Tuesday, July 3rd 2007
Amazon.com and Microsoft Team Up to Help HD DVD Format
Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. today announced the 1,000 HD DVD Indies Project, designed to lower the barriers to entry for filmmakers to produce and distribute movies in the HD DVD format through the innovative manufacturing-on-demand technology of CustomFlix, a part of an Amazon group of companies. Jointly sponsored by Amazon and Microsoft, the project will provide free authoring and setup services for up to 1,000 selected indie titles.
"This collaboration with Microsoft is a great opportunity for independent filmmakers to reach Amazon customers with their films via the HD DVD format," said Peter Faricy, vice president of music and movies at Amazon.com. "By working together with Microsoft and leveraging the proven CustomFlix DVD on Demand model, we can lower the barriers to entry for independent filmmakers and dramatically increase the selection we offer our customers."
The project will be spearheaded by CustomFlix, which will bring as many as 1,000 feature-length independent films to Amazon customers using the CustomFlix DVD on Demand technology, which produces and ships DVDs only as they are ordered. This model greatly improves the cost structure for independent filmmakers by eliminating the need for costly inventory.
"From a technical standpoint, we found that the HD DVD format fits our business model perfectly," said Dana LoPiccolo-Giles, co-founder and managing director of CustomFlix. "With retail shelf space at a premium, our model eliminates the risk of carrying inventory and immediately expands the number of great HD DVD titles available to consumers."
"Programs like this one from Amazon lower barriers to entry for independent artists and provide audiences with increased access to high-quality, high-definition content," said Christian Vesper, senior vice president of programming, acquisitions and scheduling for Sundance Channel.
Sundance Channel will be reviewing the high-definition features for potential broadcast on the network as well as making its own HD original eco-series, "Big Ideas for a Small Planet," available for purchase through Amazon's HD DVD program.
"Amazon's participation in this project will be a major benefit to independent filmmakers wanting to break into the high-definition market segment," said Amir Majidimehr, corporate vice president for the Consumer Media Technology Group at Microsoft. "The use of Microsoft technology and authoring expertise will ensure that all the HD DVD titles offered by Amazon have impeccable quality, thanks to the VC-1 codec and innovative interactive scenarios with HDi."
Amazon.com offers a broad and growing selection of HD televisions, players and DVDs through its HD DVD store. Filmmakers interested in submitting their HD DVD work for consideration as part of the 1,000 HD DVD Indies Project can go to www.customflix.com/hddvdindies.
Source:
Microsoft
"This collaboration with Microsoft is a great opportunity for independent filmmakers to reach Amazon customers with their films via the HD DVD format," said Peter Faricy, vice president of music and movies at Amazon.com. "By working together with Microsoft and leveraging the proven CustomFlix DVD on Demand model, we can lower the barriers to entry for independent filmmakers and dramatically increase the selection we offer our customers."
The project will be spearheaded by CustomFlix, which will bring as many as 1,000 feature-length independent films to Amazon customers using the CustomFlix DVD on Demand technology, which produces and ships DVDs only as they are ordered. This model greatly improves the cost structure for independent filmmakers by eliminating the need for costly inventory.
"From a technical standpoint, we found that the HD DVD format fits our business model perfectly," said Dana LoPiccolo-Giles, co-founder and managing director of CustomFlix. "With retail shelf space at a premium, our model eliminates the risk of carrying inventory and immediately expands the number of great HD DVD titles available to consumers."
"Programs like this one from Amazon lower barriers to entry for independent artists and provide audiences with increased access to high-quality, high-definition content," said Christian Vesper, senior vice president of programming, acquisitions and scheduling for Sundance Channel.
Sundance Channel will be reviewing the high-definition features for potential broadcast on the network as well as making its own HD original eco-series, "Big Ideas for a Small Planet," available for purchase through Amazon's HD DVD program.
"Amazon's participation in this project will be a major benefit to independent filmmakers wanting to break into the high-definition market segment," said Amir Majidimehr, corporate vice president for the Consumer Media Technology Group at Microsoft. "The use of Microsoft technology and authoring expertise will ensure that all the HD DVD titles offered by Amazon have impeccable quality, thanks to the VC-1 codec and innovative interactive scenarios with HDi."
Amazon.com offers a broad and growing selection of HD televisions, players and DVDs through its HD DVD store. Filmmakers interested in submitting their HD DVD work for consideration as part of the 1,000 HD DVD Indies Project can go to www.customflix.com/hddvdindies.
8 Comments on Amazon.com and Microsoft Team Up to Help HD DVD Format
I want a format that is futureproofed.
Then again, both discs can handle a full feature 1080P 7.1 24/96K movie? Now you are down to how much extra crap you want to buy when you just want a movie.
Sony owns Sony Pictures. So if blu-ray wins, sony could charge all other film studios loads of money to manufact discs. As a result, it would be more expensive to create a movie, and film makers would be forced to join with sony pictures to keep the budget lower.
Toshiba doesn't make movies and wouldn't benifit from being dicks to american movie studios. HD DVD FTW.
Perhaps a long film like LOTR or the like would need it to be dual sided (something that Blu-ray isn't doing) but who sits non stop through a movie of almost four hours? No one.
So in all reality it has as much useable non bullshit space as does Blew-ray. Unless again sitting for 5 hours to get every last blooper and outtake of Star Wars is important to you. Plus a much more user friendly format, no reigions, no extra DRM crap, etc...
I disagree on the 720p comment. Not a single one of my BD or HD-DVD movies are 720p, and none of them are Pixar, either.
HD-DVD also has drm restrictions, tho admittedly not as bad as BluRay.
Either way, I see this as a good thing for indie filmakers and consumers alike.