Avatar on 3D Blu-ray: Only $400 Without the TV!
By Jared Newman | Wednesday, December 1, 2010 at 3:04 pm
A few months ago, Panasonic locked up exclusive rights to Avatar on 3D Blu-ray, with plans to bundle it with 3D televisions. Turns out, that won’t be the only way to get the movie this holiday season.
Panasonic will also sell Avatar as part of its 3D Full HD Ultimate Pack, which includes a 3D Blu-ray player and two pairs of glasses you’ll never use if you already own a 3D TV from another manufacturer. That bundle costs $399.95. Hey, early adopters have loads of expendable income, right?
As I’ve said before, exclusivity deals are a short-sighted demand from movie studios, who want to ensure that their extra effort on 3D production isn’t wasted. In exchange for a quick buck from TV makers, they’re sacrificing the greater good of an extensive 3D catalog that would attract more television buyers in the first place.
This is especially true for Avatar. It’s arguably the best example of a 3D film to date, and I can only imagine that the release of Avatar on 3D Blu-ray would be a bigger story today if it were available to everyone, and not just to Panasonic 3D TV owners. (On the bright side, folks who bought a Panasonic between March 10 and November 30 can get a free copy of the movie by mail-in request.)
Instead, owners of 3D TVs from other manufacturers must wait for the exclusivity period to end, and it’s not clear when that’ll happen. Alternatively, they can head to eBay, where bids for standalone Avatar 3D Blu-ray discs start at around $225. What a mess.
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December 1st, 2010 at 8:23 am
Seems like this is the biggest marketing mistake for home 3D yet. If Avatar is going for big bucks on eBay, there is definitely demand for it. The studio could have made much more money making this available to everyone rather than just to Panasonic owners.
December 1st, 2010 at 4:23 pm
Only $400! What a deal!
December 1st, 2010 at 6:31 pm
so one can buy the bundle pack for $399, sell the glasses for $150 each, the blu ray player for $100 and you have a free copy of Avatar……if the glasses are $199 each, this may be doable, if they are $150 each you may have to settle for $100 or $125 per.
December 2nd, 2010 at 7:02 am
Well, that assumes that you can actually sell those glasses at that price – my guess is that you aren't going to get full retail since glasses are tied to specific brand names and I don;t know of too many people who are running out to buy multiple sets.
It's going to be pricey regardless.
December 2nd, 2010 at 12:35 am
the blu-ray player isn't included as far as I can tell.
December 2nd, 2010 at 5:39 am
According to the article it is –
"Panasonic will also sell Avatar as part of its 3D Full HD Ultimate Pack, which includes a 3D Blu-ray player and two pairs of glasses you’ll never use if you already own a 3D TV from another manufacturer.
December 2nd, 2010 at 5:58 am
My mistake. I got mixed up because the Blu-ray player is included alongside the bundle pack when you buy a 3D TV. On its own, the Blu-ray player is not included with the 3D Ultimate Pack. Corrected above.
December 2nd, 2010 at 7:57 am
Just wait till MKVs get hardware support for mpeg4 mvc (the encoding that allows 3D pictures). Then it's going to be lol time