28 Day New Release Delay Increased Warner Bros DVD Sales 15%

Home Media Magazine reports that Warner Bros. DVD sales have increased 15% since Netflix & Redbox delayed new releases 28 days:

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment’s 28-day delay of new-release movies to Redbox and Netflix has helped increase packaged-media sales 15% since implementation of the strategy earlier this year, Time Warner Inc. CFO Martin said.

Speaking Sept. 23 to an investor group in New York, Martin said early feedback on the kiosk embargo — also imposed by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment and Universal Studios Home Entertainment — has improved cable video-on-demand 20% to 30%. Time Warner helped spearhead day-and-date VOD releases with DVD and Blu-ray Disc.

“You make money in the film business by putting your content in appropriate windows that matches up with the way consumers like to use it,” Martin said. 

The 28-day delay is helping increase DVD and Blu-ray sales, so it looks like it'll be here to stay. 

Comments

[Rocketboy_X]

“You make money in the film business by putting your content in appropriate windows that matches up with the way consumers like to use it,”

Um, isn't this the exact opposite then what happened? When people were forced to acquire content in a way that they did not like to use it, some decided to play along, and not wait.

Me, I'll be more than happy to wait.

[David]

Wow, it worked. I'm surprised.

[Jeff]

Correlation does not imply causation. I'm not convinced.

“You make money in the film business by putting your content in appropriate windows that matches up with the way consumers like to use it,”

I'm sure consumers would like to rent dvds as soon as they can.

[jv]

I Will never buy from these companies!! they should not have taking this right from us if you want to rent them as soon as they are releasd you should have that right and these companies and netflix stole these rights!!

[Prozac]

Soon enough they will come up with a 3-month dvd new release delay. Honestly the 28-day delay doesnt bother me as much as I thought it would.

[nijaju]

Well, it's a good thing that Netflix negotiated for more DVDs when they are able to rent them out. Otherwise, my new releases that have just made it out of the 28 day window would be on "Very Long Wait".....er...wait a minute....they still are....

[Nick]

Fuck these studios...I'll wait as long as I have to to Netflix movies and NOT buy their dvds.

[Larry Dallas]

LOL @
I Will never buy from these companies!

Boycotts don't stop with BUY, don't watch, read, user there cable, internet, etc if you really want to show them.

[Robert]

I wonder how much revenue they lost due to streaming being unavailable, and what the 15% increase in packaged media sales looked like compared to the amount of revenue lost from streaming.

[Tim]

Never noticed the extra wait.

[Jeff Chambliss]

Robert, I don't think the New Releases would have been available in Netflix Streaming in any case.

[Jeff Chambliss]

Could the increase in sales just be a result of a change in the economy? I mean, their sales had dropped due to the recession. I wonder if the 15% increase brings their sales back to what they were 2 years ago?

[vio]

I Will never buy from these companies!! they should not have taking this right from us if you want to rent them as soon as they are releasd you should have that right and these companies and netflix stole these rights!!

LOL. Please just shut up already. You have no "rights" here. Being able to rent a DVD at a specific time is not some right protected under the US constitution. Movies are intellectual/private properties wholly owned by the studios who make them. They can do whatever want with their product.

You really are the epitome of American entitlement. "I have a right to whatever I think I have a right to because I'm that damn important!"

[Chris Utley]

I don't buy it

[Racket]

I seriously doubt that Netflix or Redbox would consent to an additional delay. Remember they can go out into the supply chain and purchase these if they want to, the studios cannot stop them. This is a voluntary agreement from Netflix and Redbox in exchange for discounted DVDs and in the case of Netflix and access to deeper content from the studios to stream.

It has had ALMOST zero effect on me. I say almost because I occasionally see an add for a movie and then check my DVD que and see that it is will not be released for a few more weeks. I don't care, but I notice it.

[Tom]

@Larry Dallas: If people don't prove that it's not that sales went up, it's that _everything_ went up, by renting the hell out of these movies, it won't show them a reason to stop.

"Sales in relation to rentals went up, because rentals went sharply down thanks to boycotts, but hey, we don't really look at long term, so let's increase the window to 3 months!"

[jv]

well vio you are one of these morons that would not care about this but i do and so do many other people!! If these companies would have delayed the new releases i have no problem they own the rights no shit but they are taking this stand to try and force us to buy there product and netflix is helping them!!! I have no problem waiting for them!!!!

[Me]

I'm with you JV. There have been several movies that I've really wanted to see, but they had that 28 day wait. So I waited and will continue to wait. I refuse to buy movies sight unseen. This is why I rent. If I like what I see in the rental, then I buy. Not before, no matter how much I want to see something. I just find another way to screen the movie without buying it, as I'm sure many others are doing. :-)

[BoB]

I don't buy it either. Just their spin to make numbers fit their propaganda.

How many people would spend $15-20 to "watch" a movie instead of waiting 28 days to see it as part of their monthly sub.? What then? You find out you paid $15-20 for something you would even watch again!?

Oh, I guess 15% would! Right.

[tsrblke]

I'd be curious about the time the data was taken. If it coincided with the release of extremely popular movies, it may be a false result.

[alex]

They didn't make a dime from me.

[JK]

I haven't and won't buy a movie from the companies who have the delay. I hope piracy has increased tenfold for films from these companies because they're artificially trying to create demand for their product and screwing the consumer over in the process.

[david v]

stay? you know how companies think, if a 28 day delay increased sales by 15% think of what a 2 month delay could do! ugh.

[Del]

I have not bought a DVD in over 5 years!
And if I did not see the movie at the theater than 28 more days is not going to make a difference to me!

[byteme]

When they say DVD sales are up 15%, they are counting the number of DVDs sold, not the dollar amount of sales.

Of course the total number sold increased; Netflix and Redbox bought twice as many discs as usual because they were paying half as much for them.

This is simply posturing by the studios to keep up the facade that they were right, while behind the scenes they are smacking themselves in the forehead.

[Jase]

It doesnt matter it will all catch up. After the first 28 days new releases will be available every week after that all you have to do is wait the first month, maybe they could have thrown a discount out for that first month. New releases was one reason why i have Netflix. But I can wait one month to do my part in making hollywoods wallet a little lighter. greedy bastards.

[Me]

There is no way in hell that DVD sales are going up. Nor will consumers be BULLIED into spending $22 to $25 on DVDs that, within weeks after being released, are then sold by 3rd party vendors on amazon.com for a fraction of the cost. Some of these DVDs are going for pennies!

Studio execs are idiots. Why would I pay full price when I can just wait and get it for cheap in a few weeks? Or just rent it, which is what I've been doing. 28 days is nothing, and if they want to extend it to two months, then so be it. I'll just wait.

[bob]

Let me take another try at the final quote:

“You make money in the film business by restricting your content and disabling convenient availability, the way consumers like to use it,” Martin said.

[The Whiz]

Good stuff Bob!

The 1-month wait sucks. They'll prob end up chaning it to a 2 or 3-month delay at some point. I just rent the new stuff through Blockbuster Total Access. I hate doing business with them, but I'm not going to blind buy stuff.

The 1-month delay does matter. I'm still with Streamflix for the cheapie plan + streaming. Streamflix has it all on Blockbuster (MUCH better mailing service). I just don't want to wait 1 month in addition to the 3-7 months I've already waited (after I skipped seeing it at the theater because people are morons who either talk or text constantly).

[Nalez]

Thats odd, my Internet bandwidth usage has gone up 15-20% as well. Imagine that.