Surround Excitement Spreads To DVD Music Videos

The conclusion of the March 1999 symposium on DVD music video, sponsored by the DVD Video Group and held at Sonyís New York City headquarters, is that musicians are more excited about multichannel surround sound, than they are the higher resolution capabilities of the upcoming DVD-Audio format.While music video never really took off on VHS or LaserDisc, producers are discovering that the 5.1-channel DVD-Video music video format is more suited to music programming, and as well the soon-to-be-introduced DVD-Audio format. While there is growing fascination with 5.1-channel soundtracks, costs are still daunting. Reportedly, producers can expect to spend anywhere from $18,000 to hundreds of thousands of dollars remixing for surround, depending on how important an artist is. To date, returns on DVD music videos have been dismal. According to VideoScan figures, only 11 DVD music video releases have sold more than 10,000 units. VideoScan, however, is projecting better prospects long-term for DVD music videos. (See chart.)DVDís Share Of Total Music Video Market1997 1.5%1998 5.7%1999 (to date) 12.0%Source: VideoScanThen too, the VideoScan tracking service is oblivious to the business in DVD music videos done on the Internet. The Internet is demonstrating that online sales are an increasingly significant component of the DVD marketplace. ""With some of our titles, Iím on the fourth printing or fifth printing, and VideoScan says I havenít even sold through the first printing yet,"" said Image Entertainmentís Vice President of Marketing, Garrett Lee. ""That tells me that those untracked Internet sales are through the roof.""