UMD the new betamax?

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UMD the new betamax?

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since theres a few psp owners on the forum
http://www.computershopper.co.uk/?news/news_story.php?id=85761
It looks as though the Universal Media Disc format on the PlayStation Portable is a dead duck as far as a media for playing movies. It is yet another blow to Sony which has seen a number of setbacks in the past year, leaving some to wonder if the electronics giant can recover its former glory.

Universal Studios and Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment have called a halt to releasing any more movies on the UMD format. Other studios such as 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment and Buena Vista Home Entertainment are considering drastically cutting back their support for the format.

A Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment exec told the Hollywood Reporter. 'Releasing titles on UMD is the exception rather than the rule. No one's even breaking even on them.' Likewise, an executive at Universal Studios Home Entertainment was heard to say `It's awful. Sales are near zilch. It's another Sony bomb, like Blu-Ray.'

The problem is that while the PlayStation Portable is selling in large amounts, the buyers just seem to want to use it as a handheld games console and are


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not interested in using it as a way of watching films. And US consumers certainly do not want to be paying more than $20 for a movie to watch it only on a small screen.

Sony has been criticised for not equipping the PSP with an S-video jack to allow it to play back on a standard television. It is now rumoured that the PSP division is talking to Sony Studios about the ramifications if such an accessory were offered for the device.

The last thing Sony needs right now is yet another blow to its credibility as it gears up for the crucial release of the Blu-Ray high definition DVD format later this year. The mood at Sony headquarters will not have been improved by the news that rival Toshiba has launched its first HD-DVD play in Japan. The HD-XA1 costs 110,000 yen, or $940 - somewhat more than the $800 price point promised for the US release due later this month.

The news that the major Hollywood Studios are cutting back their commitment to UMD follows the announcement of the delay in the PlayStation 3 launch until November, following disagreement in the Blu-Ray Consortium over the specification of the DRM. Last year, Sony also faced a public relations disaster when it was revealed that its CD copy protection relied on rootkit code, more commonly associated with virus and spyware writers.
 
I heard a suggestion that they would release UMD's in a package with DVD's for a few quid more than standard dvd price, I thought that was a great idea myself.
 
when i saw the UMD fims it reminded me off minidisc albums.in all the time i was using MD's i never bought one.looked at them in the shops mind but ifor the price you could do your own.
think theres just not a big enough audience,perhaps nintendo's more game orientated DS is the smarter move though they are branching out with TV add ons etc as well
 
Yeah I think the only way sony could maybe get it back on track is to release a dvd player that also supports umd but costs no extra, problem is the quality of the UMD on large screen tv's would be terrible.
I have bought a couple of UMD's for mine and I quite like using it for movies, my little boy borrows it to watch the corpse bride in bed, so I really hope they can do something.
One thing I have always thought would benefit the PSP is a cradle for mounting it in the car. That would help sell UMD's by the bucket full.
 
I just bought a pocket PC with GPS and it's better than the stand alone Blaupunkt sat nav unit I had, cost me £70 less and does loads more including games, video and Mp3's and I couldn't believe the price of the 1gb sd cards :eek:
There's no doubting the psp is a good games machine but I am surprised about the lack of ease and the expense for upgrades etc. The UMD movies are so expensive too :nono:
 
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