Audio Video News

<B>DISH Network to offer Warner movies on-demand and in HD</B><BR>
The ever changing face of video distribution continues to evolve. EchoStar and Warner have signed off on deal that will allow DISH Network customers to access to Warner's new releases and catalog titles via its "Dish On Demand" and pay-per-view services in standard and high-definition.

In mid-2005 the average selling price of a 50" plasma display began its yearlong plunge from over $5,000 to a June 2006 average of just above $3,000. The number of sets sold at the new prices more than tripled, even accounting for the traditionally hot fall (2005) selling season.

<B>Big Fourth Quarter For Blu-ray And HD DVD</B><BR>
The number of Blu-ray and HD DVD releases scheduled in the last quarter of this calendar year is growing rapidly. Warner's second wave of Blu-ray titles will hit stores on September 5th, followed by four more catalog titles from the Warner library on September 12th. Universal has announced four more catalog titles for HD DVD in late October.

<B><I>M:I3</I> Hitting Stores In Three Formats</B>
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On October 30th Paramount will release the Tom Cruise blockbuster <I>Mission: Impossible 3</I> on not one but three separate formats- DVD and the competing Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD high-def formats. While retailers certainly aren't enthused to be carrying triple inventory, this is unequivocally the highest profile release on either of the rivaling next-gen HD formats.

According to the Hollywood Reporter on November 7th, HBO Video will release <I>The Sopranos: Season 6</I> day and date on DVD and HD DVD, making the critically acclaimed HBO series the first TV series to appear in high-definition on disc. According the article, a Blu-ray release is being planned for 2007.