BASE Working With DEG Europe to Promote 4K Blu-ray
19 Jul, 2017 By: Erik Gruenwedel
British home entertainment trade group BASE is reportedly working with DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group Europe to increase consumer awareness of 4K UHD Blu-ray Disc in the United Kingdom.
The two trade organizations have formed a 4K UHD working group with the intent of informing retailers, hardware manufactures and consumers on the merits of the new HD packaged-media format.
“There have been some fantastic cross-category initiatives on 4K UHD driven out of the DEG group in the U.S.,” Liz Bales, chief executive of BASE, said in a statement. “To ensure that this format is a success, it’s vital that we work in a similar collaborative fashion and take on board [that insight] from DEG.”
DEGE is a sister group to Los Angeles-based DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group. Euro members include 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, ASG, Cinram, Dolby Europe Limited, HBO Home Entertainment International, Lionsgate UK, Paramount Home Entertainment, Rovi Corp., Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Sony DADC, Technicolor, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and Universal Pictures.
Bales said once the working group is up and running, it would reach out to external partners to ensure there is a “truly joined up” approach to cross category promotion and consumer education for 4K UHD across the UK & Europe.
Launched in February 2016 in the United States, 4K UHD Blu-ray Disc movies became available in Europe last April. Studios are expected to release 250 titles in the format this year, on top of more than 100 titles released in 2016.
More than 1.8 million 4K Blu-ray Disc movies were sold domestically in 2016, according to DEG. The top-selling title was Fox's Deadpool.