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HDD's own Josh Zyber Brings the Rain to Blu-Con 2010 & BD-Live
Tue Nov 09, 2010 at 04:30 PM ETTags: Michael S. Palmer, Blu-Con 2010, Industry Trends, BD-Live (all tags)
by Michael S. Palmer
As High-Def Digest's Blu-Con 2010 coverage nears its conclusion -- only one more article, I promise -- it's time to turn to one of Blu-ray's most touted abilities, BD-Live and internet connectivity. This panel not only featured executives from Panasonic, D&M Holdings (as in Denon & Marantz), Sony, and Universal, but also HDD's own Josh Zyber as moderator.
Here's what Josh had to say about what it was like up on stage:
I got out most of the questions I wanted to ask. The tone of the conference as a whole was, “Rah rah! Blu-ray is the greatest thing ever!” It wasn’t my place or the purpose of the panel to upset that. And frankly, I do love Blu-ray, and find great potential in its interactive abilities – even if that potential hasn’t really been tapped yet. So, yeah, I tossed out some softball questions. But I also managed to get in some pointed questions about whether BD-Live is being used appropriately, and whether its direction needs to be re-thought.
From my ever so safe hiding-in-the-dark position, Josh did a commendable job. I personally know how nervous he was, but the hundreds of other people sitting around me waiting for him to be brilliant couldn't tell. He also managed to ask some real questions in a respectful manner. Sadly, the studio reps in this particular panel were less open to discussing problems or issues. Let's recap, shall we.
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The studios seem genuinely excited about BD-Live and the ability to directly communicate with their customers. Universal touted 15 million streamed trailers via their BD-Live enabled trailer pre-roll as well as 300K Pocket Blu app downloads. Also, 'The Office: Season 6 owners can use BD-Live to watch Season 7 episodes the day after they broadcast. Sony touted MovieIQ and was surprised by the sheer number of trailers downloaded from their BD-Live portal.
In one of the panel's funnier moments, Josh asked why the studios develop competing technologies like Sony's MovieIQ vs. Fox's LiveLookup when it would be easier for the consumers to have one. The studio execs each joked that their technologies are available to every other studio…but not for free.
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Studio reps Tracey Garvin (Sony) and Robert Read (Universal) went on to talk about how BD-Live benefits them as producers in terms of technical and timing issues. If special features don't make the Blu-ray authoring deadline, BD-Live connection allows them to add featurettes any time they want. Universal in particular loves that their trailer pre-roll (aka forced trailers) is always evolving. Unlike every other studio with forced trailers, anyone watching a five year old Universal Blu-ray will get ads for new movies, rather than five year old ads. Then there's Fox's 'Avatar' or Sony's 'The DaVinci Code' who added features like previews of the 'Extended Collectors Edition' or footage 'Angels & Demons' premier, respectfully.
Studios love BD-Live because they're always getting a chance to keep physical media, which has traditionally been locked and stagnant, active and updated. Unfortunately, there's no official timeline for how long these features will be hosted and/or supported. Josh pointed out that Digital Copy expires so quickly, and we all remember what it was like to have DVD-ROM content from ten years ago. How many of those sites are active today? In response to Josh's Digital Copy question, the studios said that their technology affiliates don't want to be on the hook forever, which makes sense I suppose (Digital Copy specifically, they said, is meant to drive sales. A limited time offer). Software companies like Microsoft and Apple don't support their operating systems forever, but at the same time, the timelines for Blu-ray support seem short.
Josh tried to bring up issues like 'Predators' not working properly thanks to BD-Live and the need for firmware updates. It was an awkward moment because they didn't seem to care or notice that Josh wasn't speaking for himself, but for all of his readers who may not have three different Blu-ray players as a back up for when one isn't working with a particular title. Granted, Fox, the studio behind 'Predators', wasn't on this panel, but there seemed to be no accountability or acknowledgment of general problems. The tech companies said they wait for customers to tell them when there are issues, in essence blaming the studios. And the studios claimed they do quality control during the authoring process. If so, those in charge of checking these titles need to do a more thorough job.
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Jeff Cove (Panasonic) and Jeff Cowan (D&M) spoke about the needs for firmware updates and the practicalities behind internet connections. Amazon customers may be calling out for more built-in WiFi, but both D&M Holdings and Panasonic are wary of WiFi for everything, especially AV Receivers. A wired Ethernet connection is more stable and reliable; if a WiFi signal drops out mid-firmware update, the hardware could end up "bricked" (non operational) because part of the firmware process involves deleting the old firmware, or operating system.
The hardware companies and movie studios went on to say updating and upgrading are ubiquitous, citing Apple as a prime example. They don't want to be swayed by customer resistance. This seems smart; the world is always going to be evolving and progressing whether people want it or not, but it was an odd declarative especially for D&M who is (at least partly) resisting the inevitable change from wired to wireless internet. Jeff Cove was smart to say that the problem isn't the updating itself, but the need to do a better job making the process easier for the customer. Similarly, D&M hopes to build in automatic firmware updates because all of their Internet compatible devices automatically check in with the D&M server. These automatic updates wouldn't actually be performed without customer permission; the automatic portion would function more as a notice that updates are available.
Overall, the theme for this panel seemed to be Evolution. With every BD-Live release, the studios are learning which features work well, and which ones their consumers like or dislike. BD-Live may not be the most exciting advancement in the world, but it seems to fit in well with Blu-ray as a gateway experience (meaning, you start with a Blu-ray Disc or Blu-ray player, and then you're streaming additional or completely separate content from the web). There may be troubles within the fast pace of evolution, but the last thing any company actively wants to do is turn away customers. The hard part, for us right now, is that it often feels a bit like work or beta testing.
What do you think, dear readers? Do you like BD-Live? Have you even used it? What's your favorite application? And what would you like to see available in the realm of internet connectivity? Hit up the forums and let us know.
Next and last up, we'll be talking about Blu-ray and Music.
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Get More out of Your 'Avatar' Blu-ray with BD-Live!
Thu Oct 28, 2010 at 02:00 PM ETTags: BD-Live, Avatar (all tags)
More special features, deleted scenes, and screen tests are available NOW!
BD-Live is a feature with a lot of potential, but it's been incredibly underwhelming in its use thus far. Thankfully, 'Avatar' gives us a reason to use it.
If you've got the original 'Avatar' Blu-ray and you want a taste of what's on the three disc Extended Collector's Edition, you've got it!
The folks over at Fox have added a nice little bundle of content that should hold you over until the release of the collector's edition next month and the 3D version the month after! You'll get to see a few deleted scenes, most of which have never been seen before, as well as a scene deconstruction that breaks everything down for you.
In addition, you'll get to check out a few excerpts from the 'Avatar' documentary and – possibly the most interesting feature – raw footage versions of scenes. That means you'll get to watch the actors do their thing without all that CG. Silliness is sure to abound!
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Discs mentioned in this article: (Click for specs and reviews)
- Avatar (Blu-ray)
- Avatar: Extended Collector's Edition (3-Disc Set) (Blu-ray)
BD-Live Hopes to Connect Viewers to Movies AND People
Thu Nov 05, 2009 at 04:00 PM ETTags: BD-Live, Industry Trends, Blu-con, Michael S. Palmer (all tags)
By Michael S. Palmer
Reps from Walt Disney, Sony, Universal, and Fox gathered for a panel at this year’s Blu-Con 2.0 to discuss the present and future of BD-Live.
Currently, 4 million Blu-rays connect to BD-Live every month. 50% of users return to the various portals (1984-esque tangent: Sony remembers your player’s I.P. address, and thus knows if you repeatedly access digital content. Big Brother knows where you are at all times!).
I’ve always wondered why BD-Live features have been so lackluster. Apparently, the challenge here is education. Studios and retailers are already educating the consumer on alien terms like HDTV, HDMI, 1080p, 7.1 and Blu-ray. Creating a brand new social experience for BD-Live and having to educate the consumer even further is an uphill battle on top of an uphill battle. Which is why the current strategy for studios is to build upon technology and habits that already exist (via iPhone apps, and partnerships with popular websites like Facebook and IMDB.com). To them, BD-Live should be not only an extension / augmentation of the movie, but also of the consumer’s life.
Here’s a run down of strategies / features by studio:
How can they make it easy, dynamic, and interactive?
Their first BD-Live title was ‘Sleeping Beauty,’ and since then they’ve had the ‘Hannah Montanna’ movie tied to Radio Disney, and the recent ‘Snow White’ features include “living menus” that change appearance according to the time and local weather, as well as the ability to receive a phone call from a Disney princess.
‘Lost - Season 5’ will feature “Lost University” (http://www.lostuniversity.org/). LU, with its Polar Bear mascot, is a Blu-ray/BD-Live exclusive, and gives Lost’s rabid fan base a chance to not only learn about the show, but also to study the themes and mythology built into the Lost universe. Disney hopes that ‘Lost’ fans who have yet to go Blu will buy Blu-ray players in order to participate.
SONY: Every release since April of 2008 has featured BD-Live (and of course, it should, given that their parent company invented Blu-ray). Initially, the BD-Live link was to a portal for additional content downloads and a chance to fill out surveys to let Sony know how they’re doing. Snore.
Recently, however, Sony’s focus has been two-fold. 1) The chance to edit clips from the movies (as seen on ‘Step Brothers,’ ‘Year One,’ and the upcoming ‘Snatch’) and post them on Facebook. And 2) “MovieIQ,” which is a live interactive database about the movie’s cast, crew, and production. A nifty feature bound for ‘Julie & Julia’ (Dec. 8th) is the ability to choose and email yourself recipes from the movie as it plays.
UNIVERSAL: Admittedly arriving late to the Blu-ray world last year, Universal sees the BD-Live experience as something that should be “simple and sharable.” On their discs, look for “community screenings” (everyone around the country, or world, watches the film at the same time, chatting about it via BD-Live), and integrated Facebook / iPhone applications. Recently, for ‘Fast & Furious’ Universal released a car customizing iPhone app (build a car, and share with your friends online) that has proved popular.
FOX: Sharing similar buzz words as simple and social, Fox introduced “Live Lookup” with ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ a few months ago. Integrated with IMDB.com, it’s similar to Sony’s “MovieIQ”, but for my money, much more fluid and visual. Frankly, it’s a shame that we have to have two different versions of the same feature, but I guess simplifying would involve too many lawyers.
Fox is also looking to get into community screenings, citing the desire to “elevate catalogue titles to event status.” Seems like in addition to dressing up, throwing props, and singing along to the ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’, the first rule of the ‘Fight Club’ Blu-ray will be to not talk about the fact that everyone’s supposed to show up to watch the flick at the same time.
WARNER was not in this panel, but they are very excited to host global community screenings for ‘Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince’ (Dec. 7th).
It’s clear, despite all efforts, that BD-Live has a way to go. Studios are researching their little hearts out to give us features like “Live Lookup,” and attempting to integrate their products into the arenas we already occupy. “Lost University” seems like a good start, but is admittedly only for die-hard fans. In the not-too-distant future, we could see e-commerce (the ability to buy products literally used in, or as seen in, the movie), editing movies in real time and inserting them into the film, putting your voice / likeness into the movies, or features akin to Google maps (posting/tagging user generated clips online that tie into filming locations).
Perhaps in addition to developing and selling their movies, bold new filmmakers will also create exciting opportunities for interactivity in watching their movies, which is usually very passive (except for popcorn consumption). Or maybe it’ll be you, dear readers, with the next kick ass idea. What do you want from BD-Live? What’s a “gotta have it” toy you’d love at your fingertips as your favorite flick unfurls in glorious high def?
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BD-Live Has Four Million Connections a Month
Wed Sep 09, 2009 at 02:00 PM ETTags: BD-Live, Industry Trends (all tags)
In the time since BD Live has been introduced, a few months short of a year, the service has garnered over 25 million capable discs connected to the service.
The numbers seem to indicate a great deal of success, but the content accessed is hardly impressive.
Of those 25 million connections, the majority of them were to watch trailers for existing and upcoming films. These statistics are a bit underwhelming and point to poor execution of a format that consumers expected more from, to put it mildly.
Peter Staddon, executive VP at Deluxe, developers of over 700 Blu-ray discs, is hopeful for BD Live’s future. “BD-Live is a very viable technology,” he said, adding that “the creative challenge is to develop it as an expanded part of your regular entertainment and not just have it bolted on.”
Staddon also states that additional features such as exclusive trailers, social networking sites and even avatars could help bolster BD-Live’s feature set.
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- Related links:
- BD Live usage increases, as more features are added [Video Business]
Universal Announces 'Coraline' for Blu-ray
Thu May 14, 2009 at 03:20 PM ETTags: Disc Announcements, 3-D, Exclusive HD Content, BD-Live, Universal (all tags)
Universal has announced it is bringing 'Coraline' to Blu-ray in late-July as a two-disc special edition with 2-D and 3-D versions.
The sleeper animated fantasy, which grossed over $60 million during its domestic theatrical run, will arrive on Blu-ray July 21 (day-and-date with the standard DVD).
Both 2-D and 3-D versions will be presented on a BD-50 dual-layer disc via seamless branching, with 1080p video (1.85:1) and English DTS-HD Lossless Master Audio 5.1 Surround.
Extras include audio commentary with director Henry Selick and composer Bruno Coulais, three featurettes ("Making of Coraline," "Voicing the Characters," "Creepy Coraline") and deleted scenes.
Exclusive to the Blu-ray (on the 2-D version only) are two U-Control picture-in-picture tracks, and "Tours and Voice Sessions" featurette, as well as My Scenes Sharing and "The World According to Henry" BD-Live functions.
A second standard DVD disc will include a Digital Copy of the film compatible with PCs and iTunes (expires July 31, 2010).
Suggested retail price for the Blu-ray has been set at $39.99.
You'll find the latest specs for 'Coraline' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under July 21.
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- Discs mentioned in this article: (Click for specs and reviews)
- Coraline (Blu-ray)
Warner Says 'Yes Man' on Blu-ray
Wed Feb 11, 2009 at 03:00 PM ETTags: Disc Announcements, Warner, BD-Live (all tags)
Warner has announced details for 'Yes Man,' which will come to Blu-ray in early-April with extensive bonus features and BD-Live.
The latest hit from Jim Carrey, 'Yes Man' didn't ignite the box office quite as strongly as past Carrey comedies, but it still managed to earn over $100 million domestically.
Warner will release the Blu-ray on April 7, day-and-date with the standard DVD.
Tech specs feature a BD-25 single-layer disc with 1080p/VC-1 video (2.35:1) and English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 Surround audio.
Among the extras are multiple featurettes ("Behind the Story," "Performed by Jim Carrey and Others," "Say Yes to Red Bull! As Only Carrey Can," "Yes Man: Party Central with Norman Stokes"), a "Yes Loans! Infomercial," additional footage, a gag reel, and "Munchausen by Proxy" reel of five music videos.
The Blu-ray will also come BD-live-enabled, with exclusive content still to be announced.
Suggested list price for the Blu-ray has been set at $35.95.
You'll find the latest specs for 'Yes Man' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under April 7.
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- Discs mentioned in this article: (Click for specs and reviews)
- Yes Man (Blu-ray)
Sony to Reveal 'Thirteenth Floor' on Blu-ray
Tue Feb 03, 2009 at 01:00 PM ETTags: Disc Announcements, Sony, BD-Live (all tags)
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced a mid-April Blu-ray arrival for the sci-fi thriller 'The Thirteenth Floor.'
Starring Craig Bierko and Gretchen Mol in a tale that twists and turns into alternate realities, Sony will release the box office disappointment on Blu-ray April 14.
Tech specs will see 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 video (2.35:1) and Dolby TrueHD 5.1 Surround audio.
Extras include an audio commentary with director Josef Rusnak and a music video by the Cardigans.
Like all Sony titles, the disc will also come with BD-Live connectivity.
Suggested retail price for the Blu-ray has been set at $28.95.
You'll find the latest specs for 'The Thirteenth Floor' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under April 14.
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- Discs mentioned in this article: (Click for specs and reviews)
- The Thirteenth Floor (Blu-ray)
'Milk' Blu-ray Delivery this March
Fri Jan 30, 2009 at 03:00 PM ETTags: Disc Announcements, Exclusive HD Content, BD-Live, Universal (all tags)
Universal Studios Home Entertainment has announced an early-March Blu-ray arrival for the acclaimed biopic 'Milk.'
Marking the first of this year's five Best Picture Oscar nominees to be announced for home video, Universal today confirmed a March 10 Blu-ray release (day-and-date with the DVD) for the Sean Penn-starrer.
Gus Van Sant's critically lauded biopic of the late Mayor of Castro Street will enjoy a BD-50 dual-layer presentation with 1080p video and DTS-HD Lossless Master Audio 5.1 Surround.
Standard extras include a suite of three featurettes: "Remembering Harvey," "Hollywood Comes to San Francisco" and "Marching for Equality."
Exclusive to the Blu-ray will be deleted scenes (downloadable via BD-Live only) and the My Scenes Sharing function.
Suggested retail price for the Blu-ray has been set at $39.95.
You'll find preliminary specs for 'Milk' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under March 10.
See what people are saying about this story in our forums area, or check out other recent discussions.
- Discs mentioned in this article: (Click for specs and reviews)
- Milk (Blu-ray)
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