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Lack of HDX Movies

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    Lack of HDX Movies

    I'm pretty new to Vudu and like the HDX versions of the movies but I'm puzzled as to why they don't offer more. I thought that I'd rent the new movie "KNOWING" last night in HDX but it's only offed in HD.

    I don't mind paying $5.99 for HDX but have a problem with paying $5.99 for HD when I can get HD on demand from my cable company for $4.99 with the same 24 hour viewing limitations. I may be missing something but it makes no sense to me.

    #2
    Re: Lack of HDX Movies

    Originally posted by brleni View Post
    I'm pretty new to Vudu and like the HDX versions of the movies but I'm puzzled as to why they don't offer more. I thought that I'd rent the new movie "KNOWING" last night in HDX but it's only offed in HD.

    I don't mind paying $5.99 for HDX but have a problem with paying $5.99 for HD when I can get HD on demand from my cable company for $4.99 with the same 24 hour viewing limitations. I may be missing something but it makes no sense to me.
    My guess is they sell fewer HDX titles because of the extended download times so they try to guess which ones will sell in HDX format. But I couldn't say for sure. As far as pricing, Vudu's library tends to be more extensive than cable providers which is probably why the cost for some titles is a little higher. But, if you can get a specific title cheaper from your cable provider that is probably a good route to go.

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      #3
      Re: Lack of HDX Movies

      Hi,

      HDX titles are obtained via their own license. VUDU has to obtain separate licenses for each video quality tier (SD, HD, and HDX). If a title is only available in either SD or HD or in SD and HD but not in HDX, it is because we couldn't obtain licensing from the content provider. I hope that addresses your question.

      Comment


        #4
        Re: Lack of HDX Movies

        Jimmy, I'm curious - do you know why a studio would not want to grant a HDX license when the HD version is up anyway? I mean it's just another 1080p MP4 encode at a high bitrate for the most part.

        My understanding is Vudu handles the encoding so it cost them nothing to have the HDX option available as a sale or a rental (and generates more revenue, I'm sure).

        I can understand them holding back HD versions altogether, it's the kind of backwards thinking we see all the time from studios who are trying to squeeze every last drop of blood out of the sell through disc market while they still can, but to license a HD version and then not allow the best possible quality encode that the delivery system allows is madness.

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          #5
          Re: Lack of HDX Movies

          Yet another confirmation that the studios still don't get "it".

          Comment


            #6
            Re: Lack of HDX Movies

            Originally posted by brleni View Post
            I don't mind paying $5.99 for HDX but have a problem with paying $5.99 for HD when I can get HD on demand from my cable company for $4.99 with the same 24 hour viewing limitations. I may be missing something but it makes no sense to me.
            Who doesn't want to save money? I have rented movies and watched OnDemand channels several times from my cable company in HD. I actively dislike how streaming is handled by my local TWC provider.

            Often the "service is not available" for some unknown reason. I cannot actually get to the movie scroll-list to select the movie!

            If you pause the streaming for too long it quits the show/movie (perhaps to free up the stream). Restarting a streamed (ondemand) movie is also hit or miss. We have paused a movie, it has quit (reverted back to the ads), and we have attempted to restart it - no go! Of course if you were all geared up to enjoy a movie and find yourself frustrated because it cannot restart, "too bad" is what we hear from Customer Service (service.... really???).

            Controlling a streaming movie is significantly harder than a movie downloaded. With the Vudu control, I can make fine-adjustments for the exact place in a movie I want to go to, return to, fast forward, and reverse; streaming provides none of this. For us, controlling a streaming movie is a jerky best guess activity. Streaming is so bad, my wife will go back to the beginning rather than try and get to a specific place in a streaming movie - she has no such problems with Vudu.

            I am concerned about that extra buck or two... but the alternative is intolerable for us. We do not even respond to TWC movie discount coupons anymore.

            FDuck.

            Comment


              #7
              Re: Lack of HDX Movies

              Originally posted by FloatingDuck View Post
              I am concerned about that extra buck or two... but the alternative is intolerable for us. We do not even respond to TWC movie discount coupons anymore.

              FDuck.
              I agree with everything you say about streaming etc. I'm kind of puzzled by this last statement though. On one hand you make a compelling case why you are getting something very worthwhile and extra real value for that extra buck or two, but then you say you are concerned about it. Doesn't it make sense that a superior product/experience would be worth more and thus command a higher price?

              I feel that if people want to spend less for an inferior experience they have that right. In fact, that competition ultimately does keep prices across the whole spectrum in check as there are many that will invariably choose the cheaper solution simply because it is cheaper.

              Comment


                #8
                Re: Lack of HDX Movies

                Originally posted by redwein View Post
                I agree with everything you say about streaming etc. I'm kind of puzzled by this last statement though. On one hand you make a compelling case why you are getting something very worthwhile and extra real value for that extra buck or two, but then you say you are concerned about it. Doesn't it make sense that a superior product/experience would be worth more and thus command a higher price?

                I feel that if people want to spend less for an inferior experience they have that right. In fact, that competition ultimately does keep prices across the whole spectrum in check as there are many that will invariably choose the cheaper solution simply because it is cheaper.
                I fully agree "you get what you pay for". We continue to pay that premium ourselves. Over a month we rent/buy about 15-20 movies on Vudu. This is significantly more than any other source. We still throw out those TWC "free" movie coupons... even though they would be the cheapest source of "new" movies.

                I am just continuing to acknowledge/recognize that we are paying for something of value.

                In an economy where money is very tight, every dollar can be perceived as important - even for a superior product. In the back of my head when I see the price of a movie I ask, "it is worth it" - it is an evaluative thought, not just an automatic "let's rent (or buy)".

                From a competitive point-of-view, Vudu made the right decision to price their HDX the same as their HD movies, even though HDX is clearly a competitive improvement over HD. Vudu could have charged a premium for HDX, but did not. Not charging more for HDX likely won them more viewers and kept other viewers from moving to other (streaming) competitors.

                When a movie is available on Vudu in SD and higher quality (HD or HDX), we still make a rental decision about whether the value is there for the improved viewing. We do not automatically rent the higher quality (yet). Similarly, we prefer HDX over HD, but make that decision based on need - "impulsiveness to watch" - do we need to watch now or later.

                We would prefer to eat at Ted's for bison burgers, however, we still eat at Burger King every now and then.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Lack of HDX Movies

                  VUDU is still my first choice for HDX. But lately several titles I watched were either not available on VUDU or were only available in SD. And for me SD is the absolutely last option. So I watched them in HD from the PS3 or Xbox360.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Re: Lack of HDX Movies

                    Licensing is far more complex than simply adding another encode. Remember that HDX competes fairly well with the quality of BR. So studios may not be as willing to license something that is nearly equal to the best physical media has to offer.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Re: Lack of HDX Movies

                      Originally posted by Citizen Erased View Post
                      Jimmy, I'm curious - do you know why a studio would not want to grant a HDX license when the HD version is up anyway? I mean it's just another 1080p MP4 encode at a high bitrate for the most part.
                      I'm sorry for replying so late. To be honest, I don't know what the reasons are for sure, and I'm hesitant to speculate. I can say that VUDU understands that HD and HDX is going to drive future growth so whenever we can, we will obtain the license to distribute them.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Re: Lack of HDX Movies

                        The first and last time I used ComCo$t PPV (which I'll admit was a while ago), it took 5-10 seconds for the box to respond to any navigation commands, and there was NO way to continue a movie where you had left off -- it started over if you exited the movie. You really would have to pay me much more than the price of a movie ticket to watch a movie that way.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: Lack of HDX Movies

                          Originally posted by MaxH View Post
                          The first and last time I used ComCo$t PPV (which I'll admit was a while ago), it took 5-10 seconds for the box to respond to any navigation commands, and there was NO way to continue a movie where you had left off -- it started over if you exited the movie. You really would have to pay me much more than the price of a movie ticket to watch a movie that way.
                          OK, if you agree to post a video on YouTube of you watching the movie (must include plenty of frustrated expressions), and you post a PayPal link, I'll put $10 towards you doing this.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Re: Lack of HDX Movies

                            Originally posted by redwein View Post
                            I agree with everything you say about streaming etc. I'm kind of puzzled by this last statement though. On one hand you make a compelling case why you are getting something very worthwhile and extra real value for that extra buck or two, but then you say you are concerned about it. Doesn't it make sense that a superior product/experience would be worth more and thus command a higher price?

                            I feel that if people want to spend less for an inferior experience they have that right. In fact, that competition ultimately does keep prices across the whole spectrum in check as there are many that will invariably choose the cheaper solution simply because it is cheaper.
                            1 Word .. "AppleTV" available to everyone, same quality HD (HDX is obviously superior), similar size HD catalog, less expensive.

                            If it isn't available in HDX, I buy from Apple. Vudu gives me no reason to buy from them by charging more.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Re: Lack of HDX Movies

                              Originally posted by Riekl View Post
                              If it isn't available in HDX, I buy from Apple. Vudu gives me no reason to buy from them by charging more.
                              Apple gives me no reason to buy an AppleTV as Vudu is a superior movie experience IMO (and has HDX) and ATV doesn't offer me any additional functionality I want. It would be PITA for me to have to use 2 boxes to comparatively shop for a movie every time. Also, since I have 5 Vudus, I really wouldn't want to buy and hookup 5 ATVs too. The convenience of having one box/service provides real value to me and is alone enough to justify the minor pricing difference. Now that being said, if the Vudu collection was markedly inferior, I'd probably switch to ATV. To each their own.
                              Last edited by redwein; 08-09-2009, 02:24 PM.

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