HD DVD told: 'you're missing the boat' (Australia)

[admin]

(Australia) Video Ezy and Blockbuster throw their support behind Blu-ray, saying HD DVD is not taking the Australian market seriously enough.

http://www.theage.com.au/news/technology/hd-dvd-told-youre-missing-the-boat/2007/12/04/1196530626138.html

What the article implies is true though, the HD DVD effort here in Australia has been pretty pathetic. They only really launched about a couple of months ago (about a year behind Blu-ray). The delay was caused by Toshiba changing distributors here in Australia (they used to do it through another company, they've only just started distributing products themselves). And somebody actually phoned them up to ask who is responsible for promoting HD DVD in Australia, the HD DVD group or Toshiba, and the Toshiba rep said he didn't know. HD DVD players only started selling about 2 months ago, but the good news for HD DVD is that they managed to grab around 30% of the market even when they didn't have standalone players (thanks to the Xbox 360 HD DVD add-on drive).

But that's not to say that Blu-ray has been doing everything perfectly, since Blu-ray movie prices are at the same ridiculously high level as HD DVD (around $US 35 per disc, compared to about $25 for new release DVDs). Blu-ray player prices are also more expensive now that HD DVD has finally launched, although the HD DVD players are still about double the price of the same machines in the US.

[blutach]

C'mon HD-DVD!! For personal reasons, I will not buy a BD player or disc.

Regards

[admin]

A lot of people are buying HD DVD players from the US due to the prices here. Normally, stores like Amazon don't ship to Australia, but via a parcel forwarding services such as www.myus.com, you can get the player delivered to your door for half the price. You will need a transformer though for the 110V US player, but on the other hand, you can use the forwarding service to get your free 5+ movies too (or at least some have claimed). And no warranty, of course.

Blu-ray Australia is spending a lot of money in terms of in-store promotions. This include connecting all the large screen TVs up to Blu-ray players, I've went to stores where all the TVs were playing nothing but Blu-ray demos.

As for Video Ezy and Blockbusters, I don't think it's the right decision to go exclusive. They should let customers decide what they want, rather than deciding for them. HD DVD movies are at the same price as Blu-ray, and HD DVD has some exclusives such as Transformers and Shrek The Third that people want to buy - to make the decision for customers is really short sighted. Look at what JB Hi Fi did, when they first went Blu-ray exclusive and actively participated promoting Blu-ray by calling it "buying an experience" (not just a player), and now they've started carrying HD DVD due to its cheaper players.

But the real problem is lack of knowledge on the ground, as sales people don't really know what they are saying. Over at www.dtvforum.info (the Australian DTV forum), there are stories of how sales people say things like "Blu-ray is better because Blu-ray is 1080p, and HD DVD is going to die soon because it's only 720p". There was also the Harvey Norman catalogue that listed the Toshiba HD DVD player under the "Blu-ray" section, and this:

http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?showtopic=57838

Or this:

http://dstore.com.au/dvd/hd-dvd/

None of this is helping the HD cause, because consumers are no doubt confused as to why their newly purchased Transformers HD DVD won't play in their Sony Blu-ray players. And then there are those who think HD upscaling DVD players are the same as real HD, and wonder why some of the discs they buy don't work.

[blutach]

Nothing in retail amazes me anymore admin, especially HVN sales people. Similarly, the (financially) inspired JB HiFi.

Video Ezy and BB must be doing themselves out of some business.

Eventually, multi format players will emerge and consumers will be happier. For now, I agree; its just confusing for most.

Regards

[admin]

Toshiba Australia Responds To 'The Age' Article (linked in first post)