Interesting article on UMD movies (Evolution)

Title: Interesting article on UMD movies
Description: I think it's going to die

/backslash - February 21, 2006 01:19 PM (GMT)

QUOTE (Variety.com)

Sony's PlayStation Portable isn't turning out to be the hot new movie platform many in the bizbiz had hoped.

With sales falling below expectations, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Paramount Home Entertainment and Warner Home Video are cutting back on movie releases for the PSP.

While comedies that appeal to the core young male gamer demo are doing well, execs say other PSP movies simply aren't selling.

Sony handheld device plays games, movies and music.

In a bid to boost the format, execs from SPHE and sister unit Sony Computer Electronics America, which sells the PSP, are touting a new adapter that would allow a user to watch a PSP pic on a TV.

If it's successful, that could overcome widespread criticism that consumers have to buy two separate copies of a movie to watch on PSP and TV.

Execs plan to visit other studios to tout the adapter in the next month.

"It would be a huge boost to (PSP movies) if we can arrange for the disc to play on TV players," said SPHE prexyprexy Ben Feingold.

In the meantime, Sony is cutting back on new releases and adding to its comedy slate for PSP with Monty Python content and "Not Another Teen Movie." Feingold said comedy has turned out to be the sweet spot on the format -- the top-selling PSP release is Fox's "Napoleon Dynamite."

Paramount's biggest PSP successes have been TV comedies such as "Chappelle's Show -- Vol. 1" and "Beavis & Butthead -- The Mike Judge Collection: Vol. 1."

Paramount has no new PSP releases planned for the coming months, though a spokeswoman said the studio would continue to look at releasing select films in the format.

Top PSP movie performers generally sell more than 100,000 units, though the average release posts sales closer to 40,000-50,000 units.

Some have reasoned that sales may have slowed recently because of a shortage of new titles in the last month and because users may be illegally copying films from DVDs onto a memory chip the PSPs can read.

Sony is hoping to combat online piracy starting in March when it begins selling movies online via its Connect digital media store. Users will be able to download a pic and watch it on PSP without a disc.

Warner Home Video, which only began releasing movies in the format in November, pulled six planned PSP titles, including "Goodfellas," from its slate of releases previously set for an April-June rollout.

"We are re-evaluating our position on any future releases at this time," said Jeff Baker, Warner senior VP and general manager of theatrical catalog. "We're looking at this on a case-by-case basis. We're disappointed with consumer demand at this time."

The studio moves come as retailers are said to be cutting out shelf space for PSP movies with hit-and-miss sales.

"We continue to carry most new titles," said Virgin buyer Chris Anstey, "and there is a modest demand for them, but there simply hasn't been a consistent growth of this new format to justify making more space for it. We have been encouraged by the results of a couple successful campaigns that we've featured to help promote them, but the overall impact of the format has still been nominal."

Industryites say retailers are being flooded with new discs and view underperforming PSP movies as an area for cutbacks with upcoming high-def releases set to reach market in the coming months.

"With standard definition, HD DVD, Blu-ray and PSP, all these formats take up space," said one retail source. "Consumers aren't going to buy three or four configurations of the same movie. Something has to give."

Sony recently announced it would start bundling some DVD and UMD titles, including "The Grudge," "Underworld""Underworld" and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," in combo packs priced at $28.95, slightly higher than for DVDs alone.

Overall, Sony has shipped more than 6 million PSP units worldwide since it went on sale a year ago, making it a moderate success but not a smash hit. Nintendo DS, another handheld gaming system that went on sale a few months earlier, has shipped 14.4 million units.

Hardly surprising really. I've noticed that a majority of UMD movies are already discounted to as much as half price. To me it just seems like a big waste of time and money considering these movies have next to nothing in terms of special features and you can't use them on any other device besides PSPs. Perhaps a standalone DVD player that could play both normal DVDs and UMDs would help ease the problem?

But really, who would watch LOTR, all extended editions on a psp with crummy speakers? NOBODY! Dish them out for free so we can use them as uber stylish coasters :D I know I don't have a PSP and I've never seen a movie running on them but I would expect alot of motion blurring on a pretty ordinary LCD screen

ultracrazy1 - February 21, 2006 01:28 PM (GMT)

Well you'd be surprised because they look great.

UMDs were bound to fail though, its just too easy to rip a dvd and put it on a memory stick.

BrotherEstapol - February 21, 2006 02:08 PM (GMT)

QUOTE (ultracrazy1 @ Feb 21 2006, 11:28 PM)

Well you'd be surprised because they look great.

But you still get ghosting...well, at least when I played it anyway.

Yeah, I really don't know why they pushed UMD so hard as a new format...hell, I think at work(Target) we have more Movies than Games...pretty stupid if you ask me.

I also don't know why they would release the lame movies that their main demographic just wouldn't watch...like Hitch for example.

ultracrazy1 - February 21, 2006 02:22 PM (GMT)

Oh you can get Hitch on UMD? Kick ass!

>_>

borgster101 - February 22, 2006 01:38 AM (GMT)

With portable DVD Players, and notebook computers already providing the ability to watch movies on the go usng existing DVD's that you already own, I never saw the UMD format taking off.

And really, who the hell is going to buy Stuart Little on PSP!

Eyce - February 22, 2006 07:44 AM (GMT)

QUOTE (BrotherEstapol @ Feb 22 2006, 12:08 AM)

Yeah, I really don't know why they pushed UMD so hard as a new format...hell, I think at work(Target) we have more Movies than Games...pretty stupid if you ask me.

...Sony really needs to take money out of the UMD Movie stuff, and invest it on some good games :cheese:

Retro - May 27, 2006 01:18 PM (GMT)

I'd agree that the PSP has definitely tanked in terms of video for all of those reasons in the article; people will just use their portable DVD players and laptops instead. Sure, the PSP is way smaller than either of those, but no one (including myself) cares.

Meh, in terms of video, at least the PSP is better than, say, the iPod..."thinks of iPods and pukes"

Random Hero - May 29, 2006 09:43 AM (GMT)

umd's are great quality but they were never going to be big....sony should just focus on games and games only. they haven't done this since psone

DZ - May 30, 2006 01:02 AM (GMT)

Sony should use the UMD's for games and not movies. They have to make there Connect service the only source for downloadable movies, they'll save more money and mem sticks will sell.

/backslash - May 30, 2006 02:55 AM (GMT)

That 3 month old article still hasn't changed at all. I've even seen stores such as EzyDVD dishing out brand new UMD movies for $9.95. And why on earth are there so many copies of 'Hitch' hanging around?! There's more UMDs than DVDs out there

bacon - May 31, 2006 07:15 PM (GMT)

i dont kno what sony were thinking tbh. dvds are expensive enough. then u got umd. its stupid really considering you can just rip them to a memory stick, dvds that is.

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