Cinemaddiction

I regularly frequent GameStop locations here in Minneapolis, and everytime I'm there, it seems like the UMD/PSP title selection grows by atleast 10 titles every return trip. So many catalogued titles, like "Short Circuit", are making their way to the UMD format. Does this seem a little too overzealous to anyone else? Given PSP, as far as I know, is the only actual method of viewing the format, this has the potential to shake up many aspects of the market.

If the format proves to sell well after about a year, and considering the inception of HD-DVD, wouldn't the combination of the two new formats ultimately run smaller distributors (Image, Goodtimes) out of business, considering their resources, or lack there of?

Joe Molotov

I don't see how it would run smaller distributors out of business. The UMD market is doing better than probably anyone expected, but no one buys movies primarily for the PSP (or at least I hope they don't) so it's always going to be secondary to the home video market.

Mr. Cornell

These days people can just take their existing DVD collections and quickly and easily convert them to a suitable format and filesize and stuff them onto a 1GB memory stick. Buying your favorite movie again on UMD is a waste of money compared to buying a single memory stick and reusing it whenever you like to put different movies on it.

Also, the primary places selling UMD movies are videogame stores like EB Games and Best Buy. Goodtimes, Suncoast, and the like probably wouldn't stock them anyways as UMD is a format for a portable videogame device.

Cinemaddiction

You don't think they'll eventually have to expand? Not everyone owns, nor wants to own, a PSP at $200, when they can get a portable DVD player for $100. They're actually rather impractical for movie watching.

DJ_Longfellow

I think we've discussed this topic before...a few times. I think the general consensous was that most DVDtalkers will NOT buy UMD's, however, they are selling well enough to warrant companies to keep producing them. Also, some people actually LIKE them. I had one and sold it. It was neat...easy to carry around, but still sucked.

JM1

Yeah, they may be selling well at the mo, but I think it's just the "new toy" syndrome - kids want parents to buy them for them because they are the latest thing, people with disposable income and those with a penchant for "boys toys" will just buy them because they are the latest piece of must-have hardware, ad others will buy them just to be cool.

However, I cannot see the format lasting I have heard tales (from people in the industry) of the main screen scratching very easily for one, and when you consider that if you buy one, you are going to end up buying all your games and DVD's twice over it's going to be a very expensive hobby.

And...with the DVD's you get no extras.

I think Sony has been a little too greedy here - why not come up with a machine that was backwards compatible with existing games and DVD's? But no, they saw the dollar signs and thought they would make a killing.

For that reason I think, and firmly believe, it will fail.

DJ_Longfellow

So, you are basically saying the PSP will fail then, right?

Screen Protectors will NOT scratch your screen also....

SMB-IL

I have a penchant for buying the latest and greatest "boy's toys" and have NO desire whatever for PSP. UMD is destined to go the way of Divx and no offense to anyone here, but anyone who "invests" in UMD titles (as in huge library) is an idiot.

DJ_Longfellow

From what everyone is saying is that the PSP will disappear in a year or two. I don't see that happening. I don't buy UMD MOVIES, but Games are on UMD's also....thus, the format will stick around. I had one UMD movie, and sold it for twice what I bought it for.

cultshock

Sony is all about creating new proprietary formats (their track record hasn't been too good recently). It looks like they've created a new successful one (so far), to the surprise of many (including me, re:sales of movies on UMD).

DJ_Longfellow

Yep, if you are going to rip on UMD....please include Memory Sticks and Blu-Ray also.

acostigan

Not interested in this format myself, but I've always been curious why it has the 'Universal' moniker when only one device can play it.

Gizmo

Not everyone knows how to convert DVDs to play on Memory cards, and not everyone has the time or a fast enough computer to do so.