Anyone duplicating BD for distro?

farss wrote on 9/29/2008, 4:02 PM
Only thinking about 2nd tier distribution of under 500 copies, typical runs 50 to 200 copies. The "story" I listened to yesterday from the head of the DVD Association sent shivers down my spine. I'm taking what I heard as FUD until proven otherwise, then again there's serious money involved.
And why do we need worry about AACS, never really needed content protection in the past ?

Bob.

Comments

Steve Mann wrote on 9/29/2008, 9:22 PM
Your question is ambiguous. Are you asking if any forum regulars do low-volume BD distribution or if there are any replication shops that will do low-volume BD?

Since you mentioned AACS, then I suspect the latter.

The cost of production makes low-volume BD production cost-prohibitive. Outfits like DiskMakers.com will do BD-R in that volume.

If it's the former question, I have never had a client ask about HD. That may change as I try to move into the small to medium business video productions.
corug7 wrote on 9/29/2008, 9:36 PM
Yeah, duplication is the way to go for smaller quantities.
farss wrote on 9/29/2008, 11:00 PM
Sorry to be vague.

Specifically we have an existing process of shoot, edit, author and duplicate. The latter done on tower copiers when replication is not economically viable.
I thought costing out switching to HD and BD distro was going to be a simple matter. Buy suitable cameras, have software, buy new duplicators. All capital items. If they're any licencing fees for duplication inhouse that could take quite a bit off the bottom line. Specifically these titles are for sale, for profit.

And yes, no one so far is asking for HD content on BD. However it's certainly in the wind and it's always wise in business to be prepared so that when someone asks we can say 'Sure things, it'll costs an extra $xx.xx per copy.

Bob.

Steve Mann wrote on 9/30/2008, 9:59 PM
Currently, replication of Blu-Ray discs is *very* expensive for the low volume independent producer. The BD replicator's license *REQUIRES* that you purchase an AAVC key and pay a royalty on every disc made. There is NO option to not have copy-protection.
farss wrote on 9/30/2008, 10:32 PM
That much I'd kind of figured out.
Am I correct though in assuming we could duplicate as many as we wanted to inhouse without getting tangled up in licencing issues. From what I'd read here sometime ago there appears to be no issues making your own BDs for familiy and friends or maybe even smallish runs. My concerns relate to duplicating inhouse say 100 discs for sale, ideally with the BD logo on them, legally.

Bob.
Steve Mann wrote on 10/1/2008, 12:06 PM
Just as with the DVD logo, you can't use the BD logo legally without a license. Unlike BD the licensing of the DVD logo is not expensive or prohibitively priced. The DV logo is normally licensed to the duplication house. Once. So, if you send a master disc to a duplicating shop, they have the license and the verification capabilities to legally put the DVD logo on your product. You may pay a few cents per copy for the logo and it may be rolled into the dupe price.

The BD logo requires an expensive license *per title* and a higher per disc fee. The licensing and per disc fee makes duplication and many low-volume replication runs prohibitively expensive.

I am trying to find it again but there was a recent article, I think in Post Magazine, about the Blu-Ray licensing being its' own worst enemy with the prohibitive licensing terms that effectively lock out the independent movie producer. If anyone here recognizes this article, I would like to save a copy.