European Blu-ray sales have doubled in a year, according to figures for the first quarter of 2010 released by Digital Entertainment Group Europe.

The first section of this year saw Europe-wide disc sales leap by 94% as Blu-ray fans collectively forked out for over 8 million new discs. The previous year saw an increase of a similar amount, indicating that the growth of the discerning movie buff’s favourite format shows no sign of abating.

Things are looking up for Q2 of 2010, too, as high-profile releases such as Avatar continue to smash records.

However, Blu-ray is still lagging somewhat behind DVD in terms of overall sales performance, with the older format still outselling the HD discs by 10-1.

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Paramount Home Entertainment has announced that they are recalling all copies of the special 2-disc blu-ray edition of ‘Saving Private Ryan’.

Apparently there’s a significant audio glitch somewhere on the disc which Technicolor, the people responsible for the transfer, failed to notice at the pre-release quality control stage.

The recall applies to all copies in the US, UK and Benelux regions. Quite how this problem slipped through the net on such a long awaited, high profile BR transfer is anyone’s guess.

The full press release from Paramount reads as follows:

Paramount Home Entertainment today announced that it is recalling the Sapphire Series Blu-ray edition of Saving Private Ryan recently released in North America, the United Kingdom and the Benelux countries due to an audio synch error that occurred during Technicolor’s authoring process. Although Technicolor employs comprehensive quality control measures, in this instance the issue was not detected prior to replication.

“Technicolor has been a valuable partner to Paramount Home Entertainment, and both Paramount and Technicolor are committed to providing the highest quality product to consumers,” said Dennis Maguire, President, Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment Worldwide. “Our Sapphire Series was created to present our greatest films with the finest picture and sound quality available. Saving Private Ryan is a five time Academy Award® winning film including Best Director from one of America’s most acclaimed filmmakers so we are recalling this edition to ensure that every Blu-ray disc honors Steven Spielberg’s vision.”

Technicolor has set up the following toll-free numbers for consumers who have already purchased the Saving Private Ryan Sapphire Series Blu-ray, which provides details on how they can receive a replacement copy—US and Canada: 888-370-8621, UK: 08000-852-613. Consumers can also return the Blu-ray to the stores where they purchased the product to receive a replacement. Technicolor expects to have replacement discs available at retail no later than Tuesday, May 18.

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Simultaneously it was announced that Avatar notched up a total of 6.7 million sales on DVD and Blu-ray in North America in 4 days.

According to Steven Leighton, Senior Vice President, TCFHE Northern Europe and Asia, “The incredible day one sales figures illustrate the urgency that fans of all ages have to return to the world of Pandora and more significantly, experience Pandora in high-definition.”

Special features not included.

However, the current Avatar Blu-ray release, though no doubt a big draw for all BR junkies, does not include a 3D version, which isn’t slated until November. This means that Avatar will not, contrary to what we all might expect, be among the first wave of 3D Blu-ray releases, with Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs and Monsters Vs. Aliens likely to hit the shelves first.

Looks like we’re all going to have to wait a little longer for the full Pandora experience.

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3D is going to make 2D look like 1D.

Not content with his $232 million box-office haul from over the weekend, director James Cameron is already thinking ahead to the inevitable Blu-ray release for Avatar.

Considering most of the hype (and serious awards consideration), seems to be centered around Cameron’s unprecedented use of 3D technology – and the recent announcement that the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) has adopted official 3D specs for the format – many were wondering about whether or not Blu-ray 3D had found its killer app (so to speak).

Speaking with MTV, Cameron acknowledged Avatar is expected to hit home video before summer, but just a standard release. However, the auteur does have plans for a Blu-ray 3D release sometime in the future.

“Probably the initial Blu-ray release of Avatar won’t be in 3-D and then a subsequent release will be in 3-D. That’s my guess right now,” said Cameron, “So we will probably put out a disk, you know, in six or eight months, let’s call it six months, and then after that we will have a 3-D disc when there are enough sets available.”

There is good news for fans who want more of the Skittle-colored world of Pandora and its inhabitants. It seems deleted scenes with the Na’vi, pulled from the theatrical cut, will find their way back into the standard Blu-ray release.

“It’s all wonderful stuff, but it was sort of bogging down the middle section of the movie. There’s plenty for a value-added DVD experience on this film. Of course, we’ll have to go punch it all up and get it all mixed and stuff like that.”

So we might have to wait a little bit longer for Avatar in 3D, but it is coming.

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What do you mean you left the ring at home?

After months of speculation, Warner Home Video put the rumors to rest announcing The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy on Blu-ray. The massive, Academy Award-winning epic will finally make the leap to high-definition after years of anticipation, just as the cameras start to roll on Guillermo Del Toro’s Hobbit adaptation.

The nine-disc Blu-ray set is scheduled for release on April 6th in the US, and tentatively scheduled for April 10th in UK territories. While most of the supplemental material is said to be comprised from the DVD sets, the boxset will include digital copies of each film and BD Live access.

The Lord of the Rings trilogy, an ambitious undertaking by filmmaker Peter Jackson to adapt J.R.R. Tolkien’s acclaimed fantasy works, is one of the most commercially and critically successful film series of all-time. To date, the series has hauled in almost $3 billion in worldwide box-office revenue and tied a record for Oscars won – at seventeen.

The only negative bullet point is the exclusion of the extended releases developed for home video, meaning that Warner Bros. is preparing a double-dip with an Extended Edition set sometime in the near future – likely to coincide with the promotion of the Peter Jackson-produced Hobbit adaptation.

Anxious fans can begin to pre-order the boxset on March 2nd, and it will carry a MSRP of $99.99.

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To infinity and... something, something.

Disney/Pixar finally started feeding out information to retailers for the much-anticipated release of Toy Story 1 & 2 on Blu-ray, and the good news is, we’re just a few months away.

Both titles will be released with a bevy of supplemental material – and in combo packs with a standard definition DVD disc – on March 23rd to anxious US audiences. There is no release date for UK territories as of print.

Re-released earlier this year in the Disney Digital 3D format as a double feature, Toy Story 1 & 2 saw a resurgence in demand – nearly fifteen years after the original film debuted in theaters.

Arguably one of the most popular children’s series of all-time, grossing just under $1 billion worldwide, Tom Hanks and Tim Allen are set to reprise their roles as Woody and Buzz Lightyear for Toy Story 3 (due next year).

Both discs will include a sneak peek at Toy Story 3, as well as making-of featurettes, animated shorts, artist featurettes and promotional material. Most of the specs are still unconfirmed, but information generated by retailers list both titles with BD-Live support.

With the 3D Blu-ray technology likely to hit retail shelves next year, is it too early to request 3D reissues of both Toy Story movies?

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Jesse Eisenberg as Michael Cera in a zombie comedy.

Sony Pictures announced that it will be releasing its horror-comedy, Zombieland, on Blu-ray this February 2nd in the US and February 22nd in UK territories.

Directed by Ruben Fleischer, the American horror-comedy pulled the zombie genre out of a slump with its unexpected $85 million box-office haul. Developed by Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese, Zombieland depicts a quartet of post-apocalyptic survivors against a nation of undead.

(Left 4 Dead anyone?)

The two-disc Blu-ray set comes loaded with supplemental material, including some Sony-specific features. BD Live fans will be able to access the relatively new movieIQ technology through the disc, and PlayStation 3 owners will find a nifty surprise in the form of pre-packaged wallpaper for their system backgrounds.

Also planned is Picture-in-Picture commentary, full audio commentary with principal cast and crew, behind-the-scenes featurette, retrospective feature, visual effects featurette, promotional material and a standard digital copy.

And don’t let its snide American sensibilities fool you, the film is quite good.

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Welcome... to Jurassic Park!

Hoping to bridge the gap between the two formats, Universal Studios Home Entertainment announced that it was going to start producing dual-format “flipper” discs; home video releases that will include Blu-ray video on one side of the disc, and standard definition DVD on the other side.

The use of digital copies is common practice with marquee Blu-ray releases, but this is the first genuine attempt to combine both formats on a single disc.

The studio major is promising to debut the new “flipper” disc with its release of the Bourne trilogy, set for release in January 27th in the US and March 30th in the UK.

“Universal’s flipper discs are the perfect way for consumers to future-proof their collections while still enjoying their favorite movies on all their existing DVD players,” said Craig Kornblau, President of Universal Studios Home Entertainment.

“The flipper disc offers an easy way for viewers to convert to Blu-ray now or at any time in the future, confident in the fact they will be able to experience their home entertainment purchases in the highest quality picture and sound when they do.”

With rumors and speculation abound that the film industry will enact severe measures within the next year to avert lagging DVD sales, future proofing owners might squeeze a little more life from the aging format before the inevitable transition to Blu-ray.

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Arguably the greatest performer of his era.

Sony Pictures announced Michael Jackson’s This Is It for Blu-ray, slated for release on January 26th in US territories. The film documents Jackson’s final rehearsal performances before his untimely death in his Los Angeles home last June.

Although the self-proclaimed King of Pop never got to carry out his “This Is It” tour in the London O2 arena, AEG Live was able to secure enough footage to give fans one last performance.

Released just two months ago, the documentary became the highest grossing documentary of all-time, grossing over $230 million worldwide. It launched as the number one film at the US box office the weekend of its release, grossing over $23 million in just three days.

Due to popular demand, its theatrical run will extend into December for UK audiences.

The Blu-ray will come loaded with two making-of documentaries, eight featurettes which include interviews with crew and collaborators, all-new Smooth Criminal vignette, making-of Smooth Criminal featurette, all-new Thriller vignette, movieIQ, interactive playlist and BD Live support.

No word yet on details or specs for the inevitable Region 2 release.

1. Sony launches site for Snatch Blu-ray One could say, you should 'snatch' it up.

If you see any of these folks, walk on the opposite side of the sidewalk.

Guy Ritchie’s classic caper, Snatch, finally makes its way stateside on a BD-50 disc December 1st – just in time for the holidays.

To celebrate the occasion, Sony Pictures has launched a website (www.diamondanddag.com) for the Blu-ray release, featuring a Pikey translator, soundboard and a sweepstakes entry that will send two applicants to London.

Snatch, the 2000 crime-drama that proved to be Ritchie’s breakthrough film, tells the the intertwining tale of a jewel heist gone wrong and the trials and tribulations of a small-time boxing promoter named The Turkish (portrayed by Jason Statham).

The low-budget film went on to gross over $80 million worldwide, and proved to be a career launching pad for producer/director Matthew Vaughn and actors Vinnie Jones and Jason Statham.

The Blu-ray release comes loaded with extras, including a full commentary with Guy Ritchie and Matthew Vaughn, deleted scenes, making of featurette, video photo gallery, Pikey subtitles, promotional material and movieIQ support.

Our lucky UK readers have had a full two months to enjoy their copies, so maybe they can tell us how good the Blu-ray release is.

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