Published:
06-Oct-08
Warner Home Video (WHV) is reverting to single price points and single SKUs for all its DVD releases in the UK. In 2002 the studio was the first to abolish the exclusive rental window in Europe, whilst continuing to employ a two-tier pricing strategy for retail and rental in accordance with the European Rental Rights Directive.
Under the new policy, most titles will be priced at £13.61, but the studio may adopt a slightly higher or lower price point for select titles depending on the potential of the product. Top titles such as The Dark Knight may be priced slightly higher - reflecting the price premium in the suggested retail price (SRP) - while less familiar titles could be discounted.
For outlets offering both rental and retail, WHV will differentiate rental product from its retail equivalent using a 'Rental Copy' sleeve. The studio also intends to offer UK rental stores stronger promotional support.
Our take...
Warner was the first to introduce two-tier pricing in the UK and fought hard to ensure its application. The move away from two-tier pricing is a response to falling retail DVD prices and to the continuing decline of the DVD rental market making it increasingly difficult to justify a price premium for rental copies. Warner has said that it will continue to 'experiment' with release windows as DVD rental can act as part of a campaign to drive retail DVD sales.
Release windows were reintroduced in Spain earlier this year in an effort to reinvigorate the flailing rental market, although Screen Digest understands that this is not having a significant impact. Industry reports suggest that at least one distributor in the UK is looking much more carefully at offering rental windows to justify higher pricing for rental.
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