The open DVD, or digital video disc, format received a boost Monday when the home-video divisions of 20th Century Fox and Paramount Pictures announced they would enter the market with titles from their catalog of top-sellers.
Fox, which was part of the initial Divx rollout, said its first six DVD titles–including “The Abyss,” “Porky’s,” “Hope Floats” and “Home Alone 3”–would be priced at $29.98 and $34.98, and hit stores on Nov. 3.
Paramount’s DVD launch is set for Oct. 6, with “Star Trek: First Contact,” “Face/Off,” “The Saint,” “Kiss the Girls” and “Twilight,” all priced at $29.95.
Paramount also is commited to the Divx format–which, essentially, is a pay-per-view version of DVD–but its titles aren’t expected to become available until Divx’s national rollout this fall.
“We have been watching the development of the marketplace and the various antipiracy measures very closely,” said Patricia Wyatt, president of Fox Consumer Products. “It has reached the point where we will make our entry with a varied mix of titles on DVD.”
Paramount will release “Titanic” on videocassette Sept. 1, but it has yet to announce a date for the DVD or Divx release.
A spokeswoman said the company could provide a date for laserdisc sales in the next few weeks.
