CWIPPERMAN
<font color=FF99FF>You don't have to be clever and
- Joined
- Jul 24, 2002
Self-destructing DVDs to debut
By ROBERT W. BUTLER
The Kansas City Star
Going to the video rental store on Friday night to pick movies for the weekend: Fun.
Scrambling Monday to return those videos to beat a late fee: A royal pain.
For those who typically rent two movies, end up watching just one and paying late fees on both, the folks at Walt Disney have an intriguing proposition.
Beginning Tuesday in Kansas City and in three other cities, Disney will test market DVDs that, once freed from their airtight packages, can be played for at least 48 hours before self-destructing.
They're sort of like the self-destructing cassette tapes from the Mission Impossible TV series, only without the smoke and fire.
These EZ-Ds have the potential to launch a major shift in America's home entertainment options.
What I envision, said Art LeBlanc, president of Flexplay, the firm that developed the new technology, is people keeping a stack of maybe six EZ-Ds by the DVD player. They don't open them until they're ready to watch them, or until friends come over.
Once the package has been opened, they have at least 48 hours
and sometimes up to 72 hours to view the film as many times as they like.
At some time after 48 hours of exposure to the atmosphere, the EZ-D will refuse to boot up on the DVD player. The bottom side of the disc, which is bright red when removed from its plastic pouch, will turn black. That's the sign that its playing hours are over.
There are really several different DVD markets, said Dan Silverberg, director of new business development for Buena Vista Home Entertainment. He and LeBlanc visited Kansas City on Thursday to discuss the project.
The people who want to buy a copy of Monsters, Inc.' don't want it for just 48 hours. They want to keep it and watch it forever.
Last year Monsters, Inc. and the first Harry Potter movie were among the biggest sellers on DVD. But they didn't even make the Top 50 in DVD rentals; that list was topped by the Michael Douglas thriller Don't Say A Word.
The prime market for EZ-Ds, Silverberg said, are those people who have given up on renting videos and DVDs because of the hassles of returning the disc and paying a late fee.
They're often too busy to even watch what they've rented.
For the most part, this is an adult audience, he said, which is why you won't find any cartoon classics in EZ-D format.
What you will find are the star-driven contemporary films from Disney, Touchstone and Miramax aimed at grown-ups.
The first batch of EZ-D titles include Salma Hayek in Frida, Mel Gibson in Signs, Al Pacino and Colin Farrell in The Recruit, Edward Norton in The 25th Hour, Cate Blanchett in Heaven, Rob Schneider in The Hot Chick, the sci-fi entry Equilibrium and the Australian hit Rabbit-Proof Fence.
EZ-Ds won't be sold at every video store. Industry giant Blockbuster has taken a wait-and-see attitude toward the new technology. The Movie Gallery, Sam Goody and Suncoast Video will carry them.
But odds are you'll first encounter this new format at a Dillon's grocery store, a Kwik Shop, the Nebraska Furniture Mart, a Phillips 66 station, Toys R Us or Walgreen's Drugs. The EZ-D will appeal to the impulse-buying tendencies of casual movie fans.
Also, EZ-D versions of movies probably will remain on the shelves for only a few weeks before being replaced by new titles. ( Even if they remain sealed in their packages, EZ-Ds will turn black after a year or so.)
How much will it cost? That's up to individual retailers. Silverberg estimates that most EZ-Ds will be priced in the $5 to $7 range.
That's nearly twice what it costs to rent a film, but the key here is convenience and avoiding late fees. Last year American consumers spent $8 billion to rent DVDs and VHS tapes and paid an additional $1.6 billion in late fees. That means nearly 12 percent of a store's income comes from late fees.
The downside of the EZ-D is that at the end of 48 hours, the consumer is left with a useless plastic disc that might just end up in the landfill. Most recycling firms lack the technology to extract the metal interior from a disc's plastic shell.
But on the front of each EZ-D is printed the address of GreenDisk Services in Columbia. Users are encouraged to save their spent EZ-D discs and send them to GreenDisk, which can recycle the discs. Through its Web site, greendisk.com, GreenDisk will even provide customers with pre-paid mailing envelopes in which to return the used discs.
So far only Disney has joined the EZ-D bandwagon., although LeBlanc said he's had talks with other major studios who are watching what happens in the test markets besides Kansas City the discs are going on sale in Charleston, S.C.; Peoria, Ill.; and Austin, Texas.
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Original Article is here: http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/6695828.htm
By ROBERT W. BUTLER
The Kansas City Star
Going to the video rental store on Friday night to pick movies for the weekend: Fun.
Scrambling Monday to return those videos to beat a late fee: A royal pain.
For those who typically rent two movies, end up watching just one and paying late fees on both, the folks at Walt Disney have an intriguing proposition.
Beginning Tuesday in Kansas City and in three other cities, Disney will test market DVDs that, once freed from their airtight packages, can be played for at least 48 hours before self-destructing.
They're sort of like the self-destructing cassette tapes from the Mission Impossible TV series, only without the smoke and fire.
These EZ-Ds have the potential to launch a major shift in America's home entertainment options.
What I envision, said Art LeBlanc, president of Flexplay, the firm that developed the new technology, is people keeping a stack of maybe six EZ-Ds by the DVD player. They don't open them until they're ready to watch them, or until friends come over.
Once the package has been opened, they have at least 48 hours
and sometimes up to 72 hours to view the film as many times as they like.
At some time after 48 hours of exposure to the atmosphere, the EZ-D will refuse to boot up on the DVD player. The bottom side of the disc, which is bright red when removed from its plastic pouch, will turn black. That's the sign that its playing hours are over.
There are really several different DVD markets, said Dan Silverberg, director of new business development for Buena Vista Home Entertainment. He and LeBlanc visited Kansas City on Thursday to discuss the project.
The people who want to buy a copy of Monsters, Inc.' don't want it for just 48 hours. They want to keep it and watch it forever.
Last year Monsters, Inc. and the first Harry Potter movie were among the biggest sellers on DVD. But they didn't even make the Top 50 in DVD rentals; that list was topped by the Michael Douglas thriller Don't Say A Word.
The prime market for EZ-Ds, Silverberg said, are those people who have given up on renting videos and DVDs because of the hassles of returning the disc and paying a late fee.
They're often too busy to even watch what they've rented.
For the most part, this is an adult audience, he said, which is why you won't find any cartoon classics in EZ-D format.
What you will find are the star-driven contemporary films from Disney, Touchstone and Miramax aimed at grown-ups.
The first batch of EZ-D titles include Salma Hayek in Frida, Mel Gibson in Signs, Al Pacino and Colin Farrell in The Recruit, Edward Norton in The 25th Hour, Cate Blanchett in Heaven, Rob Schneider in The Hot Chick, the sci-fi entry Equilibrium and the Australian hit Rabbit-Proof Fence.
EZ-Ds won't be sold at every video store. Industry giant Blockbuster has taken a wait-and-see attitude toward the new technology. The Movie Gallery, Sam Goody and Suncoast Video will carry them.
But odds are you'll first encounter this new format at a Dillon's grocery store, a Kwik Shop, the Nebraska Furniture Mart, a Phillips 66 station, Toys R Us or Walgreen's Drugs. The EZ-D will appeal to the impulse-buying tendencies of casual movie fans.
Also, EZ-D versions of movies probably will remain on the shelves for only a few weeks before being replaced by new titles. ( Even if they remain sealed in their packages, EZ-Ds will turn black after a year or so.)
How much will it cost? That's up to individual retailers. Silverberg estimates that most EZ-Ds will be priced in the $5 to $7 range.
That's nearly twice what it costs to rent a film, but the key here is convenience and avoiding late fees. Last year American consumers spent $8 billion to rent DVDs and VHS tapes and paid an additional $1.6 billion in late fees. That means nearly 12 percent of a store's income comes from late fees.
The downside of the EZ-D is that at the end of 48 hours, the consumer is left with a useless plastic disc that might just end up in the landfill. Most recycling firms lack the technology to extract the metal interior from a disc's plastic shell.
But on the front of each EZ-D is printed the address of GreenDisk Services in Columbia. Users are encouraged to save their spent EZ-D discs and send them to GreenDisk, which can recycle the discs. Through its Web site, greendisk.com, GreenDisk will even provide customers with pre-paid mailing envelopes in which to return the used discs.
So far only Disney has joined the EZ-D bandwagon., although LeBlanc said he's had talks with other major studios who are watching what happens in the test markets besides Kansas City the discs are going on sale in Charleston, S.C.; Peoria, Ill.; and Austin, Texas.
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Original Article is here: http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/6695828.htm
