DVD Prices (For Television)

[Kaodi]

Am I the only one who thinks that many old series DVDs are priced way too high? I mean, we're essentially talking about windfall profits here, aren't we? Cost of Production = Disc + Cover + Shipping = Peanuts and yet it costs $60 (Cdn.) for HALF a season of the original Transformers series. I mean, they couldn't even of conceived of selling in this fashion twenty years ago, yet it now would cost me likely over $500 to get the complete series on DVD. A cartoon series at that.

 

[Ranger REG]

Am I the only one who thinks that many old series DVDs are priced way too high?

How old are we talking about?

Did it undergo digital remastering, or a simple film/tape/laserdisc-to-DVD transfer?

How many seasons/series worth of episodes are in one [boxed] set?

How popular when it first aired? Did it have a cult following?

 

[trancejeremy]

No, you're not alone. They basically have a captive audience, so they charge as much as they think they can get away with.

 

[drothgery]

I didn't buy DVDs of Star Trek: DS9 at ~$100/season. When Amazon finally dropped them to the ~$50/season that other hour-long genre dramas went for, I snapped the entire series up pretty quickly. I might have been willing to pay more if other shows (most notably Buffy and Angel) hadn't established the $50/season mark for me.

 

[The_lurkeR]

Am I the only one who thinks that many old series DVDs are priced way too high?

No, it is crazy. The shows have already paid for themselves many times over through the initial airing and syndication in most cases.

 

[Crothian]

No, it is crazy. The shows have already paid for themselves many times over through the initial airing and syndication in most cases.

Ya, damn those people wanting to make money!!

A DVD movie is 2 hours and it costs 20 bucks. A Season of shows can be about 15 hours and costs about 60 or more or less. You get a lot for your bucks.

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

It can get really complicated with older stuff. In many cases, the rights to a DVD release aren't clear and have to be hashed out/renegotiated. A lot of times, you've got more people involved that want a piece of the pie than you do with current series. Music redistribution rights alone have killed or delayed the availability of a lot of shows, and in many cases they've had to go back and re-dub or replace the original music.

 

[Elf Witch]

I think it depends on the tV show. I thought shows like Trek, X-Files. B5 and Farscape were way to high when they first came out and I bought them used or I waited until they came down in price.

I have found a lot of older shows to be rather well priced. I picked up Greatest American Hero form Deep Discount for 19.95, Planet of the Apes TV show for 15.99 at Wal-Marts.

I also think it depends on where you buy your DVD box sets. I usually buy mine at Deep Dicount or Wal-marts if it is a good price.

And sometimes I buy at Borders book store when I have a great coupon for example I just got one for 40% of and I have a shopping day that gives me another 10% off so I am going to pick up Brisco County Junior for half price.

 

[DaveMage]

I think it depends on the series.

For example, I won't buy "Enterprise" at over $100/season. I would buy Enterprise at $25/season. I won't buy "Voyager" at $80/season. I would buy Voyager at $5 a season.

Babylon 5 (for all 5 seasons) was in the $400s for a while (and I didn't buy), but when it hit $150, I bought right away.

Amazon is having specials on many series right now, so you may want to check them out.

I'm waiting for DS9 to get under $30 a season, then I'll buy seasons 4-7.

 

[Ranger REG]

And sometimes I buy at Borders book store when I have a great coupon for example I just got one for 40% of and I have a shopping day that gives me another 10% off so I am going to pick up Brisco County Junior for half price.

I thought you can't use your Personal Shopping Day discount with any other discount.