New Self-destructable DVDs: It may be a trap!

[Grant]

The movie studios are trying to push those self-destructable DVDs. A few retailers are testing grounds for this new format. Among them are Best Buy and convenience stores. I've seen them on sale in several places now.

The basic idea is that you buy them once. They play for about three days. Once a chemical change takes place after a certain period of time, the disc no longer plays. The discs are selling for about $5.99 each.

The sales pitch is that you don't have to bother to return them to a rental place. But, what *I* think the studios are really trying to do is cut out the rental business and make all that money from sales that the rental shops are making from rentals now. Rental stores only buy the movies once. They break even or make a profit on popular titles.

Just good business, you say? Not so fast! If they drop the price of these new DVDs, and make serious dents in the rental business, they can raise the price of the regular DVDs for everyone, and charge rental dealers so much that many won't be able to afford them anymore. So, if this ever catches on, it could spell the end of the great value that DVD fans love so much. If you want to watch a movie for longer than three days, or so, you will have to either rent it again, or pay a mighty nice price (for the studios!) for a title.

You think it will stop there? The record companies would jump all over this too! Imagine a day when you could only audition the new Eric Clapton CD for three days, or pay $20 for the regular CD. Mo money, mo money, MO MONEY!

I say, don't support this idea. It's a trap!

[poweragemk]

They tried this already, in a way. It was called DIVX. I think they're barking up the wrong tree, here.

[Sckott]

What poweragemk said. The "real" version of DIVX went right into the toilet at a time when DVD was new and tender in the market.

Also, add to the fact that the "uninformed" consumer gets rip-roaring mad when they don't understand their copy becomes unuseable and forces the retailer to refund the money. This WILL happen. Consumers are too used to knowing a DVD is permanent-life. Not to be a bummer, but the ave. consumer just won't have a clue why the disc went potty. Another headache for CC's or BB's customer service, and they'll take back the discs gladly! Whatabargain! That's a baaaagin for me.

But for Netflix, it's actually a very interesting idea. They don't have to worry about lost property - ever. No credit card required!

Maybe for CD singles, it's a neato idea?

[Michael St. Clair]

These discs have been test marketed in certain cities for several months, and the last I heard they aren't selling well.

I'm not concerned.

[Grant]

These discs have been test marketed in certain cities for several months, and the last I heard they aren't selling well.

I'm not concerned.

Whew! This is at least the second time the studios have tried this self-destructive DVD. Bottom line is they want to make more money, but they know better than to piss off the movie fans! They have seen what happened to the record companies.

[Ed Bishop]

They tried this already, in a way. It was called DIVX. I think they're barking up the wrong tree, here.
As usual, the studios are trying to muck up a cash cow....this is getting really predictable and lame.

I only bought one divx--THE X-FILES movie--for souvenir purposes. It read 'pan&scan' or fullscreen, so you know the quality of the thing was no better than VHS, probably....:rolleyes:

The joke, also, was that the format died so quickly, those poor souls who bought the machines had no more than a 2-year window in which to continue using their discs before the format was no longer supported and everything rendered useless.

There's no reason to think this idiotic venture won't meet a similar fate....

:ed:

[Sckott]

I agree. Rentals are almost that much. Fizzle-fizzle.

[ACK!]

I always disagreed in principle with DIVX - it was a glorified rental. Besides, I tend to buy DVDs of movies that I like and know I will watch again and again. ANd I don't want to have to use a dial-up connection to play a friggin' movie!

Besides, from an environmental standpoint, isn't DIVX wasteful? All that plastic and aluminum getting tossed out.

We signed up for Netflix a few years ago and have never regretted it. It's well worth the monthly fee even if you only watch a couple of movies per week.

[Grant]

I recall the days when I would stand in Circuit City trying to convince a poor customer who was being seduced by the salesman's pitch, that DIVX was a BAD way to go.

Then, I recall reading rave testemonials in Stereo Review, or it's later incarnation, from some guy about how great the format was.:rolleyes: There's always one...

[Ken_McAlinden]

It's funny how these formats are being pushed by studios rather than demanded by consumers. I get all of the functionality that they are trying to build into these disposable formats from having pay per view movies on DirecTV plus Tivo, with almost none of the environmental irresponsibility. :)

Regards,

[Claude]

I wonder how they would prevent piracy with these DVDs. People will try to copy them before they self-destroy. Blank DVD-Rs are becoming very cheap now, and no copy-protection scheme has yet remained uncrackable for a long time

[Damián]

I wonder how they would prevent piracy with these DVDs. People will try to copy them before they self-destroy.
I was thinking just the same thing.

[JonUrban]

I was thinking just the same thing.

Me too! DVD X Copy and the whole format goes down the drain.

One thing to remember, I would expect these discs to be "bare bones", pan and scan, not DTS or DD soundtracks, if 5.1 at all. Basically just a VHS-type product.

Either way, I think it is a loser from the start, just like Circuit City's DIVX - and I had plenty arguments against that one! :angel:

[JohnG]

One thing about the DIVX crowd. They stayed pretty quiet. I've never read online anywhere were someone admitted to having the silly player in their house.

Where did all those DIVX players go?:D

[Grant]

I wonder how they would prevent piracy with these DVDs. People will try to copy them before they self-destroy. Blank DVD-Rs are becoming very cheap now, and no copy-protection scheme has yet remained uncrackable for a long time

:shh: :)

[Michael St. Clair]

Why would a pirate pay $5.99 for an imploder when they could rent a disc for $2 from Netflix?

[poweragemk]

One thing about the DIVX crowd. They stayed pretty quiet. I've never read online anywhere were someone admitted to having the silly player in their house.

Where did all those DIVX players go?:D

You should have been on the HTF in those days, if you weren't. They stayed pretty quiet because they would have gotten flames of fury...:laugh:

My dad had a Proscan DIVX-capable unit and actually signed up for the service, but he's a gadget dork/serial early adopter. I don't know what happened to the player and the few discs he got after the service was shut down...

[-=Rudy=-]

I thought that there was a plan to unilaterally "unlock" all DIVX discs (or players) if the format failed. It evaported so quickly, though... :shake:

What also bothered me about DIVX was that it was run by Circuit City (a retailer) and a group of attorneys. The studios loved the arrangement no doubt.

[poweragemk]

I thought that there was a plan to unilaterally "unlock" all DIVX discs (or players) if the format failed. It evaported so quickly, though... :shake:

What also bothered me about DIVX was that it was run by Circuit City (a retailer) and a group of attorneys. The studios loved the arrangement no doubt.

Circuit City lost a boatload of bucks, IIRC...

[daveman]

Why would a pirate pay $5.99 for an imploder when they could rent a disc for $2 from Netflix?

Precisely. Pirates can copy rentals and netflix just as easily...

[mal content]

I saw these "throwaway" DVDs for the first time last week in Colorado. Couldn't figure why someone would pay six bucks for a mediocre or worse movie when they could worst case rent it for a buck less. Maybe if the gas prices continue to rise not having to drive back to Blockbuster will become a tastier carrot ...

[Paul Chang]

DIVX died. So will this.

[MJM]

This is pure & utter garbage! I look forward to seeing these discs in the retail stores, so I can tell the employess (in a polite way of course) to get prepared to move these the hell out of here! I hate stupid, gimmicky schemes such as this.

MJM

[Paul Chang]

This is pure & utter garbage! I look forward to seeing these discs in the retail stores, so I can tell the employess (in a polite way of course) to get prepared to move these the hell out of here! I hate stupid, gimmicky schemes such as this.

MJM
Can't blame the poor guys/gals working at the retail stores that carry these. Save it for the greedy movie studio heads.