Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (SPHE) is going to be the first major Hollywood studio to distribute Blu-ray movies in China.
The movie studio plans to sell only 30 movie titles on the Chinese market, with titles including Hitch, Kung Fu Hustle, Hancock and Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, and the Spiderman trilogy.
The movies will be available for 205 yuan, or ~$30 each, which is a high amount considering the low income among many citizens in China.
Sony will launch the BDP-S350 Blu-ray player in China on Nov. 21, and may expand its Blu-ray product lineup later.
Warner Bros. and Disney are expected to launch Blu-ray movies in the near future, with other movie studios still weighing their options. Most studios plan to wait and see how consumers like Sony’s lineup, and how the company battles piracy, before mass releasing movies.
Despite Chinese pirates already manipulating Blu-ray movies and selling counterfeit movies to consumers, there will likely be a strong push to try and legitimize the Blu-ray market in China. The pirated movies aren’t Blu-ray, but are AVCHD-quality movies pirated on to DVDs.
AVCHD discs can be made using regular blank DVDs but are playable in Blu-ray players — and movie studios are extremely concerned about AVCHD movies being pirated and sold as Blu-ray movies.
The Motion Picture Association fears AVCHDs will account for as much as 10 percent of all pirated movies in China within six months, as the number continues to grow.
If Sony is able to combat pirates and convince Chinese consumers to purchase legal Blu-ray movies, then it will create local production facilities in several locations.
Assuming Sony and other movie studios are serious about releasing Blu-ray in China, they’re likely going to have to reduce the cost of Blu-ray movies, or consumers will continue to pirate content.
14 Comments
Kung Fu Hustle [Blu-ray] ~ Stephen Chow, et al. (Blu-ray - Dec 12, 2006)
Buy new: $17.99
47 Used & new from $13.75
This is Amazon- I didn't even check eBay. Probably get it there for 3-4 dollars.
How in the hell can they think they can sell these discs in China for more than they TRY to sell them for in the US? http://www.cdfreaks.com/jochem/../im...6/confused.gif
Absolute Stupidity.
I feel bad for the people who are getting duped into thinking they're buying a Blu-ray disc when in reality they are purchasing nothing but a pirated DVD.
How come Sony is even going to the expense to try something like this? It makes no sense...surely they must be up to something...
Now, if they open the market, they will by no doubt start selling. I understand that, given the piracy status in China, the percentages will not look very good; lets say that in the 'X' european country 50% of sales is legit and another 50% is through piracy. And lets say that the percentages for China will be 5% and 95% respectively.
Now can anybody do the simple math and compare the 5% of the Chinese market and the 50% of lets say France? Oh well.. it's simple math http://www.cdfreaks.com/jochem/../im...es/2/smile.gif
I'm sure (at least hope) the company's executives have some type of secret game plan that isn't being revealed at the moment.
Maybe Sony hopes consumers with deeper pockets realize that the pirated AVCHD movies still are no where near Blu-ray quality, and will be able to play off that.
It seems Sony is working off Hemispasm's logic, and just want to get the Sony brand in China -- money is money, after all.
I'm telling you, this is some kind of ploy. Sony is up to something.
And consider also the fact that with time Sony is going to pressure the chinese government to do something with the piracy (lets say by promising opening 3 factories over there). Hence sales will gradually go up.
- guest
- Posts: 15284
- Posted on: 20 Nov 08 08:30
- guest
- Posts: 15284
- Posted on: 20 Nov 08 16:02
Also look at growth in western world for next couple years, it is next to nothing, where China predict next year 9% and with government intervention 13%.
If you want to play it, you need player!!!
- guest
- Posts: 15284
- Posted on: 20 Nov 08 16:10
Although I'm sure that many will be disappointed that the DVD's decay before they complete their trip
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