The top news and charts for week ending February 4, 2008.
Image fights for BTP distribution agreement Redbox tripled kiosks in 2007, expands in Midwest HD DVD set-top player sales rebound |
Remembering El Cid Family members of El Cid filmmakers celebrated the film’s DVD release at a special screening at the ArcLight in Hollywood on Jan. 29. From l. to r., screenwriter Ben Barzman’s wife, Norma Barzman; director Anthony Mann’s daughters, Nina Mann and Toni Parra; Genius’ Michael Radiloff; composer Miklos Rozsa’s daughter, Juliet Rozsa; and producer Samuel Bronston’s son, Bill Bronston. Click for more industry photos. |
"THE GAME PLAN" leads Top DVD Renters Chart "THE GAME PLAN" leads Top DVD Sellers Chart "TRANSFORMERS" leads Top HD DVD Sellers Chart "SAW IV" leads Top Blu-ray Sellers Chart |
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SWEETING: No surrender |
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BETWEEN THE LINES: Time for spring cleaning? |
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RED STATE, BLUE STATE: Sony DADC doubles-up for Warner |
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DISC DISH: I Am Legend DVD, HD DVD, Blu-ray |
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DVDIALOG: Hey, it’s that guy Sam McMurray! |
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THE DOWN LOW: PBS goes to iTunes |
Netflix cooks up Dinner for Five exclusive
JAN. 31 | Online exclusive Netflix will co-produce the 50th episode of Dinner for Five with the Independent Film Channel, host Jon Favreau and Swingers co-star Vince Vaughn.
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Amazon fourth-quarter income doubles
JAN. 30 | Online exclusive: Amazon.com, the world’s largest online retailer, said fourth-quarter profit met analysts’ expectations as electronics and other merchandise surged during the holiday season.
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Movie Gallery’s employee incentive plan approved
JAN. 30 | Online exclusive: The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, N.C., granted Movie Gallery’s motion to offer incentive pay to employees in hundreds of additional stores it plans to close.
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Redbox tripled kiosks in 2007, expands in Midwest
JAN. 29 | No. 1. DVD rental kiosk operator Redbox is further expanding its presence in the Midwest by adding machines in HyVee and Buehler’s supermarkets.
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DEG plants first Green Media Summit
FEB. 1 | Online exclusive: The Digital Entertainment Group (DEG) will present its first Green Media Summit April 2 at the Luxe Hotel in Los Angeles. The one-day conference is intended to be the first in a series of events aimed at educating the studio and entertainment communities about environmentally friendly options for the delivery of digital entertainment media.
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Warner’s Otis to premiere at South by Southwest
FEB. 1 | Warner Home Video’s newest Raw Feed production, Otis, is expected to be the label’s most mainstream offering to date. To support it, the studio will premiere the movie at the South by Southwest Film Festival next month before a possible limited theatrical run.
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DVD vet Bersch broadens reach at Sony
FEB. 1 | Steven Bersch has been named president of Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group, replacing Peter Schlessel, who was recently promoted to president of worldwide affairs at Sony Pictures Entertainment. Going forward, Bersch will report to Schlessel.
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Image fights for BTP distribution agreement
JAN. 28 | UPDATED: With the Image Entertainment-BTP Acquisition Group merger faltering, Image is trying to enforce an output agreement for distribution of BTP’s Capitol Films and ThinkFilm product.
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Gaiam launches Wellness product line
JAN. 31 | Online exclusive: Fitness lifestyle specialist Gaiam is launching a new product line, Gaiam Wellness. The new category will hold Gaiam’s DVDs, books and other merchandise that emphasize a natural approach to health and wellness, covering such subjects as nutrition, meditation and exercise.
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Henson Co., Viz Media offer shows for download
JAN. 28 | Online exclusive: More indie suppliers are making download deals, with the Jim Henson Company offering titles on iTunes and Viz Media teaming with Amazon Unbox.
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Rambo defeated by Spartans
JAN. 28 | VARIETY BOX OFFICE REPORT: One movie about ancient warriors inched out another at the box office this weekend, as Meet the Spartans came in just ahead of Rambo. Revival of Rambo proved a success, grossing $18.2 million from 2,751 locations.
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Blu-ray players behind on interactivity
FEB. 1 | Studios are promising their most elite Blu-ray Discs to date in 2008, but not all available and upcoming BD devices can playback the advanced features.
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HD DVD set-top player sales rebound
JAN. 29 | UPDATED: Down but not out, HD DVD backers will promote the format during the Super Bowl and at the Sundance Film Festival as price cuts bolstered player sales in January.
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Sonic drops HD DVD on authoring product
JAN. 30 | Sonic Solutions is ending sales of its Scenarist authoring product for HD DVD in order to streamline operations to emphasize Blu-ray Disc and digital distribution services.
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New EA games Simpsons, Rock Band play well
FEB. 1 | FROM VARIETY: Electronics Arts disclosed that The Simpsons Game, its first title under a multi-year deal with Fox, sold 4 million units worldwide from its October launch through the end of 2007. While not as big as mega-hits such as Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4, it’s a healthy debut that makes it certain a sequel will be coming soon.
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PlayStation 3 sales lift Sony earnings
JAN. 31 | Online exclusive: Boosted by surging PlayStation 3 strength, Sony reported earnings gains for its 2008 fiscal third quarter. PS3 hardware sales jumped by 3.24 million units over the prior 2007 fiscal third quarter. That represented the biggest sales increase of Sony’s game consoles, topping the 1.35 million unit loss for the PlayStation 2 and 1.05 million unit rise for the PlayStation Portable.
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Netflix cooks up Dinner for Five exclusive
JAN. 31 | Online exclusive: Netflix will co-produce the 50th episode of Dinner for Five with the Independent Film Channel, host Jon Favreau and Swingers co-star Vince Vaughn.
Cilck for Full Story
Henson Co., Viz Media offer shows for download
JAN. 28 | Online exclusive More indie suppliers are making download deals, with the Jim Henson Company offering titles on iTunes and Viz Media teaming with Amazon Unbox.
Click for Full Story
TiVo stock gets 29% bump
FEB. 1 | FROM VARIETY: TiVo stock got a 29% boost on after a federal appeals court ruled in its favor in an ongoing patent dispute with Dish Network.
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HD DVD set-top player sales rebound
JAN. 29 | UPDATED: Down but not out, HD DVD backers will promote the format during the Super Bowl and at the Sundance Film Festival as price cuts bolstered player sales in January.
Click for Full Story
Sonic drops HD DVD on authoring product
JAN. 30 | Sonic Solutions is ending sales of its Scenarist authoring product for HD DVD in order to streamline operations to emphasize Blu-ray Disc and digital distribution services.
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