Disney & Sony Physical Media Deal

[MattDean]

https://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-t ... 2024-1400r

If this is true, what do we think?

I honestly think this could be a good thing...

[carolinakid]

In addition to more 4K color corrected Walt Disney animated classics, my dream would be that the Walt Disney era live action features get proper releases with bonus features.

The DMC exclusives were bare bones and pretty crappy looking.

[Mickeyfan1990]

I am very, VERY happy about this and everyone should be too!

This is the start of beautiful partnership AND long-awaited comeback for Disney titles on physical media!

Oh, all the titles I can see them do...

[marlan]

I would especially welcome European HD or UHD releases of The Black Cauldron and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea!

[Kyle]

I don't know if this is a good or a bad thing yet, I just hope it might lead to more 4k releases, with proper colors and little to no DNR. Bonus points if it has good HDR. I haven't bought physical in a long while tbh, mostly because no one puts worthwhile extras on them anymore, but also, movies in general have not been as good as they used to be, so I haven't felt as inclined to own them.

[Mickeyfan1990]

Some good news you're going to like to hear:

https://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-t ... 30124-1330

"...I’m told Disney remains committed to physical media distribution. And while Disney will continue to make the decisions about which titles get released on Blu-ray and 4K Ultra HD, those decisions will now be made in partnership with Sony, with the goal of maximizing availability based on consumer and retail interest."

[Escapay]

If this is true, what do we think?

I honestly think this could be a good thing...

Sony has been great at releasing a variety of catalog films from different eras of the studio's history, although I personally am not fond of their six-film "Columbia Classics" box sets not getting individual releases (save for Lawrence of Arabia and Dr. Strangelove). The first volume now goes for thrice the original retail price, and the only films I want from it are Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and A League of Their Own.

Still, they've put more effort into digging deep into their catalog compared to Disney. The sheer fact that virtually any live-action catalog release was a barebones Disney Movie Club exclusive shows just how awful Disney treated their library. And the company has too many studios to oversee (Walt Disney Animation Studios, Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Pictures, Searchlight Pictures), each one with their own sizable library of films that get summarily ignored.

My hope is that Sony will take some of what they're doing (like Anniversary reissues of titles that may be evergreen sellers, mid-level cult hits, or popular classics) and apply it to the Disney library. Perhaps even some box sets in the vein of their "Columbia Classics," just without the box-set-exclusivity or limited run. And, for goodness sake, include the DVD bonus features that were dropped from all those DMC exclusive discs or Walt Disney Signature Collection reissues.

Most of all, I want Sony to truly show some love to the 20th Century Fox library, as Disney has done very little with it since acquiring the studio. Before Disney, Fox was gracious with licencing its classics out to Twilight Time, Criterion Collection, and Kino Lorber. Now, discs that are just ten years old go for big bucks on the secondhand market because Disney has effectively put them out of print and won't reissue them under their distribution brand. Hopefully we'll get a Disney/Sony collaboration that will yield things like "The Rodgers & Hammerstein Collection" 4K Box Set or "The Best of Marilyn Monroe" 4K Box Set, or even just individual 4K releases of classics like Laura or Journey to the Center of the Earth or The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Heck, I am selfish and want a 40th Anniversary 4K Ultra HD Steelbook for Romancing the Stone to come out this year.

Alby

[Mickeyfan1990]

Some delightful news recently who collect Disney and Fox movies on DVD/Blu-ray!:

https://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-t ... 62424-1230

"Now then... we’ve got a pretty significant piece of industry news to share with you today. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has completed an “umbrella” distribution deal with Studio Distribution Services (SDS) that covers not only their own Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD product, but also titles from Lionsgate and Disney (along with 20th Century Studios, Touchstone, Hollywood Pictures, and the other Disney-owned labels), which Sony produces for those studios."

"The reason this deal is important is that it guarantees Sony, Disney, 20th Century Studios, and Lionsgate a direct and stable distribution channel for their physical media product into Walmart stores. And as we’ve reported previously, Walmart is the biggest disc retailer in North America with a whopping 45% share of the disc sales market (as of earlier this year—that number may have grown a bit with the recent exit of Best Buy, which had approximately 4% of the business)."

"This deal goes a long way in terms of giving studio executives the confidence to dig more deeply into their film vaults for new catalog remastering efforts and ultimately to release new catalog 4K titles on disc. All of this sets the stage for a very exciting slate of catalog 4K UHD titles from these studios and others in the next 12 to 24 months and beyond. In fact, I’m now more confident than ever that 2025 is going to be a big year for 4K disc fans! As always, I’ll share more on all this as it comes in from our sources in the weeks and months ahead... and as I’m able to reveal the details without disrupting any developing plans.""