Why is Disney so slow in releasing its classics?

I've been able to download high-definition versions of many of Walt
Disney's animated classics on Xbox Live Marketplace. Granted, these
are not 1080p (or even full bitrate 720p) versions but they're still
high-definition and they're still watchable right now by anyone who
owns an Xbox 360.

It just seems strange that with an obvious need to attract more
consumers to Blu-Ray, big studios like Disney, Fox and MGM have been
so slow to release their big catalog tentpole franchises which would
surely provide incentive for movie fans to make the transition to high-
definition.

If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that) on Xbox
Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?

The alMIGHTY N

The alMIGHTY N wrote:
>
> If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
> Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that)

(Trust me: You DO. A LOT more than the Aristocats or Oliver & Co...
I don't know what the Aladdin/Mermaid boys have got for directing movies
over all the others at the studio, but bottle it up send a case of it
over to Dreamworks, stat.)

> on Xbox
> Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
> why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?

Mostly, it's that they haven't been REMASTERED in HD yet--
Also, that little thing called the Vault, that SNL likes to joke
about...Now that every movie has already been released in SD over the
last seven years, they need an excuse for starting the sales cycle over
and event-selling them again, and, why, look!

Derek Janssen

Derek Janssen

"The alMIGHTY N" sez:

> I've been able to download high-definition versions of many of Walt
> Disney's animated classics on Xbox Live Marketplace. Granted, these
> are not 1080p (or even full bitrate 720p) versions but they're still
> high-definition and they're still watchable right now by anyone who
> owns an Xbox 360.

That's........... great. Most people who watch Disney movies however simply
buy them at just about any store within walking distance of their homes and
in often superior quality on regular old dvds. Or watch and record them off
cable or satellite tv. Paying to download mediocre quality movies onto a
over-expensive, poorly designed gaming console is a tiny fraction of the
currently tiny niche market of HD-dvd/Blu-ray dvd.

> It just seems strange that with an obvious need to attract more
> consumers to Blu-Ray, big studios like Disney, Fox and MGM have been
> so slow to release their big catalog tentpole franchises which would
> surely provide incentive for movie fans to make the transition to high-
> definition.

You mean like Sleeping Beauty and Finding Nemo along with dozens of other
animated and live action titles?

http://www.digitalbits.com/#hdspin

> If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
> Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that) on Xbox
> Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
> why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?

Uhhh, I wouldn't call the above titles anything near the upper tier of
Disney's animated films. Is Fantasia or Sleeping Beauty among those titles?
No? Well, I can watch Fantasia on dvd as well as Sleeping Beauty and soon
on blu-ray for SB. And Cars and Ratatouille look pretty amazing on blu-ray.
How do those movies compare to the downloadable XBox versions?

With any luck, you can soon pay to download old episodes of Gilligan's
Island for your wonderful XBox.

T.B.

T.B.

On Mon, 7 Jan 2008 12:28:49 -0800 (PST), The alMIGHTY N
<> wrote:

>I've been able to download high-definition versions of many of Walt
>Disney's animated classics on Xbox Live Marketplace. Granted, these
>are not 1080p (or even full bitrate 720p) versions but they're still
>high-definition and they're still watchable right now by anyone who
>owns an Xbox 360.
>
>It just seems strange that with an obvious need to attract more
>consumers to Blu-Ray, big studios like Disney, Fox and MGM have been
>so slow to release their big catalog tentpole franchises which would
>surely provide incentive for movie fans to make the transition to high-
>definition.
>
>If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
>Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that) on Xbox
>Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
>why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?


Well, I've waiting long enough for "Song of the South," and finally
bought an underground DVD at a flea market. I would gladly buy an
official Disney release, but they won't do it.

Phisherman

On Jan 7, 3:42 pm, Derek Janssen <ejan...@nospam.verizon.net> wrote:
> The alMIGHTY N wrote:
>
> > If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
> > Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that)
>
> (Trust me: You DO. A LOT more than the Aristocats or Oliver & Co...
> I don't know what the Aladdin/Mermaid boys have got for directing movies
> over all the others at the studio, but bottle it up send a case of it
> over to Dreamworks, stat.)
>
> > on Xbox
> > Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
> > why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?
>
> Mostly, it's that they haven't been REMASTERED in HD yet--
> Also, that little thing called the Vault, that SNL likes to joke
> about...Now that every movie has already been released in SD over the
> last seven years, they need an excuse for starting the sales cycle over
> and event-selling them again, and, why, look!
>
> Derek Janssen
> ejan...@verizon.net

So basically they're in the correct resolution for HD but not
necessarily at the right bit rate?

The alMIGHTY N

On Jan 7, 4:55 pm, "T.B." <Partyslam...@socal.rr.com> wrote:
> "The alMIGHTY N" sez:
>
> > I've been able to download high-definition versions of many of Walt
> > Disney's animated classics on Xbox Live Marketplace. Granted, these
> > are not 1080p (or even full bitrate 720p) versions but they're still
> > high-definition and they're still watchable right now by anyone who
> > owns an Xbox 360.
>
> That's........... great. Most people who watch Disney movies however simply
> buy them at just about any store within walking distance of their homes and
> in often superior quality on regular old dvds. Or watch and record them off
> cable or satellite tv. Paying to download mediocre quality movies onto a
> over-expensive, poorly designed gaming console is a tiny fraction of the
> currently tiny niche market of HD-dvd/Blu-ray dvd.

The Disney animated classics available for download on Xbox Live
Marketplace are of much better quality than DVD. They're marked as HD
although Derek Janssen's observation that they may have not been truly
remastered for HD makes me question just how valid that marking can
be.

I did watch one movie and it looked about as good as anything I've
seen on broadcast HDTV. Granted, that's not as good as Blu-Ray or HD-
DVD but it's still better than DVD.

> > It just seems strange that with an obvious need to attract more
> > consumers to Blu-Ray, big studios like Disney, Fox and MGM have been
> > so slow to release their big catalog tentpole franchises which would
> > surely provide incentive for movie fans to make the transition to high-
> > definition.
>
> You mean like Sleeping Beauty and Finding Nemo along with dozens of other
> animated and live action titles?

Most of the movies that any high-def studio have released are more
recent fare. You don't see too many of the big tentpole franchises
right now although some are making their way to consumers in 2008.
Even the Die Hard movies didn't come out until the end of 2007... you
would figure that would be a no-brainer for Blu-Ray early on.

Instead, we get a lot of crap that most people don't even know is
Disney in the first place (the name Disney tends to bring up images of
deer, mice and princesses).

Sleeping Beauty and Finding Nemo aren't going to hit the shelves until
late 2008, about 2 1/2 years after Blu-Ray's introduction. Yes, I
remember that they were much slower with DVD, but Disney was on board
with Blu-Ray from the get go as opposed to their conflict with DVD
early on.

My point was that releasing bigger titles earlier would have helped
consumer adoption. People aren't likely to buy into the formats NOW
for movies that are coming almost a year down the line. People are
more likely to just wait until the movies they really want to watch
are actually available to purchase.

> http://www.digitalbits.com/#hdspin
>
> > If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
> > Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that) on Xbox
> > Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
> > why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?
>
> Uhhh, I wouldn't call the above titles anything near the upper tier of
> Disney's animated films.

101 Dalmations is one of Disney's most beloved classics.

I believe they also had The Jungle Book, Peter Pan, Pinnocchio, and a
couple other more well-known Disney classics. They definitely had The
Little Mermaid up there and I believe some of the crappy Lion King
sequels. I think Aladdin was up at one point as well.

> Is Fantasia or Sleeping Beauty among those titles?

101 Dalmations is a lot more popular than Fantasia and Sleeping
Beauty. Sleeping Beauty is the least popular of the "princess" movies.

In any case, my point is that Disney hasn't even released what you
consider lower-tier Disney classics to Blu-Ray. Most Disney classics
are surefire hits that would bring a lot of people into the fold. The
studios keep complaining about low consumer adoption and drastically
reduced home video spending... releasing big movies is THE best way to
get those numbers right back up.

> No? Well, I can watch Fantasia on dvd as well as Sleeping Beauty and soon
> on blu-ray for SB. And Cars and Ratatouille look pretty amazing on blu-ray.
> How do those movies compare to the downloadable XBox versions?
>
> With any luck, you can soon pay to download old episodes of Gilligan's
> Island for your wonderful XBox.
>
> T.B.

I was wondering what your pretentious jackass confrontational attitude
was all about. Do you really think my intent was to boast about the
Xbox service or talk down on Blu-Ray?

My intent was simply to question why Disney would have allowed HD
versions (even lower quality HD versions) of their Disney classics to
proliferate across Xbox Live Marketplace before they put them out on
Blu-Ray...

And why the studios keep complaining about people not adopting high-
def fast enough while at the same time holding back their bigger
franchises. The newsflash for the studios is that consumer "confusion"
pales in comparison to "lack of movies people actually want to see" as
a roadblock for fast adoption.

Really... who needs to see The Breakup or Talladega Nights in high-
def? Disney at least put out the Pirates trilogy on Blu-Ray, but what
people really expect from Disney are movies like The Lion King, The
Little Mermaid, Snow White, etc.

The alMIGHTY N

On Jan 7, 6:37 pm, Phisherman <no...@nobody.com> wrote:
> On Mon, 7 Jan 2008 12:28:49 -0800 (PST), The alMIGHTY N
>
>
>
> <natle...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> >I've been able to download high-definition versions of many of Walt
> >Disney's animated classics on Xbox Live Marketplace. Granted, these
> >are not 1080p (or even full bitrate 720p) versions but they're still
> >high-definition and they're still watchable right now by anyone who
> >owns an Xbox 360.
>
> >It just seems strange that with an obvious need to attract more
> >consumers to Blu-Ray, big studios like Disney, Fox and MGM have been
> >so slow to release their big catalog tentpole franchises which would
> >surely provide incentive for movie fans to make the transition to high-
> >definition.
>
> >If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
> >Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that) on Xbox
> >Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
> >why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?
>
> Well, I've waiting long enough for "Song of the South," and finally
> bought an underground DVD at a flea market. I would gladly buy an
> official Disney release, but they won't do it.

I don't think Disney wants to open up *that* can of worms...

The alMIGHTY N

In article <h9wgj.3896$O97.3427@trndny01>, Derek Janssen <> wrote:
>The alMIGHTY N wrote:
>>
>> If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
>> Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that)
>
>(Trust me: You DO. A LOT more than the Aristocats or Oliver & Co...
>I don't know what the Aladdin/Mermaid boys have got for directing movies
>over all the others at the studio, but bottle it up send a case of it
>over to Dreamworks, stat.)
>
>> on Xbox
>> Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
>> why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?
>
>Mostly, it's that they haven't been REMASTERED in HD yet--
>Also, that little thing called the Vault, that SNL likes to joke
>about...Now that every movie has already been released in SD over the
>last seven years, they need an excuse for starting the sales cycle over
>and event-selling them again, and, why, look!
>
>Derek Janssen
>

Give me the Goddamn "Song of The South" in Hi Def Disney!!!!!!!

GMAN

In article <>, wrote:
>On Mon, 7 Jan 2008 12:28:49 -0800 (PST), The alMIGHTY N
><> wrote:
>
>>I've been able to download high-definition versions of many of Walt
>>Disney's animated classics on Xbox Live Marketplace. Granted, these
>>are not 1080p (or even full bitrate 720p) versions but they're still
>>high-definition and they're still watchable right now by anyone who
>>owns an Xbox 360.
>>
>>It just seems strange that with an obvious need to attract more
>>consumers to Blu-Ray, big studios like Disney, Fox and MGM have been
>>so slow to release their big catalog tentpole franchises which would
>>surely provide incentive for movie fans to make the transition to high-
>>definition.
>>
>>If I can watch The Aristocats, Oliver and Company, 101 Dalmations, and
>>Treasure Planet (not that I would ever want to watch that) on Xbox
>>Live Marketplace in HD (albeit more to the lower end of the spectrum),
>>why can't I watch those movies on Blu-Ray on my Playstation 3?
>
>
>Well, I've waiting long enough for "Song of the South," and finally
>bought an underground DVD at a flea market. I would gladly buy an
>official Disney release, but they won't do it.


I'll be right in the line with you to buy that one. I too bought a pirated
copy from ebay, but would love to have an original. If Gone with the Wind can
be on DVD, why cant a movie like Song of The South?

GMAN

The alMIGHTY N wrote:
> In any case, my point is that Disney hasn't even released what you
> consider lower-tier Disney classics to Blu-Ray. Most Disney classics
> are surefire hits that would bring a lot of people into the fold. The
> studios keep complaining about low consumer adoption and drastically
> reduced home video spending... releasing big movies is THE best way to
> get those numbers right back up.

I'm not convinced. A great many people have bitched that they will not
replace their current SD DVD library for one of the HD formats,
especially with upconverting technology, so I think the strategy of
releasing newer titles first was sound.

IOW, people are more likely to buy a new format if they don't already
have it on a format they consider acceptable. At least until they get
hooked into the new format.

Tarkus