Author Topic: Magnavision Rants: DVD5s... and Barebone DVD9s! (Read 5205 times)

techdude · « **on:** Dec 12, 2006 at 10:26 PM »

Is Magnavision following the C Interactive trend and focusing on DVD5s? While their Imported DVD9 are still coming, they are sometimes delayed and seems that not all Astro have all their (new) titles nowadays... Some like their recent releases: Broken Trail, Connors Wars, and even Click are only available in budget version at some Astros. Curious George, I spotted at only one Astro out of 4 (PinoyDVD.biz not counted) that I regularly visit.

Today, I find that they re-released a lot of their back catalog as DVD5s... Php 299 each, 3-for-600. These are not old stocks, as they carry a copyright on layout and design of 2006. Titles such as American President, God must be crazy 1 and 2, Riding in the cars with boys, Mr.Deeds (Sandler), Madeline, etc.

So will they eventually forgo DVD9, which probably are not as saleable, given the high price, and that very few knew the difference between DVD5 and DVD9s? Hopefully not...

@nk71 · « **Reply #1 on:** Dec 12, 2006 at 11:18 PM »

Quote from: techdude on Dec 12, 2006 at 10:26 PM

Is Magnavision following the C Interactive trend and focusing on DVD5s? While their Imported DVD9 are still coming, they are sometimes delayed and seems that not all Astro have all their (new) titles nowadays... Some like their recent releases: Broken Trail, Connors Wars, and even Click are only available in budget version at some Astros. Curious George, I spotted at only one Astro out of 4 (PinoyDVD.biz not counted) that I regularly visit.

Today, I find that they re-released a lot of their back catalog as DVD5s... Php 299 each, 3-for-600. These are not old stocks, as they carry a copyright on layout and design of 2006. Titles such as American President, God must be crazy 1 and 2, Riding in the cars with boys, Mr.Deeds (Sandler), Madeline, etc.

So will they eventually forgo DVD9, which probably are not as saleable, given the high price, and that very few knew the difference between DVD5 and DVD9s? Hopefully not...

nakakalungkot...for us collectors, though I know pabor sa masa...
instead of improving d Quality lalong pang Grrrr! I can live with crappy cases coz maynabibili namang Amaray cases...
wag lang crappy DISC

gadgetguru · « **Reply #2 on:** Dec 12, 2006 at 11:26 PM »

Quote from: @nk71 on Dec 12, 2006 at 11:18 PM

nakakalungkot...for us collectors, though I know pabor sa masa...

That's good and bad. Good for the lower-income groups... and let them appreciate good movies.

Packaging still counts for something. Take Monster House, the R1 comes with a nice slipcase with a rotating window. While the R3 is plain clear amaray-wannabe. Not to mention, that it arrived a month and half later than the R1 which arrived before Halloween.. Now, they (Magnavision) give this to us this Christmas.

If however, this DVD5 market prove to be more profitable then Magnavision might foresake the high-end market for the lower one. Fox/Disney/Viva releases are very erratic now. And even good, ole Warner's releases seems less than year's past. Huwag naman sana...

boredfilmmaker · « **Reply #3 on:** Dec 13, 2006 at 02:04 AM »

I guess it's just because it's Christmas, you know.. The low prices attract more buyers so more profit for them.. I think when the season's over, they'll go back to releasing the usual DVD9s..

taddy · « **Reply #4 on:** Dec 13, 2006 at 05:38 AM »

About two years ago, I read somewhere that the Philippines was now capable of producing DVD9s in mass quantities. So many assumed that time DVD9 soon become the standard format for the releases of local distributors. But at the rate things are going, it seems things are on a backslide. Hehehehehehe.

DVD_Freak · « **Reply #5 on:** Dec 13, 2006 at 05:45 AM »

Quote from: taddy on Dec 13, 2006 at 05:38 AM

About two years ago, I read somewhere that the Philippines was now capable of producing DVD9s in mass quantities. So many assumed that time DVD9 soon become the standard format for the releases of local distributors. But at the rate things are going, it seems things are on a backslide. Hehehehehehe.

Capability kasi doesn't mean it's cheap. Cost & expenses vs. profit still dominate business decisions nowadays.

Mr. Hankey · « **Reply #6 on:** Dec 13, 2006 at 08:52 AM »

Quote from: DVD_Freak on Dec 13, 2006 at 05:45 AM

Capability kasi doesn't mean it's cheap. Cost & expenses vs. profit still dominate business decisions nowadays.

It's probably a lot cheaper than we're being made to believe. ABS-CBN has been releasing their more recent telenovelas on DVD9 discs, for only Php 150 each. That should tell us how cheap it actually is to press DVD9 discs locally.

DVD_Freak · « **Reply #7 on:** Dec 13, 2006 at 08:58 AM »

Quote from: Mr. Hankey on Dec 13, 2006 at 08:52 AM

It's probably a lot cheaper than we're being made to believe. ABS-CBN has been releasing their more recent telenovelas on DVD9 discs, for only Php 150 each. That should tell us how cheap it actually is to press DVD9 discs locally.

If it's that cheap..then producing DVD5's probably would cost just Php50 then.

Mr. Hankey · « **Reply #8 on:** Dec 13, 2006 at 09:13 AM »

That's what makes the 299 price tag of those ugly "budget" Magna DVD5's very annoying. I know they're paying for the foreign rights, but come on! They're priced twice as much as ABS-CBN DVD9s.

And let's not forget that Warner releases DVD9 blockbusters where they also pay for the foreign rights for as low as 475 (The Ant Bully). And their old catalogue titles, mostly DVD9s, are being sold for 275.

munky · « **Reply #9 on:** Dec 14, 2006 at 08:38 AM »

I saw some P375 Paramount/Universal titles dropped to P299 (i.e Back to The Future, Casper, etc). repackaged to clear casing. Just like to know if these titles are also in DVD5? TIA

Mr. Hankey · « **Reply #10 on:** Dec 14, 2006 at 09:51 AM »

If they're from Magna, in clear casing and priced at 299, they're most probably DVD5s.

ronjet · « **Reply #11 on:** Dec 14, 2006 at 09:52 AM »

How can i know/distinguish a DVD5 from DVD9... Are there some markings?

Quote from: techdude on Dec 12, 2006 at 10:26 PM

So will they eventually forgo DVD9, which probably are not as saleable, given the high price, and that very few knew the difference between DVD5 and DVD9s? Hopefully not...

Kahon · « **Reply #12 on:** Dec 14, 2006 at 10:29 AM »

Quote from: ronjet on Dec 14, 2006 at 09:52 AM

How can i know/distinguish a DVD5 from DVD9... Are there some markings?

Link: What are DVD-5 and DVD-9 discs?

krazy · « **Reply #13 on:** Dec 15, 2006 at 08:01 PM »

This is why i'm so excited and can't wait for Blu-Ray movies and players to start appearing. With The Philippines (and south east Asia) in the same "Region A" as North America, we'll finally see the end of the horrible "budget editions" as all BD titles will be imported anyway

techdude · « **Reply #14 on:** Dec 16, 2006 at 01:40 AM »

OT: What if they decide to make barebones "Philippine Edition" like those new Audio CD that appearing now... And I doubt they will import bl;uray soon, after all, even higher end DVD are not selling....hence this DVD5 thing...

rafgar · « **Reply #15 on:** Dec 16, 2006 at 09:19 AM »

Quote from: techdude on Dec 16, 2006 at 01:40 AM

OT: What if they decide to make barebones "Philippine Edition" like those new Audio CD that appearing now... And I doubt they will import bl;uray soon, after all, even higher end DVD are not selling....hence this DVD5 thing...

I agree with techdude. I don't see the Blu-ray format becoming very popular here in the next 5 to 10 years. This format is also not yet that popular in the US -- dahil na rin siguro sa cost ng mga Blu-ray compatible players. Based on my observations, the legitimate Philippine video market is still dominated by the VCD format. Nahihirapan na nga silang ibenta ang mga DVD9 dito, paano pa kaya ang Blu-ray format (or even the HD DVD format). If ever the local distributors do decide to bring in Blu-ray discs here, I'm sure that it's going to be more expensive and that supplies will be limited. Add to this the introduction of the HD DVD format which is directly competing with the Blu-ray format -- para bang Betamax vs. VHS.

I really cannot blame Magnavision in coming out with their budget editions (DVD5). On a business point of view, they have to come up with products which can also penetrate the other market segments which are still into the VCD format (and the PDVD format). At least, we have a choice between the DVD9 and DVD5. Ang masama nito kung DVD5s lang ang ilabas nila.

Mr. Hankey · « **Reply #16 on:** Dec 22, 2006 at 04:33 PM »

Okay, I modified the title of this thread, since there's something else about Magnavision that's been bugging me recently:

Many of their recent DVD9 releases, which are sold for 895, are being released WITHOUT ANY SPECIAL FEATURES WHATSOEVER! Among those I've noticed which are very different from their R1 counterparts are:

1. The Pink Panther (2006)

2. American Dreamz

3. You, Me & Dupree

This is really annoying. Warner's blockbuster titles usually retail at around 550, and in 99% of cases have special features identical to their R1 counterparts.

Viva's Fox titles are sold for 750 and almost always have the same special features as their R1 counterparts, if not MORE (Case in point: X-Men United). Their newer Disney titles retail fro 550-750, and usually have the same or slightly less special features than the R1 versions.

So with Magna, you pay MOST... but get the LEAST.

I know this is probably a decision of the parent company abroad, but really, if there are Magna representatives here, you have to bring this up with the companies involved. The Philippine market for original R3 DVDs is already very small. If you insist on releasing titles at 895 that have no special features, your market will shrink even more.

Honestly, if I were someone who wanted "movie-only" releases, then I would not be one of the biggest collectors of original DVDs on these forums. I was surprised to see that bootleg DVDs are now being sold for as low as 25-30 pesos.

Why pay 895 for nothing extra, when an equivalent movie-only counterpart is readily available everywhere you turn for 3% of that price?

DVD_Freak · « **Reply #17 on:** Dec 22, 2006 at 07:00 PM »

Quote from: Mr. Hankey on Dec 22, 2006 at 04:33 PM

Okay, I modified the title of this thread, since there's something else about Magnavision that's been bugging me recently:

Many of their recent DVD9 releases, which are sold for 895, are being released WITHOUT ANY SPECIAL FEATURES WHATSOEVER! Among those I've noticed which are very different from their R1 counterparts are:

1. The Pink Panther (2006)

Sir this is a Fox release. Thus, a Viva title.

X-®an™ · « **Reply #18 on:** Dec 22, 2006 at 09:55 PM »

Quote from: Mr. Hankey on Dec 22, 2006 at 04:33 PM

I know this is probably a decision of the parent company abroad, but really, if there are Magna representatives here, you have to bring this up with the companies involved. The Philippine market for original R3 DVDs is already very small. If you insist on releasing titles at 895 that have no special features, your market will shrink even more.

Honestly, if I were someone who wanted "movie-only" releases, then I would not be one of the biggest collectors of original DVDs on these forums. I was surprised to see that bootleg DVDs are now being sold for as low as 25-30 pesos. Why pay 895 for nothing extra, when an equivalent movie-only counterpart is readily available everywhere you turn for 3% of that price?

This is not to condone getting bootlegs... but as an FYI, bootleg DVD9s in China costs approximately PhP100. The covers are even printed in front and back. The Narnia bootleg's cover was way better than the one we have here in R3.

Mr. Hankey · « **Reply #19 on:** Dec 22, 2006 at 10:05 PM »

Quote from: DVD_Freak on Dec 22, 2006 at 07:00 PM

Sir (The Pink Panther) is a Fox release. Thus, a Viva title.

Hmm... actually, The Pink Panther was an MGM-Columbia coproduction, and I'm holding my R3 DVD right now, and it says:

Copyright 2006 Layout and Design Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.

So I still blame Sony (and Magna) for the lack of special features.

Gulo kasi ng MGM. While its film rights now belong to Sony, its DVD rights went from Fox to Sony then back to Fox all in the past year. This disc was probably pressed abroad somewhere in the middle of all that, hence the Sony markings on it?

techdude · « **Reply #20 on:** Dec 22, 2006 at 10:31 PM »

I think the first Pink Panther was released by Viva for less than 895... this might be a reissue by MGM... I could be wrong but this 'Copyright layout and design' thing seems to be new. I will check my DVD library. When did you get that Pink Panther?

But 895 is really way too expensive. When R1 is just a couple of hundred more, and sometimes at the same price point with vastly superior packaging....

And there's this discounted to 333 thing... it's very irritating when you bought it at full price to see it discounted almost immediately (RENT)... I would have like them selling at a lower price point ( and selling more copies) then discounting it much later... The first mover's tax is way too much. As such, I no longer buy them unless I really, really want it. A couple of months is just a blink of an eye. P500 is not easy to earn these days... OT, sorry...

On the flipside, Magnavision still releases the most titles nowadays... but sometimes, I really wonder whether some of those title sells....

DVD_Freak · « **Reply #21 on:** Dec 23, 2006 at 12:00 AM »

Quote from: DVD_Freak on Dec 22, 2006 at 07:00 PM

Sir this is a Fox release. Thus, a Viva title.

This is the Steve Martin Kevin Kline movie. I might be wrong about the studio but I'm pretty sure that Viva released the DVD. I bought kasi when it became 299.

Mo®pHeOu$ · « **Reply #22 on:** Jan 10, 2007 at 12:42 PM »

Halos wala na ngang features ang mga ito.

I bought some of them pangregalo lang this holiday season.

Other titles kasi, magadd ka lang ng konti, you can get the two disc edition or ones with more extra features.

techdude · « **Reply #23 on:** Feb 25, 2007 at 12:00 PM »

Curious about local DVD9s, the ones Magnavision had been putting out lately. Unlike previous Budget version which are DVD5s, newer Budget releases (those new releases at 475 and 575) are DVD9s. Theoretically, it could be identical (PQ, Extras, etc) to imported disc since the capacity is the same, no re-encoding was necessary.

So the main difference could be the quality of the disc themselves... anyone have problems with these so-called local DVD9s? Like picture skipping, DVD unplayable, and the like?

Liver · « **Reply #24 on:** Feb 27, 2007 at 04:47 AM »

I held off buying these sorry DVD5. When I was in Bangkok a few days ago, I just slurged. These DVD5 titles were available in Bangkok in DVD9, better packaging, and almost the same price. Underworld Evolution, Blade 3, The Aviator, Lord of War, and etc. Alexander was in DVD9 2 disc edition but for some odd reason it's in 4:3 format, I skipped that one. The DVDs in Bangkok are clearly labeled as "dvd9" on the box is it's in dvd9. All these are originals.

It's a shame. In the Philippines, why would you even buy a DVD5 original if the b**tleg DVD9 version is better? Poor business decision, they need to fire whoever thought of this marketing gimmick. You can't compete with p*rates and you shouldn't compete with them like they are some form of corporation. The person who spends P50 on a b**tleg copy will not be swayed to buy the P199 originals. Most of them are the massa type, they can't afford to blow half a days pay on 1 movie. Take a good look at who has been buying the bulk of your products, their purchasing power and mindset is different. Lowering down the quality of your products won't make the massa reach deeper in their wallets, it will just alienate the cream of the crop customers. They won't buy your DVD5 to play it on their P200,000 home theatre setups. You'll also alienate the collectors.

av_phile1 · « **Reply #25 on:** Mar 15, 2007 at 11:01 PM »

Quote from: Mr. Hankey on Dec 14, 2006 at 09:51 AM

If they're from Magna, in clear casing and priced at 299, they're most probably DVD5s.

I bought a couple of 299 discs from Astro that I still didn't have: Silverado and The Lost World (Jurassic II) and I think we might be a bit harsh on Magna (or are these Magna releases?). These are DVD9 discs as confirmed on my PC. The Lost World is 7.5Gb while the Silverado disc is 6.4Gb.

The Silverado disc is revelation. It's got an English 5.1 DTS track that is not indicated at the back details. It also has a french 2.0 track and director's "making of" commentary track. Looking at the Amazon site, this disc seems to be a copy of the first disc from the 2-disc Superbit edition. Even the cover is a copy of the superbit edition. And when I played it on my PC, I get a Superbit intro screen.

The bitrate hovers between 4.5mbs to 6.5mbps. So it may be just a watered-down superbit version. Someone with a superbit edition can confirm or not. At anyrate, 299 makes its a real steal.

The Lost World OTH only has half of the features indicated at the back. It's actually the same as that on the bootleg copy with the only difference being the higher bitrate and DVD9 media. Still a good value for 299 (though I am sure others will say the P80 bootleg offers better value.

)

techdude · « **Reply #26 on:** Mar 15, 2007 at 11:13 PM »

These budget DVD9s are a new breed... the question is durability and how error free they are? With pirated, the error are often rampant, while most were corrected on the fly by DVD players, it could shorten the life of these players.

If those are not an issue, then there's no reason why they can't be as good as imported discs. After all, unlike before when they fit a DVD9 video into a DVD5, they need to reencode at lower bitrate, a local DVD9 could have the same content as an imported one...

While on the first post, I am sad about this shift to budget versions, I am now cautiously optimistic...

casanegro · « **Reply #27 on:** Mar 16, 2007 at 03:47 AM »

How can you tell if a Budget version is DVD5 or DVD9? What are the indicators?

av_phile1 · « **Reply #28 on:** Mar 16, 2007 at 07:41 AM »

Am afraid you can't tell without opening the case and checking the disc visually (if it has two serial numbers on the inner rim for a DVD9) or logically from a directory check on a PC.

techdude · « **Reply #29 on:** Mar 16, 2007 at 10:10 AM »

Yeah, there's no way of telling unless it is opened. Hopefully, Magnavision will use DVD9 for all releases that requires them (ie movie longer 1 hour and half), and only DVD5 when the original imported master uses the same.