LAS VEGAS—The adult film industry is still taking a wait-and-see approach to the Blu-ray /HD DVD wars. But while Blu-ray's perceived costs have pushed some companies into the arms of the HD DVD camp, Warner Bros.'
decision last week to exclusively support Blu-ray has some thinking that the end of HD DVD is nigh.
Executives in the adult-film industry spoke Wednesday during the opening day of the AVN Adult Entertainment Expo 2008, which briefly overlaps with the more mainstream
Consumer Electronics Show ending Thursday.
"It could be a real sign that things will shift," Jeff Thill, director of video operations for the Hustler Video Group, said about the Warner decision. Thill said he sees no advantage of one format over the other, but is "leaning Blu-Ray" after Warner's announcement.
The Blu-ray camp, led by Sony, has been fighting Toshiba and its HD DVD format for years in a battle reminiscent of the VHS versus Betamax battle. In that fight, Betamax maker Sony's refusal to work with the porn industry helped usher in a VHS victory when the adult industry capitalized on the burgeoning popularity of VCRs and video rentals.
Hustler had some success recently with the Blu-ray release of Jenna Haze Oil Orgy, said Thill, who was on hand to showcase Hustler's latest releases at the annual AVN Adult Entertainment Expo.
The company packaged the "Jenna" disc with an HD DVD and standard version in case users had trouble with Blu-ray, but has thus far not received any complaints. In March, Hustler will release its latest "Barely Legal" DVD in the Blu-ray format, he said.
Hustler has released two titles using the HD DVD format, Thill said. The company expects to release between 15 to 25 high-definition videos in 2008, most of which will probably be Blu-ray, Thill said.
Blu-ray is "a little bit of a headache" because of royalty fees, but it's "six of one, a half dozen of the other" with the format wars, he said. Blu-Ray also "sounds sexier," according to Thill, and there's "an important base in the gaming world" because the popular PlayStation 3 runs Blu-Ray while Microsoft has released an optional HD DVD drive for its Xbox 360 console, Thill said.
Vivid Entertainment, home to porn star Jenna Jameson, has also released videos on Blu-ray and HD, said David Peskin, Vivid's national sales manager. It currently has two Blu-ray titles and three HD DVD titles on the shelves.
Vivid was initially "conservative" with its high-definition re-order numbers, but is "starting to stock a little heavier" since sales have been promising, Peskin said. Vivid has seen Blu-ray sell more units online while HD does better in retail stores, he said.
The company doesn't yet have a format preference. "Both have surpassed expectations," he said, though Peskin also pointed to the PlayStation 3 connection as a plus for Blu-ray.
Some companies have had to bypass Blu-ray altogether. Jackie Ramos, vice president of DVD production for Wicked Pictures, "looked to Blu-ray" when the company was first exploring high-definition about a year ago, but had trouble finding a provider that would produce Blu-ray discs for the adult industry.
Wicked has since released about a half dozen HD DVD titles, but Ramos managed to track down some porn-friendly Blu-ray producers and is now "aggressively" looking at those options.
With the Warner decision, things are "a little more serious," Ramos said, and, to him, it makes sense to examine Blu-Ray should it become the industry standard.
Ramos also had concerns about the Blu-ray price point. There's a copyright aspect you can't get around with Blu-Ray, whereas HD DVD allows you to choose whether or not you want that copyright protection, he said. "With adult industry, HD DVD was friendlier price wise."
Ramos expects to select a Blu-ray producer in the next few weeks and hopes to release Wicked's first Blu-ray title in the next few months, he said. But he was not convinced that the porn industry was driving the debate as it did with VHS and Betamax.
"What really drives it is the availability of players" and what the consumers want, Ramos said. HD capitalized on that by selling cheaper players, but now that many of the major studios have jumped on the Blu-Ray bandwagon, "we'll have to see," Ramos said.
Albert Lazarito, vice president of Silver Sinema, also believes the consumer is key to winning the DVD battle. "With the Warner Brothers decision, the market will direct the outcome," he said. Lazarito is "more than confident that it won't be the adult realm" that selects a final DVD format.
Silver Sinema has been filming in HD because Blu-ray is too expensive, Lazarito said, but his company is "ready to go depending on how the market shifts."
Pink Visual was also turned off by the cost of Blu-ray, explained director of marketing Kim Kysar. "HD DVD was affordable; it was doable. Blu-ray was too expensive," she said.
Pink Visual will release its first HD-DVD video next week.
"Everybody's going to want to have both options," Kysar said. "Blu-Ray could be the next step, but not if nobody uses it and it stays too cost prohibitive."
Source: PC Magazine
If you scroll down and read my third post, right at the end i talked about how the porn industry actually being a big decider in the format wars. Well, looks like i was thinking the right thing coz as this suggests that whichever of the formats is backed by the porn industry is more likely to win. Of course, they are still undecided but as the article suggests, Blu-ray at the moment has the edge. With its path breaking deal with Warner Bros, it will lead to other studios thinking of making deals with Sony to produce Blu-ray discs. One thing i overlooked while commenting on the format's was the facts that obviously the technology used even while shooting is different and costs differ among the two with Blu-ray being more expensive. Sony really has a golden goose with PS3 as it doubles up as a next generation gaming console as well as Blu-ray DVD player. Why would people invest in another DVD player. Of course the PS3 has stiff competition in the gaming console market from Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii (which is a surprise hit)IMHO (In my humble Opinion) I think Sony has a winner on its hands. Not only in the DVD format wars but also in the gaming console market. Considering the exclusive titles they have coming out this year, most prominent of them being "Metal Gear Solid IV : Guns of the Patriots" which has been a killer for the competition. Even Halo 3 has a similar effect when it was launched on the Xbox 360. People actually went and bought the console just because Halo3 was released on it. I expect a similar reaction with metal gear solid 4. I know of people who are using a Xbox 360, who are waiting the release of more titles especially metal gear solid 4 so they can pick up the PS3. Its expensive but worth the amount you are paying when u think abt the fact that its a Blu-ray DVD player built in. Go PS3!!!! All you PS haters. No hard feelings people. I have seen the PS3 in action on a plasma. Can't say i have seen anything more awesome ever. COMMENT PLEASE!!!!
camera, and Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, all powered by an Intel Corp. dual core chip. Appearing on stage at the company’s Macworld expo, Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs said the computer, which he called “world’s thinnest notebook,” will cost $1,799 and is scheduled to ship in about two weeks. Ultramobile notebooks represent about 6% of the 270 million notebooks expected to the sold this year. Apple may benefit from good timing. Asus International Ltd.’s recently introduced Eee PC has topped sales charts at Amazon.com and is usually sold out at retail stores.
camera, and Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, all powered by an Intel Corp. dual core chip. Appearing on stage at the company’s Macworld expo, Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs said the computer, which he called “world’s thinnest notebook,” will cost $1,799 and is scheduled to ship in about two weeks. Ultramobile notebooks represent about 6% of the 270 million notebooks expected to the sold this year. Apple may benefit from good timing. Asus International Ltd.’s recently introduced Eee PC has topped sales charts at Amazon.com and is usually sold out at retail stores.
