Marks Monday Memo (late)....
In full here: digitaltelevision.com
- DVD news:
- Sales to U.S. dealers of DVD players for the first 37 weeks of
1999 grew 324% over the same period in 1998. Sales all the way through to consumers were 154,000 in August, according to NPD Intelect. In the same month, 83 LaserDisc players were sold.
- Blockbuster formally announced last week its plan to rent DVDs in roughly 3,800 stores nationwide (and another 1,000 outside the U.S.). "In preemptive strike," according to a report in today's Consumer Electronics newsletter, "online DVD rental retailer NetFlix last week announced elimination of late fees and due dates...." Why does this remind me of the old Mad magazine bit about magazines showering subscribers with gifts and cash to get them to renew?
- Pioneer's new tiny portable ($650) DVD player (PDV-10-SW) is
called "Happy Cinema."
- Consumer DVD-Video recorders based on DVD-RAM are to be developed by Hitachi, Matsushita, and Toshiba working together, according to a report in today's Consumer Electronics newsletter.
- Circuit City lowered the price of RCA's RC5231 DVD player from
$349 to $199 but RAISED the price of an Oritron (China-made) DVD player from $199 to $229. The latter was considered so unusual a move that today's Consumer Electronics newsletter headlined the story "Man bites dog."
- Warner Home Video says 780,000 DVD copies of "The Matrix" were
sold to consumers in the first week of its release.
- Warner Home Video, Toshiba, Sony, Philips, Matsushita, and Dolby will all receive Emmy awards Monday night for the development of DVD.
- How many movies can YOU watch non-stop? Escient plans to soon
deliver a 200-DVD changer at $5,000. |
