Of Blu-ray, PlayStation 3, and Movies

People are awaiting the release of Sony’s PlayStation 3 mostly because of the competition it ushers in to the next-gen console wars; but how many of those anticipating the PS3’s release are also excited about the Blu-ray technology it promises? Senior Vice President of market management for Warner Home Video Stephen Nickerson doubts that the numbers won’t be too impressive.

Just like all major studios (with the exception of Universal Studios), Warner Brothers can’t wait to see how the next-gen format war plays out in the marketplace and has decided to publish titles both on HD-DVD and Blu-ray. Nickerson however is not sure just how long it will take for studios to realize that one format is better than the other.

With the upcoming debut of Blu-ray-equipped PS3s in November, how big is the possibility that HD-DVD players will be overpowered? Nickerson thinks chances are slim. He pointed out that hardcore gamers – those who are willing to stand in line at the wee hours of the morning just to be the first to get their hands on the latest gaming console – won’t necessarily be interested in playing movies in their PS3s. Case in point: PlayStation2. As Nickerson pointed out, when gaming fans bought their PS2s, most of them already owned a DVD player and used their consoles mainly for game enjoyment.

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People are awaiting the release of Sony’s PlayStation 3 mostly because of the competition it ushers in to the next-gen console wars; but how many of those anticipating the PS3’s release are also excited about the Blu-ray technology it promises? Senior Vice President of market management for Warner Home Video Stephen Nickerson doubts that the numbers won’t be too impressive.

Just like all major studios (with the exception of Universal Studios), Warner Brothers can’t wait to see how the next-gen format war plays out in the marketplace and has decided to publish titles both on HD-DVD and Blu-ray. Nickerson however is not sure just how long it will take for studios to realize that one format is better than the other.

With the upcoming debut of Blu-ray-equipped PS3s in November, how big is the possibility that HD-DVD players will be overpowered? Nickerson thinks chances are slim. He pointed out that hardcore gamers – those who are willing to stand in line at the wee hours of the morning just to be the first to get their hands on the latest gaming console – won’t necessarily be interested in playing movies in their PS3s. Case in point: PlayStation2. As Nickerson pointed out, when gaming fans bought their PS2s, most of them already owned a DVD player and used their consoles mainly for game enjoyment.

But the times are definitely different. This time out the PS3 will be out a few months after the Blu-ray player’s launch. And with the big difference between the pricing – first Blu-ray players at almost a thousand, and the PS3 at half the price – there is a big possibility that households wanting to upgrade to next-gen will prefer the PS3 so as to hit two birds with one stone: a next-gen console and movie player all in one package. Besides, Sony is really banking on their next-gen console to spear Blu-ray to the top of the format wars and will probably promote the PS3 as a ‘great gaming and movie machine’.

Nickerson is deadset on playing the devil’s advocate. He cited how Sony failed to usher in a new successful format with the PSP’s UMD movies. Although the UMD format started out to be promising, PSP owners’ interest for it waned with the release of more and more games. This may be due to the high price of movies but it can also be admitted that people buy a PSP mainly as a gaming – and not as a portable movie – device.

The senior vice president said it best when he said that Sony and the movie studios should know how to manage expectations. As much as there’s a big probability of Blu-ray succeeding with PS3, nobody can really say with finality – as much as nobody can also say with finality that Sony is going down with this new technology. Let’s all give Sony a break, sit back, and wait until it actually launches Blu-ray players and PS3s. By then we won’t have to make speculations.