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( EW)(SIRIUS-PUBLISHING) MovieCD wows consumers; Sales of movies on
CD-ROM soars -- smashing Sirius' expectations
Entertainment/High-Tech Editors
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--March 27, 1997--The
question of who would want to watch a movie on their computer has
been answered.
"Everyone," according to Sirius' Chief Executive Officer Richard
Gnant.
Gnant's comments were based on initial MovieCD(TM) sell-through
data supplied by several national retail chains. "Customers are
calling MovieCD the next best thing to having a VCR on your
computer," added Gnant.
Sirius Publishing's first 50 MovieCD titles arrived at retail
outlets in late February. MovieCD discs delivers VHS quality,
full-screen, full-motion video on computer screens without the use of
MPEG or other computer hardware peripherals. Over 500 MovieCD titles
are targeted for release this year with retail prices ranging from
$9.95 to $19.95.
MovieCD plays on the existing installed base of over 30 million
CD-ROM equipped computers in the United States. "Consumers already
have CD-ROM capability and they don't need to purchase new machines
or additional computer hardware or software for their PCs to play
MovieCD's," Gnant added.
Among the successes have been the nationwide computer specialty
chain, Computer City. Within hours of receiving their first
shipment, stores reported brisk activity, selling thousands of
MovieCD titles during the first weeks and placing reorders for more
titles. "We want consumers to know that Computer City is their
headquarters for all the MovieCD titles," said Computer City's Vice
President of Merchandising Dick Donnelly.
The mall-based Electronic Boutique chain reports similar success.
"The MovieCD product hit our stores with a bang as customers were
literally purchasing them before our employees were able to put them
on the shelves," said Jerry Madaio, senior buyer at Electronic
Boutique. "It drew crowds. As good as the sales were during the
first week, sales improved by over 50 percent the second week! I see
MovieCD as a product category that is growing very rapidly," he
concluded.
"The availability of top notch movies and other programs are
driving consumers into a frenzy," said Michael Weiss, Sirius' Vice
President, Entertainment. "Many customers are purchasing multiple
titles and our website, moviecd.com has received over
980,000 hits already.
"Their comments have been wonderful with the consensus heralding
MovieCD as the very best performing software of it's kind. Consumers
claim that they are using MovieCD in airplanes, at work, and at
school. Moms are even using MovieCD to acclimate their younger
children to computers," Weiss said.
The No. 1 selling title to date is New Line Cinema's feature
film Mortal Kombat. Other strong performers include the movies
Seven, Dumb & Dumber, The Mask, Poison Ivy, Friday, and computer
animation title, Beyond The Mind's Eye. "We are signing new titles
and adding more retailers rapidly," added Weiss.
--30--kjs/ix*
CONTACT: Sirius Publishing Public Relations, Scottsdale
Julia Hutton, 602/951-3288; Fax: 602/951-3884
jhutton@siriuspub.com
KEYWORD: ARIZONA
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: COMPUTERS/ELECTRONICS COMED ENTERTAINMENT
RETAIL PRODUCT INTERACTIVE/MULTIMEDIA/INTERNET
URL: moviecd.com
REPEATS: New York 212-752-9600 or 800-221-2462; Boston 617-236-4266 or
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