have to agree,they are the most useless sales people in retail.
As for porn in HD:I can't wait to see pimples on Jenna Jameson's bottom.

[ozymango]

After the bleeding edge buys their units, will there even be enough volume to make it all worthwhile?

Very good point. While it's tempting to think that "bigger size=market edge," I suspect the "battle" between Blu-Ray and HD will not be about capacity per se, but something else that we're totally missing. And when I say totally missing, I mean it's gonna turn on something that we never saw coming. Could be fun.

Personally, I'm all for discs that hold more info, so whoever's go the biggest capacity on a single disc for a competitive price, that's whom I'd like. BUT that's because I'm backing up tons of crap to disc and I just don't want a bunch of discs to have to stack in unwieldy piles.

Thing is, the biggest "battle" being fought between these two formats is about content, and either disc format can give identical image quality results for home movie delivery, which is the main focus of the movie studios and your average consumer watching a HD program. And in this paradigm, disc capacity is not the end-all, be-all consideration, as long as you can fit one entire movie on one physical disc. Either format will do that. And how many people don't buy special DVD sets that contain multiple discs for multiple playback options? That is, does it hurt sales of DVDs if you get more than one disc in a box? I don't think so; in fact, I suspect that people might even prefer getting a couple of discs, one with the movie, one with all the cool special features, just because we think we're getting more if we have more pieces of stuff in the box.

So for the rental/sales movie market, neither HD nor Blu-Ray is wowing customers based on unique features that only work in that format. They are, however, limiting the availability of programming based on format, which -- I think -- in the long run is gonna work against them (e.g. Sony only made Beta stuff for a long time, until they realized that they couldn't force people to choose Beta over VHS so they started making VHS decks too).

As long as HD programming is available to the average viewer in some format, whatever format offers the best balance of price, convenience, and ease of use, they'd be the ones I bet on. Right now I'm thinking that cable/electronic delivery of movies could indeed become a very serious threat to the "supremacy" of either mechanical format.

Always fun to think about all this stuff!

[rumplestiltskin]

[quote="MOVIEGEEK"]

<snip> As for porn in HD:I can't wait to see pimples on Jenna Jameson's bottom.

...all the more reason to be happy with SD, eh?