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• Blu Ray Gains Momentum Thanks to the PlayStation 3

  Sales of Blu Ray discs and players have increased dramatically in the last month, thanks to the worldwide debut of the PlayStation 3.
  
  Sony can now be pleased with the sales numbers provided by Home Media Magazine, at least concerning the Blu Ray discs. According to the publication, almost 70% of the HD discs sold in the first quarter were in the Blu Ray format, and only about 30% were HD DVD.
  
  February 2007 has been the month when Blu Ray finally took off, while March confirmed the ascending trend, with nearly three out of every four high-definition discs sold being in Blu Ray format.
  
  Apparently, the Blu Ray was the first choice for consumers even when they were offered the same movie in both formats: since Warner’s “The Departed” was launched on February 13, 53,640 copies of the film on Blu-ray disc have been sold, and only 31,590 on HD DVD. The estimations were made using Nielsen VideoScan’s point-of-sale data.
  
  The Top 10 HD movies is also dominated by Blu Ray titles, with SCEA’s Casino Royale in pole position: an estimated 59,680 Casino Royale BR discs were sold in the first quarter of 2007, but Martin Scorsese’s “The Departed” could be considered the winner since it sold enough to put the title on second place in Blu Ray format top 10 (and also second in the top 10 for all HD movies, Blu Ray or HD DVD) and first in HD DVD format (third place overall for the HD DVD version).
  
  According to HMM, from January 1 to March 31, consumers bought almost 1.2 million high-definition discs- 832,530 Blu-ray units and 359,300 HD DVDs. In March, consumers bought 335,980 Blu-ray Discs and 119,570 HD DVDs.
  
  Nielsen VideoScan had previously declared that during the first two weeks of January, Blu-ray discs outsold HD DVD by more than a 2:1 margin. It should be noted that the two weeks in question saw only two new high-def disc releases- both from Blu-ray (“The Covenant” on Jan 2, and “Crank” on Jan 9).
  
  The leading position of Blu Ray is also confirmed by the number of discs sold since the two formats were officially introduced: from a total of more than 2.14 million high-definition discs sold worldwide, HMM says at least 1.2 million were Blu-ray and 937,500 were HD DVDs. Blu Ray’s leading edge becomes obvious when we consider the fact that HD DVD officially debuted in April 2006 while Blu Ray was introduced two months later.
  
  Sony’s Blu Ray format is benefiting from the support of 6 major Hollywood studios, while Toshiba’s HD DVD is only backed by three. Blu Ray exclusive support is provided by 20th Century Fox, Buena Vista Home Entertainment and of course Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, while Lionsgate, Paramount Home Entertainment and Warner Home Video prefer to offer titles in both formats. The only studio providing exclusive support for the HD DVD is Universal.
  
  All three HD DVD studios wielded weak release slates in the first quarter of the year; behind The Departed, the next-biggest-selling HD DVD was Batman Begins, which had been released in October 2006. Batman Begins sold 16,980 HD DVDs in the first quarter of this year, but factoring in its initial sales, the title stands at 44,590 units, not far behind Casino Royale.
  
  “All this data points to the irrefutable facts that the consumers are voting with their dollars and adopting the revolutionary technology of the Blu-ray Disc,” said Bob Chapek, president of Buena Vista Home Entertainment. “With such beloved titles as Pirates of the Caribbean on the horizon, these numbers will only do one thing: grow.”
  
  “Breaking the 1 million-unit mark is a significant milestone for Blu-ray because it represents rapidly growing consumer acceptance for this revolutionary platform,” added David Bishop, president of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. “I am confident that the numbers will increase, and more critical benchmarks will be reached to ensure Blu-ray’s position as the leading high-definition format.”
  
  “Practically, Blu-ray launched this past November, and in just over one business quarter has rocketed to a significant lead,” noted Mike Dunn, president of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. “Consumers are clearly choosing Blu-ray as their high-def format of choice, and telling us so at retail cash registers.”
  
  Andy Parsons, chairman of the Blu-ray Disc Association’s U.S. Promotion Committee, said that “It’s exactly what we’ve said all along would happen — the strong support for Blu-ray among movie studios and equipment manufacturers means that consumers have more choices when it comes to players and titles. And they’re choosing Blu-ray by an ever-increasing margin.”
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  Monday, April 23, 2007

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