Forum - View topic

NEWS: Clannad, Blue Drop, Ghost Hound, Tears to Tiara Get Dubs

At the risk of going off-topic, I've been wondering how consumers would react to a pre-order model as has been done with a couple recent video releases in Japan. Distributor X would announce a license acquisition and, partnering up with Amazon, Right Stuff, and other sellers, would require a certain minimum of pre-orders to produce a dub. If the minimum was not met, only a sub would be released. People who had pre-ordered would at least have the option to cancel if they don't want to own a sub-only version.

Would putting money down up front be preferable to upgrading, or would folks prefer to own a physical product while the dub status is up in the air?

Takeyo wrote:

At the risk of going off-topic, I've been wondering how consumers would react to a pre-order model as has been done with a couple recent video releases in Japan. Distributor X would announce a license acquisition and, partnering up with Amazon, Right Stuff, and other sellers, would require a certain minimum of pre-orders to produce a dub. If the minimum was not met, only a sub would be released. People who had pre-ordered would at least have the option to cancel if they don't want to own a sub-only version. Would putting money down up front be preferable to upgrading, or would folks prefer to own a physical product while the dub status is up in the air?

Actually, that's a really interesting idea. I prefer that arrangement over doing an upgrade.

Blood- wrote:

ZakuAce wrote: fWell I think it's pretty obvious - if you don't buy the sub-only, it won't be dubbed. But that's exactly what some of us have been warning against. I think Sentai has to decide if its going to be in the dub business consistently or not (like Funi is) or sub only business consistently (like Nozomi is, more or less). Because as a business model, the "release as sub-only, wait to see if sales are good enough and then bring out a dub with an upgrade program for those who bought the sub only" is not a good one for reasons that should be obvious.

Well it isn't obvious to me. I can't see how you getting a bilingual release at a discount because you bought the sub-only releases is a problem.

At the risk of going off-topic, I've been wondering how consumers would react to a pre-order model as has been done with a couple recent video releases in Japan. Distributor X would announce a license acquisition and, partnering up with Amazon, Right Stuff, and other sellers, would require a certain minimum of pre-orders to produce a dub. If the minimum was not met, only a sub would be released. People who had pre-ordered would at least have the option to cancel if they don't want to own a sub-only version.

Would putting money down up front be preferable to upgrading, or would folks prefer to own a physical product while the dub status is up in the air?

Takeyo: What are the recent video releases in Japan you're referring to? I hadn't heard about that at all and sortof thought with the expansion of BD that there was actually a lot of double-dipping going on in Japan currently, as opposed to cutting back...? (Not that this has any bearing on US consumers.)

Well it isn't obvious to me. I can't see how you getting a bilingual release at a discount because you bought the sub-only releases is a problem.

At the risk of going off-topic, I've been wondering how consumers would react to a pre-order model as has been done with a couple recent video releases in Japan. Distributor X would announce a license acquisition and, partnering up with Amazon, Right Stuff, and other sellers, would require a certain minimum of pre-orders to produce a dub. If the minimum was not met, only a sub would be released. People who had pre-ordered would at least have the option to cancel if they don't want to own a sub-only version.

Would putting money down up front be preferable to upgrading, or would folks prefer to own a physical product while the dub status is up in the air?

If you adopt this strategy and the property reaches its order quota, the consumers "reward" is a 2- or 3-month delay for maybe half the episode count you could crank out without dubbing.

Gosh, ZakuAce, I guess I'm just one of those weirdos who likes to buy a product once and not have to worry about dicking around later on. How would you feel about a car company that said, "Okay, we'll put out this basic model. IF it sells well enough, we MAY put out a more loaded version later on which you'll be able to get through our upgrade program." How successful do you think a car company like that would be?

Blood- wrote:

Gosh, ZakuAce, I guess I'm just one of those weirdos who likes to buy a product once and not have to worry about dicking around later on. How would you feel about a car company that said, "Okay, we'll put out this basic model. IF it sells well enough, we MAY put out a more loaded version later on which you'll be able to get through our upgrade program." How successful do you think a car company like that would be?

Sounds like the iPod, iPhone, and soon to be when the second gen iPad comes out.

Yeah I go for the generic versions when buying gadgets, but I just laugh at my friends "upgrading" every six months and paying out the nose for it. Do they not see why a proprietary body like Apple is doing what it is doing? I have the answer, and it is not because they didn't have the "technology" six months ago.

Anyway I am with you, I think this upgrade is good as a one shot deal, but if this becomes a normal affair then it is BS.

Me I will buy the shows I want dubbed, like most of these, when they come out. But I am tired of people screaming that I must buy something I don't want in order to get something I do. Have any of you even considered that ADV(Sentai, 23) is doing what they are doing because the sub only strategy has actually failed. Or at the very least reduced cash flow so much that they just can't obtain an optimum amount of capital. I not am saying that this is the case, but it seems that many of you aren't even considering the possibility. Or at the very least, that it is part of the rationale behind all of this. I also note that MB is in dire straits and they were one of the first to start putting out a bunch of sub-only releases.