Marketing DVDs - ad vice?

Subject: Marketing DVDs - advice?
From: GUEST,Dunkle at work
Date: 08 Jun 04 - 12:00 PM

Here's a question, just kind of off the top of my head...
Let's say that someone has an idea about marketing DVDs that would have something to do with music. (Kind of like what Stefan Grossman does, but not really).
1. What would one need in terms of equipment to do the producing? And didn't I see recently that Sony(?) is beginning to market digital movie cameras that record directly to DVD?

2. What kind of arrangement would the producer make with the artist? Is there a standard percentage of gross sales that he/she would get? Some other arrangement? How does that work?

I'm sure your answers or comments will raise other questions. Thanks in advance for your input.
Dunkle

Subject: RE: Marketing DVDs - ad vice?
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 08 Jun 04 - 12:17 PM

" recently that Sony(?) is beginning to market digital movie cameras that record directly to DVD"

Depends on yer definition of recently... they've been in catalogues for a couple of years now... or more...

:-)

Subject: RE: Marketing DVDs - ad vice?
From: GUEST,Dunkle again
Date: 08 Jun 04 - 01:15 PM

Well, there you go - I didn't know that. Is that a good way to go?

Subject: RE: Marketing DVDs - ad vice?
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 08 Jun 04 - 01:16 PM

Sony has a "spotty" record with respect to their recording stuff. Remember BetaMax, the Memory Stick, Optical Drives – all concepts produced and marketed by Sony and subsequently abandoned.

Sony is a principal "sponsor" of DVD+R, which is their answer to paying licensing fees for using the DVD-R standard. Much Sony equipment is designed for the DVD+R format, which has fair playback compatibility with other equipment, but not quite as good as the DVD-R. While some recorders claim to offer "either format" there are many reports that the DVD-R compliance is "less than perfect" in many multi-format recorders. (DVD+RAM should be considered suitable only for data recording - not for playback applications.)

DVD-R is the only format that is controlled by a formal standard, as opposed to manufacturer's whim.

Burning DVDs on equipment accessible to most individuals, as with similar production of CDs, is not generally recommended except for small distrubutions where one can maintain a degree of direct customer contact to satisfy the inevitable quality/compatibility difficulties. "Commercial grade" DVDs and CDs are made differently, and if your distribution and marketing will be done through an agency, you should probably consider having distribution disks made commercially.

For the "mechanics," and one guy's recommendations for equipment and software, you might browse digitalFAQ. About 5 paragraphs down on the page linked, there's a "How to do video the digitalFAQ way" that will take you to a page describing (briefly) software and procedures that this guy uses. There's not much explanation of what each of the processes does, but there's at least a list of the processes you need to understand.

Note that you can't copy stuff from this site, but nearly all pages are available as downloadable .pdf if you go to the bottom of the page.

There are numerous other sites, and other knowledgeable guys and gals giving advice on video making, but this is the one I have handy. Someone will likely be along soon to link alternative opinions.

I can't comment on marketing.

John

Subject: RE: Marketing DVDs - ad vice?
From: M.Ted
Date: 08 Jun 04 - 02:54 PM

Just to so you keep things straight in your mind, if you want to make and sell DVDs(or CD's, or Films, or whatever), there are two distinct and different things that you need to worry about--production, which includes writing, shooting, and editing your magnum opus, and marketing, which includes packaging, promoting, and distributing the thing. Oh, and there is "talent" which are those people that stand in front of the camera.

You need to find someone to do each of the things that you can't do yourself, and you need to figure out how to pay all the expenses that everybody incurs. You also need to figure out how to pay everybody what they want, or be able to persuade them that it is worth doing for less, or even nothing.

Have you started to realize that the fact that you can now get a camera that records directly to DVD is relatively unimportant? The truth of the matter is that you will not know what equipment you will need until fairly late in the planning stages.

As to royalties(percentages), if you are using music(which one assumes), the mechanical fees are usually pre-established, and can be determined by contacting Harry Fox Associates(though these can be negotiated as well), other established fees, such as residuals, may come into play if you use broadcast distribution. The real advice is that you should go over all this stuff in advance of any agreements with an entertainment lawyer. You don't have to, of course, but business misunderstandings turn quickly into lawsuits--

Any questions, so far?