Blockbuster to rent high-definition DVDs on Blu-ray
Movie fans soon will be able to rent high-definition DVDs at select Blockbuster Inc. video stores in Eastern Washington, but only in Blu-ray format – a setback for those who’ve invested in competing HD DVD players.
Stores in Spokane Valley, Pullman and Richland are expected to be among 1,450 more nationwide to offer the next-generation discs starting July 10, said Randy Hargrove, a Blockbuster spokesman. The nation’s largest rental chain announced its choice Monday, lending its support, at least for now, to one side of the “format war” between rivals Blu-ray, backed by Sony Corp., and HD DVD, supported by Toshiba Corp.
Blockbuster’s decision could help wary consumers decide which format’s player to purchase.
The move also will benefit a Blu-ray disc manufacturing plant planned for downtown Spokane by Valencia, Calif.-based BlueRay Technologies Inc., said Erick Hansen, CEO and chief technologist. While Hansen said BlueRay has scaled back plans for research and development here – lowering the cost of its factory from an estimated $12 million to between $6 million and $8 million – the success of Blu-ray has prompted the manufacturer to schedule increases in the Blu-ray portion of its future production. Hansen said BlueRay will initially make about 15,000 Blu-ray and 35,000 other types of discs per day in Spokane
“You’re going to see a floodgate of (Blu-ray) titles open up now,” Hansen said. “It will all follow now.”
BlueRay’s equipment is expected to arrive by the end of June, and the plant may be operational in the historic Commercial Building downtown in mid-July, Hansen said.
Currently, most local rental stores carry neither high-definition format, although titles are available through Internet services, such as Blockbuster Online and Netflix.
Dallas-based Blockbuster will still offer HD DVDs online and through 250 stores that currently carry both HD formats.
“While it is still too early to say which high-definition format will become the industry standard, we will continue to closely monitor customer rental patterns both at our stores and online, so we can adjust our inventory mix accordingly and ensure that Blockbuster is offering customers the most convenient access to the movies they want, in the format they want,” Matthew Smith, senior vice president of merchandising for Blockbuster, said in a prepared statement.
The company decided to expand its Blu-ray offerings because rentals of those discs are “significantly outpacing” HD DVDs at Blockbuster stores, according to a company news release.
Blockbuster chose to offer Blu-ray discs at stores where research indicated the largest demand, and when “customers are ready,” the company might expand the format to more stores or stock more HD DVDs, Smith said in the statement.
All the major Hollywood studios, except Universal Studios, offer titles in Blu-ray. Some, such as The Walt Disney Co., release solely on Blu-ray.
Both formats offer clearer pictures and more space for content or special features than traditional DVDs. Sony’s PlayStation 3 includes a Blu-ray drive, but Microsoft offers only an HD DVD add-on drive for its Xbox 360.
Prices of players for both formats have decreased by hundreds of dollars since they hit the market. Basic Toshiba HD DVD players retail for $399, and Sony’s Blu-ray player costs $499.
BlueRay, which intends to gear its plant toward independent titles, produced what may be the first single-layer Blu-ray disc made in the United States by a U.S.-owned and -operated company last month in Long Beach, Calif., using new General Electric Co. plastics technology, Hansen said.
BlueRay bought the Commercial out of foreclosure, displacing about 45 poor tenants and a nonprofit mental health agency this month. Northeast Washington Housing Solutions is working to relocate the residents, some of whom will qualify for federal vouchers good for one-bedroom apartments.
The company has exempted tenants from paying some rent, and it is giving them furnishings from the structure’s single-room apartments, Hansen said.
“I can’t think of anything we haven’t done,” said Susan Jenkins, vice president of administration and public policy for BlueRay. “We’ve been told we’ve set a precedent in terms of how to handle something like this.”
BlueRay also has hired several building tenants part time, and three full-time BlueRay employees already are working in Spokane, Hansen said. The factory eventually may employ 50 to 100 workers, he said.
“We’re looking for more people, young men and women in the area that want to be involved in technology,” Hansen said, adding that he expects to hold a job expo around the time the plant opens.
Hansen would not comment on the relationship between Pacific First West LLC, a Washington corporation that holds the Commercial’s title, and BlueRay.