toddly6666

Since recently moving from USA to Geneva, Switzerland, I now have a DVD issue that hasn't been solved yet (it will be totally solved once I travel around within Europe) - for the multi-language European countries, what DVDs do they get? For example, in French-speaking Geneva, French DVDs are sold in stores only. But I'm curious if the German-speaking parts of Switzerland get the DVDs from Germany and if the Italian-speaking parts of Switzerland get the DVDs from Italy? This is especially a bizarre issue, since France and Germany, for example, have different DVD release dates. I never thought about it til moving here, but the different DVD release date thing does seem ridiculous since all European countries are so close to each other. One would think that they would all have the same, or at least very close, DVD release dates.

Besides Switzerland, does anyone know what DVDs the other minor/complex European countries get? It seems like some countries get their own DVDs while others get their DVDs from other countries as long as they have the language/subtitle option compatible for their culture.

Austria - German DVDs or Austrian DVDs?
Belgium - French DVDs or Belgium DVDs?
Portugal - Spain DVDs, Brazil DVDs, or Portugal DVDs?
Luxembourg - ?
Monaco - ?
East of Germany - Do they get Eastern European DVDs too besides German DVDs?
England/Ireland/Scotland - do they all get the same DVDs?
Yugoslavia (Bosnia/Croatia) - do they all get the same DVDs?
Baltics (Estonia/Latvia/Lithuania) - do they get all the same DVDs and/or Russian DVDs?

I'm not confused about Denmark, Holland, Sweden, Norway, Finland since they all get their own DVDs made within their county.

pro-bassoonist

With a few very minor exceptions every contry listed above is supplied by local distribs. The minor exceptions would mostly have to do with overlapping and sharing. Example: Luxembourg will get French DVDs for certain releases and will share a very small percentage of films with similar French street dates and so is Monaco. Yet, a very small group of blockbusters will be managed by local distribs.

With the rest of the countries you have listed the asnwer is: local distribs with local release dates. That goes for Germany (no division here), the UK (that would mean all of the rest of the countries part of the Kingdom), and as to Yugoslavia (and there is no reason for you to link Bosnia and Croatia together here as that would be the same as listing Canada and Mexico under the US) and the Baltic states....the asnwer should be obvious.

Ciao,
Pro-B

Tutut

It is not so simple to me, it depends on who's the rights owner, are those rights limited in time, for one country or more, some countries have particular laws which delay the release on DVD.
For example, the Benelux (Belgium-Netherlands-Luxemburg) region has its own editions for some titles plus the french and the dutch editions for others or both.
The french law imposes a delay of six months between the theatre and the DVD release.

Reservoir

That's one of the funniest things I've ever read with over 13 years of surfing on the Internet.

pro-bassoonist

This has nothing to do with the OP's, let's just say it as it is: ridiculous grouping of different countries and their markets, though I see what you are trying to imply! Even if you have zero knowledge in market distribution it should be fairly obvious that Brazil and Portugal can not use Spanish-language discs. That is like asking whether or not Mexico uses Turkish product.

As noted, the whole question is rather naive and childish to consider seriously!

Lessons of basic geography are needed here!!

Pro-B

flixtime

toddly6666, I wish you well in your new home in Geneva.

Tutut

He was saying spanish discs, not spanish language discs, I suppose he thought Spain (because they're neighbours)
or Brazil (common language) have big influence in the portuguese DVD market.
To me, as a european, the most naive, improper questions you and Reservoir didn't notice, are about east Germany and Scotland.

@Toddly6666
No, the Ossies are not so home sicks they're looking for DVDs from the former countries of the Warsaw Pact. They're germans,
but during more than 40 years they belong to the Eastern Bloc in a communist regime and had their own culture,
you should see the film "Good Bye Lenin !".

Scotland is just part of the UK as well as England, Wales and Northen Ireland, the scottish Parliament has legislative powers
in certain areas but it doesn't mean they're independant, anyway they're not big enough to have their own DVD market.

About languages on DVD, many US classics have the same edition in every european countries with four or six audio tracks
and a dozen or more subs. The only difference is the language on the cover.

pro-bassoonist

Tutut: Both East Germany and Scotland are addressed in post #2. So it was noted unlike what you claim!

Now...

I think we answered the OP's question or at least tried. Now, we are heading in the wrong dirrection.

To avoid future jabs while still on good terms it is perhaps best if a moderator closed this thread!

Pro-B
__________
I was offline for a lot of March and didn't catch this one. I've now split off the political discussion in case the thread ever re-surfaces.[Benedict]

Reservoir

At least we're not killing each other (we'll let our soldiers do that in Iraq).

I watched Bill Hicks last night (Sane Man (UK DVD, nice release)). What a truly great American and I only wished he'd spawned millions of children before he died. If only more of us asked questions like he did.

Anyway, back to DVD.

Tutut

I agree with you, we're not in a kindergarten, we don't need a nanny.

Yes back to DVD, I noticed at DVDGO 2362 spanish releases with portuguese subs.

http://www.dvdgo.com/search.asp?sear...ts&pagesize=30

toddly6666

thanks for all the help...and i'm sorry if i forgot to put "former" before yugoslavia...This is why i said "East of Germany" and not "East Germany." I was only trying to refer to the geographic areas of the countries. My main focus was what each individual country carries and if they basically carry DVDs with language/subtitle options of their neighboring countries.
For example in USA, most American ethnic majorities (Indian/Asian/Mexican) are kept happy with DVDs of their own culture released in the USA. And for neighboring countries, there are plentiful Canadian DVDs and Mexican DVDs(these Mexican ones are the B-movie crap ones sold for like 4 dollars though, not the big budget/arty ones) sold in the smaller DVD stores. There have been many times when smaller DVD stores illegally release the DVD earlier due to it being a Canadian release (French/English cover) or better yet, much earlier than the USA releases of such films as Brotherhood of the Wolf, Vidocq, and C.R.A.Z.Y. (still no USA release for C.R.A.Z.Y. I think).

So, basically:
1. If I go to Portugal, will I find the Spanish DVD of Pan's Labyrinth in a DVD store(that is if that Spanish DVD release has Portugese audio/subtitles) or a Portugal DVD of Pan's Labyrinth?
2. If I went to any former-Yugoslavian countries, will I find DVDs of Emir Kusturica movies in their DVD stores or only in the country he is from?

BuddhaWake

I'm not sure about the portugal/spain thing but I was recently looking up some stuff on some Portuguese releases and wound up in a forum and reading the forum it seemed that most people were buying dvds from dvdgo just by the large number of post and threads regarding dvdgo, also one of the UK sites besides cd-wow was mentioned, I think it was play.com or one of them. yet when looking for portuguese movies, only a very limited amount of them had subs in other languages. so maybe is one of those things of the larger being spain.