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DirecTV Growth Slows - VOD Sales Down[teaser]Though the growth may be slower, subscriptions are still growing. [/teaser] Cable and satellite subscriptions are slowing due to cost cutting, cord cutting and a still difficult economic climate. That doesn't mean everyone's losing customers though, and that's something that DirecTV CEO Mike White stresses. "We weren’t down versus a year ago; we just weren’t up 20% [like] we were in the first quarter," says White. That's an important distinction to make, especially in a market where the possibility of losing more customers than you're gaining is a distinct possibility. One of the things that White says is essential moving forward is an expansion of the TV Everywhere. "It’s critically dependent on the distribution relationships," says White. He says that the challenge moving forward with online streaming and similar services lie not with the technical side of thing, but with contracts. Source: Home Media MagazinePosted Mon Aug 8, 2011 at 12:30 PM PDT by: -
'The Stool Pigeon' Blu-ray Dated and Detailed[teaser]The acclaimed Hong Kong crime thriller explodes on Blu-ray next month! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Well Go USA is prepping 'The Stool Pigeon' for a Blu-ray release on September 27. Director Dante Lam reunites Nicholas Tse ('Shaolin,' 'Bodyguards and Assassins') and Nick Cheung ('Triad Election,' 'Exiled') from the 2008 hit 'Beast Stalker' in the action thriller 'The Stool Pigeon.' Tse plays an ex-convict nicknamed Ghost, who unwillingly works as an informant for police detective Don Lee (Cheung) in order to clear debts left by his late father and to rescue his only sister out of prostitution. The film was nominated for eight awards at the 2011 Hong Kong Film Awards, including Best Film, Best Director (Dante Lam), Best Screenplay (Wu Wei Lun), Best Actor (Nick Cheung), and Best Supporting Actor (Liu Kai Chi), with Nicholas Tse taking home the trophy for Best Actor. The Blu-ray will feature 1080p video, a DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack, and supplements include director and actor interviews, behind the scenes featurette, deleted scenes, and photo gallery. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $29.98. You can find the latest specs for 'The Stool Pigeon' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under September 27.Posted Mon Aug 8, 2011 at 12:00 PM PDT by: -
Dish Network Will Launch a Subscription Based Streaming Service[teaser]The recent Blockbuster acquisition makes that very possible for the company. [/teaser] "Everybody's enamoured with Netflix. Who's to say we can't do the same thing?" Those are the words of Dish Network president Joe Clayton, who has been talking up plans to launch a streaming service that could rival Netflix. When the company purchased Blockbuster earlier this year, analysts explored the possibilities for the company and one thing that kept coming up was subscription based streaming. In his recent interview with the LA Times he takes the "maybe" out of the picture. "We have access to the studios, we have access to huge movie libraries," says Clayton of the planned streaming service. As far as a timeline for this new service, Clayton simply says "Sooner is always better." Source: LA TimesPosted Mon Aug 8, 2011 at 11:00 AM PDT by: -
'Genevieve' Announced for Blu-ray[teaser]Henry Cornelius' 1953 comedy is planned for Blu-ray this September. [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, VCI will be bringing 'Genevieve' to Blu-ray on September 6. A simply delightful romp, and easily one of the best-loved and most inventive British comedies of the post war era, which follows the exploits and misfortunes of two highly competitive friends as they race against each other in the famous London to Brighton car rally. John Gregson stars as a stiff-shirted lawyer, who gets baited by his boisterous friend (Kenneth More) to wager a bet on who will win the race. For support, the two car enthusiasts enlist the aid of their wives, Dinah Sheridan and Kay Kendall, who provide the glamour and much of the comic sparkle. Gorgeous color photography makes the beauty of the town and country scenes really come to life and a wonderfully inventive harmonica soundtrack by Larry Adler, keeps the movie's pace and everyone's spirits in high gear! The Blu-ray will feature 1080p video, an uncompressed 2.0 soundtrack, and supplements will include: Photo & Poster Gallery and Documentary - A Profile of Genevieve (30 minutes): An amusing look at the madcap motoring movie - includes interviews with Dinah Sheridan (starring actress), Clive Donner (Film Editor), Christopher Challis (Director of Photography) and Larry Adler (Composer) as well as featuring the veteran cars themselves! You can find the latest specs for 'Genevieve' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under September 6.Posted Mon Aug 8, 2011 at 10:00 AM PDT by: -
NAD Launches its Most Affordable A/V Receiver[teaser]It's not something you'll find at Walmart, but at $900 it's the cheapest that NAD has out. [/teaser] Blu-ray players tend to hover at around the same price, and while TVs vary by screen size, there seems to be a generally agreed upon price for each size of TV. Receivers, on the other hand, can range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand. NAD is a company whose receivers fall on the expensive side of the equation. They're made for folks who are particular about their audio and especially those who put music first above all else. The new T 748 holds this ideal true, but at an affordable price. The T 748 offers features you'll find on higher-end NAD receivers, like a high-speed DSP for decoding of high def audio formats, the EARS surround mode for converting stereo sources and support for 3D at 1080p. NAD's new T 748 is shipping now to dealers. You can pick it up at an MSRP of $900. Source: ecousticsPosted Mon Aug 8, 2011 at 09:00 AM PDT by: -
'Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale' Blu-ray Features Added[teaser]Check out all the cool bonus features for the acclaimed Finnish horror film going down Blu-ray's chimney this October! [/teaser] As previously reported, Oscilloscope Laboratories says 'Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale' is coming to high-definition on October 25. The film was nominated for seven Jussi Awards and won for Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Editing, Best Music, Best Sound Design and only didn't win for Best Picture. Specs have yet to be revealed for the Blu-ray/DVD combo pack, but supplements will include: The two original short films that inspired the film: Rare Exports Inc. (2003) and Rare Exports - The Official Safety Instructions (2005); The Making of Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale featurette; Blood in The Snow featurette on the preliminary concept art; Animatics & computer effects video comparison; Behind the scenes production stills photo gallery; original Finnish theatrical trailer; and the Blu-ray exclusive feature-length film 'Santa Claus Conquers the Martians,' the 1964 cult classic starring Pia Zadora (1988's 'Hairspray'). Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $39.99. You can find the latest specs for 'Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under October 25.Posted Mon Aug 8, 2011 at 08:00 AM PDT by: -
Save $7 on 'Winnie the Pooh' Blu-ray at Amazon![teaser] Pre-order the latest adventure of the lovable bear and his friends at Amazon and get $7 worth of instant savings! [/teaser] In an early announcement to retailers, Disney/Buena Vista will soon be releasing 'Winnie the Pooh' (Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy Combo Pack) with a suggested list price of $44.99, currently priced at Amazon for $30.99. Also available will be a 'Winnie the Pooh (DVD/Blu-ray Combo Pack)' priced at $27.99. Amazon is also offering a $7 off coupon for the combo pack located just below the price for instant savings! You can find the latest specs for 'Winnie the Pooh' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where they are indexed under PENDING.Posted Mon Aug 8, 2011 at 07:00 AM PDT by: -
'The 10th Victim' Blu-ray Delayed[teaser]The cult film The New Yorker hailed as "an inventive, witty sci-fi extravaganza!" originally bound for Blu-ray this August has been delayed two weeks. [/teaser] As previously reported, Blu-ray was set to discover 'The 10th Victim' from Blue Underground on August 30, but now it won't be available until September 13. It is the 21st Century, and society's lust for violence is satisfied by "The Big Hunt," an international game of legalized murder. But when the sport's two top assassins (Marcello Mastroianni and Ursula Andress) are pitted against each other, they find that love is the most dangerous game of all. As the world watches, the hunt is on. Who will become 'The 10th Victim'? 'The 10th Victim' is the international cult classic whose wild action and sexy style has influenced a generation of movies, from 'The Running Man' to the 'Austin Powers' series. Now this outrageous satire has been newly remastered from the original negative and is presented here in groovy High Definition! The Blu-ray will feature 1080p video, DTS-HD Master Audio Mono soundtracks, and supplements include Marcello: A Sweet Life (2006) (102 Mins.) and a theatrical trailer. Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $29.98. You can find the latest specs for 'The 10th Victim' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's now indexed under September 13.Posted Mon Aug 8, 2011 at 06:00 AM PDT by: -
HDD Deal of the Week: 'WWII in HD' Blu-ray $13.99 at Amazon[teaser]This week's deal is the A&E World War II documentary on Blu-ray! [/teaser] The online retailer is now selling 'WWII in HD' for $13.99 (65% off suggested list price). Seventy years in the making. Three thousand hours of color footage no one knew existed. The first documentary to show World War II from the perspective of both sides in full, immersive HD color, the world premiere HISTORY series WWII in HD uses the diaries of soldiers who fought in the war’s biggest battles to create a personal, introspective and detailed look at life on and off the front lines. Though it was illegal for U.S. soldiers to carry diaries, many hid them away in their packs and recorded their experiences in detail. History buffs won't want to miss picking up this great 2-disc set for a great price today! The deal will run from now through August 13.Posted Sun Aug 7, 2011 at 07:28 AM PDT by: -
Bonus View Digest - August 5, 2011[teaser]Another week down and another load of Bonus View posts to cull through. This week we added another blogger – everyone welcome Wayne Rowe to the team! One of our bloggers took a bit of time off to add another tiny person to his family. Through all that though The Bonus View was able to keep you up to date with all the latest news, reviews, and recaps from around the high-def world.[/teaser] Blu-ray News This week Josh gave us the heads up on what we should look for on the Blu-ray shelves this week, along with an idea that maybe the Borders liquidation sale has finally come down to a price people wouldn't mind paying. Check out your local going-out-of-business Borders and see if you can score any good Blu-ray deals. Theatrical News Luke Hickman saw this week's movie releases and let us know if they were worth our time. Read reviews of 'The Change-Up' starring Ryan Reynolds and Jason Bateman, and see if the 'Planet of the Apes' prequel is worthy of your box office cash. Luke also told us a little bit about the new book by screenwriters Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant called Writing Movies for Fun and Profit: How We Made a Billion Dollars at the Box Office and You Can, Too! Now this seems like it will be pretty funny. Meanwhile, on the movie trailer front E had you covered with a discussion about trailers for 'In Time', 'Haywire', 'Sushi Girl', and 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'. Video Game News New blogger Wayne Rowe was brought on to cover the world of video games, among other topics. This week he delved into the always controversial topic of violent video games and discussed the Supreme Court's recent ruling on the subject. Dick Ward also covered the lackluster titles that were being released this week in the video game world. TV Recaps This week we had recaps for all your favorite summer shows. Take a gander at recaps for 'Alphas', 'True Blood', 'Burn Notice', 'Curb Your Enthusiasm', 'Haven', and 'Suits'. Special Features This week we saw quite a few special feature articles. The Weekend Roundtable and the Mid-Week Poll were there, but we also resurrected an old feature with Wayne Rowe called "One From the Vault." Here we take a look at rare, hard-to-find movies that are streaming on Netflix at the moment. This week Wayne takes a look at 'Zone Troopers'. Finally, our blogger Aaron Peck had his first kid over the weekend! A son. He wrote a short post about how he's going to introduce the world of film to him and how he'll hopefully love it just as much as he does. Thanks you for your continued support of High-Def Digest and The Bonus View. We promise to keep bringing you the best in news and opinion on everything hi-def! Have a great weekend!Posted Fri Aug 5, 2011 at 11:30 AM PDT by:
