So UMD's aren't selling so well

[Andrew T. Hingson]

I don't want to take a major fanboy stance on this but we all knew those things were a rip-off. Even the most dedicated of Sony loyalists. Yet I saw tons of them on the shelf. The lack of sales doesn't surprise me at all. Too many people have portable DVD players and UMD's aren't even as good as a special edition DVD. (though they do have great image quality)

I'm glad the public realized this and isn't feeding the production of UMD movies. They're just not a good deal. They are however a much better deal than the GBA video carts but it's pretty easy to be better than those.

[Nin-Nin69]

Portable DVD players aside, people can download movies onto their memory sticks and play on the PSP. DVD quality movies. Something the UMD lacks.

[JohnCrichton]

Last I heard they were selling like mad, actually.

I have NO idea why, but yeah... last I heard UMD sales were doing surprisingly well.

[MGFanJay]

Same here, I've heard they're selling very well due to convenience.

[Noukon]

Nope, they aren't selling that well (Sony PR is not to be trusted). Average UMD titles sell around 40-50,000 or so copies, and some studios are, apparently, starting to cancel their upcoming ones.

I see two factors: The fact that they're overpriced and the sheer number of titles available (they inevitably cut into one another's sales).

Relevant Joystiq article (http://www.joystiq.com/2006/02/16/film-studios-cut-back-on-umd-titles)

[William C. Maune]

My guess is that they were selling well, or at least better than expected at first, but that sales have dropped off since that time.

[Sigma]

It's price, UMD movies should cost $10-$15 and they cost $20-$30 which is way too much considering I can buy a DVD loaded with special features for half the price.

[Andrew T. Hingson]

Exactly.

[.Automatisch]

They have no point of existence. Had they been the only way to view video on the PSP, they may have sold a bit better. But the majority of people can just encode their own stuff, or just download it pre-encoded for them off of BT.

[Dogbert]

Here's another source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/6144463.html


An abundance of formats and piracy (DVDs can be ripped to larger memory sticks) are cited as likely causes for the falling demand, which right now nets about 40,000 to 50,000 units sold for the average release, according to Variety.Ripping a DVD to a memory stick is NOT piracy. Back-up copies are perfectly legal.

[Beat]

mp4 made the UMD obsolete. Been saying it forever. Now if the cost was reduced, or they could be used on the PS3 (hint hint!), then maybe it wouldn't be a total loss.

[Lord Andy]

The problem is that UMDs cost more to make then a DVD. I guess people are finally realizing it's not really worth buying a formate that's can only be played on one device, usually has no special features, and costs more money.

Of course, Sony is thinking about making an adapter for the PSP so that you can watch your UMDs on your regular TV. Of course, to me, that just screams out even more to just buy a portable DVD player that costs less in every aspect!

[email2003]

Well in my opinon, UMD videos are worthless. Here's why:

They cost more than a 2 disk DVD movie.
People don't own PSP's cause they keep complaining about the $249 price.
UMD movies only have just the plain movie with no extras. (Some do, others have at least some extra features.)
If you were select a UMD/DVD movie like for example: Final Fantasy VII, and the UMD is around $24.99 and only contains the movie and nothing else while the DVD is priced at $19.99 and it's a 2 disk with 5.1 surround sound and etc, which do you think sounds like a better deal!?
Like it's obvious to everyone, you could buy a 1GB or 2GB stick and download a full length movie and upload it to your stick to view off your PSP.

[Nin-Nin69]

Of course, Sony is thinking about making an adapter for the PSP so that you can watch your UMDs on your regular TV. Of course, to me, that just screams out even more to just buy a portable DVD player that costs less in every aspect!

Well I'd rather play games off the PSP on my TV than watch movies from my PSP on TV.;)

[Tak Mazé]

I don't think they're such a bad idea personally. I mean, you can only fault them for their price and you aren't forced into buying them. It's just there, should you ever decide to use it.
I expect they'll be lowering the prices soon anyway. Either that, or Hong Kong will start selling pirates over eBay once they find out how to mass produce them.

[Conekiller]

If they could take the UMD concept, and apply it to larger disks that, you know, play on large screens with awesome sound system I woudl be extatic.

but all the reasons email posted up above apply directly to me.

[Tak Mazé]

If the discs were larger, they wouldn't fit in the reader at all o_o.
If you mean DVD's with cartridge type outsides, you can buy DVD-RAM carts. They're like floppy discs, but instead of the flimsy black ring inside, there's a double sided DVD.

[auto]

Instead of selling them individually, Sony should just bundle them with their DVD releases. This would be a great way to turn UMD movies from a gimmick to a unique selling point of the PSP, to raise awareness of the system by DVD collectors and to satisfy those who wouldn't want to lose special features in exchange for portability.

[Conekiller]

If you mean DVD's with cartridge type outsides, you can buy DVD-RAM carts. They're like floppy discs, but instead of the flimsy black ring inside, there's a double sided DVD.

I could totally get behind that technology! I'm getting sick of my disks (CD, DVD) magically getting scratched when the only travel they see is from cases to players and back. That is what I meant by "make UMDs bigger"

[Artimus Gigan]

I could totally get behind that technology! I'm getting sick of my disks (CD, DVD) magically getting scratched when the only travel they see is from cases to players and back. That is what I meant by "make UMDs bigger"
For DVDs and CDs they have this skin for them where the cover wraps around them for protection and can still be played by the hardware.

[Invader_Spooch]

3 words.

Blank.

UMD.

Disks.

I demand the ability to make my custom music and video UMDs (so I can carry my entire video and music collection around with me). I enjoy the 1Gig and all, but constantly swapping out videos can get kind of tedious (and when I'm on the road, I tend to run out of stuff to watch on my memory stick quickly).

[Conekiller]

For DVDs and CDs they have this skin for them where the cover wraps around them for protection and can still be played by the hardware.

that always struck me as something that worked in theory. Wouldn't the cover prevent the CD from spinning smoothly?

[Artimus Gigan]

that always struck me as something that worked in theory. Wouldn't the cover prevent the CD from spinning smoothly?
it's transparent and very thin(but tough) so it can read the discs

[Dark Fact]

Face it. The PSP was designed to be a portable version of the Sony Playstation. It was designed to PLAY GAMES! Watching movies and playing music on it should just be extra. Yet, when I walk into a local EB, I see that UMD movies greatly outnumber PSP games. WTF? Add to the fact that the majority of the movies sold on these discs were box office flops! WTF???

Is Sony trying to put their games on the backburner just so they can give the PSP more spotlight as a movie player? If so, they need to rethink their marketing strategy. Gamers buy game systems to play games, not solely to watch movies. If Sony isn't going to wake up and smell the coffee, they'll have the pants beaten off of them by Nintendo.

I've seen Sony's PSP games and they are just beautiful to play on the portable system. It would be a shame if the system flopped because it has the potential to compete with Nintendo. :sad:


Instead of selling them individually, Sony should just bundle them with their DVD releases. This would be a great way to turn UMD movies from a gimmick to a unique selling point of the PSP, to raise awareness of the system by DVD collectors and to satisfy those who wouldn't want to lose special features in exchange for portability.
Actually, my dear auto, they'll just use them as coasters.

[Doz Hewson]

mp4 made the UMD obsolete. Been saying it forever. Now if the cost was reduced, or they could be used on the PS3 (hint hint!), then maybe it wouldn't be a total loss.

About the UMD concept:It's not my thing;I've never personally seen nor held
one. MP4 is a video/music delivery/storage format,right? My question is about
the future of music filing:Is there life after the MP3 player? There must be
something that's replacing MP3 regarding players,right?

[Artimus Gigan]

Is there life after the MP3 player? There must be
something that's replacing MP3 regarding players,right?
Music Brain Implants

[Swordfish_II]

Instead of selling them individually, Sony should just bundle them with their DVD releases. This would be a great way to turn UMD movies from a gimmick to a unique selling point of the PSP, to raise awareness of the system by DVD collectors and to satisfy those who wouldn't want to lose special features in exchange for portability.

http://www.joystiq.com/2006/02/09/sony-pictures-to-offer-dvd-umd-bundles/

[atf487]

UMDs aren't selling well because its a terrible idea. A more expensive format that can only be used on one product! OH MAN, SIGN ME UP!

If UMDs were less than dvds it might be worth it. Less features for less money makes sense. But the current situation is asinine.

[Nin-Nin69]

3 words.

Blank.

UMD.

Disks.

I demand the ability to make my custom music and video UMDs (so I can carry my entire video and music collection around with me). I enjoy the 1Gig and all, but constantly swapping out videos can get kind of tedious (and when I'm on the road, I tend to run out of stuff to watch on my memory stick quickly).

They do sell them on the internet and have devices to burn them, but it's no better than those Blue Ray burners comming out on the market. :shrug:

[GagaMan]

There certialy seems to be a hell of a lot of UMD movies out there, although I can't see many people wanting to re-buy their films all over again just to run them on one handheld. I think Sony are hoping for UMD to become a huge format, but I can't see it happening much. Who wants to bet that Sony will release portable UMD players (i.e just plays the movie discs) at some point, to make up for the poor-ish sales of PSP and to make all those 100's of titles worth owning?

[Artimus Gigan]

There certialy seems to be a hell of a lot of UMD movies out there, although I can't see many people wanting to re-buy their films all over again just to run them on one handheld. I think Sony are hoping for UMD to become a huge format, but I can't see it happening much. Who wants to bet that Sony will release portable UMD players (i.e just plays the movie discs) at some point, to make up for the poor-ish sales of PSP and to make all those 100's of titles worth owning?
I don't see stand alone UMD players happening, the PSP sales are just a 1:2 ratio compared to the DS, it's certainly not poor. It's closer than their console counterparts ever were.

[Chad Bonin]

I don't see stand alone UMD players happening, the PSP sales are just a 1:2 ratio compared to the DS, it's certainly not poor. It's closer than their console counterparts ever were.
Sony will most likely release a UMD player, but probably only in Japan or something.

And yes, 1 PSP for 2 DSes is certainly poor in the eyes of Sony, who was expecting them to come in and dominate something like 3 PSPs for ever 1 DS (akin to how they stepped into the console arena).

And, actually, I'd say the consoles are closer. Remember Jedi Perrin's words, "The Gamecube reputation has suffered much more than actual sales have".

[Artimus Gigan]

Sony will most likely release a UMD player, but probably only in Japan or something.

And yes, 1 PSP for 2 DSes is certainly poor in the eyes of Sony, who was expecting them to come in and dominate something like 3 PSPs for ever 1 DS (akin to how they stepped into the console arena).

And, actually, I'd say the consoles are closer. Remember Jedi Perrin's words, "The Gamecube reputation has suffered much more than actual sales have". If the GC sold 1:2 compared to the PS2 it would be up to 50 instead of 20

Sony may have oversteped in their hypothosis, but it's certainly not doing bad in reality.

[Chad Bonin]

If the GC sold 1:2 compared to the PS2 it would be up to 50 instead of 20

Sony may have oversteped in their hypothosis, but it's certainly not doing bad in reality.
Here's the thing... you need to provide "frame of reference". 50 what?

[Artimus Gigan]

Here's the thing... you need to provide "frame of reference". 50 what?
50 Million instead of 20 million

being that Playstation 2 has sold over 100 million consoles, a 1:2 ratio would garner a much higher sales number for the gamecube, so even if the system is selling more than a 1:2 ratio to it's competator it still warrents development.