Blu-ray titles taking shape on pricing

So the inital reports are coming out about the cost of Blu-ray movies and I can't say that I am suprised. According to Ars the wholesale price will be $23.45 for new releases and $17.95 for older titles. After markup that puts titles between $23 and $39. You can bet that all new releases will come out at $40. I personally think this will be a hard sell for most consumers.

I personally consider myself an avid technofile. I have a large DVD and gaming library and you would never get me to spend $40 on a movie. I don't care if it is in 3D real life HD. It just ain't going to happen. Most of my movies have been purchase at or below the $15 pricepoint. That being said, good luck with that pricing model. If you can gouge the consumer that is good for you right?

My favorite quote from the article:

"The premium is for a way better format and to remind retailers that at the time we launched DVD, VHS was selling for $55 wholesale in the first window," Feingold said. "From the retail perspective, this is going to be a hot product, and retailers will no doubt determine their own margin structure," he said. "We believe in a free market."

Translation: we were charging a ton for VHS movies, but when DVD hit, we really wanted to spur DVD uptake, so we kept prices really low. With Blu-ray, there's no VHS cash cow, and DVD prices are already too cheap, so we're going to make the new movies cost a lot more. But don't worry, the retailers can opt for razor thin margins or even sell our movies as loss leaders. We don't care, so long as we get our cut.

Source: Ars Technica