[JonD]

Originally Posted by The~Governor

You keep talking about Fremantle Media but the DVDs are actually being released by Shock - is Shock the distribution arm of Fremantle or something?

Shock Entertainment are an Australian company, who own the Wordlwide rights to P:CBH. Fremantle Home Entertainment are the company releasing P:CBH in the UK. Trust me. I know what I'm talking about.

Originally Posted by Robert

wow JonD..you make some fair points although some of the comments are perhaps slightly patronising
and also unless you work for fremantle you can't be sure on some of the points you make
I wouldn't have said people are being selfish in what they have said..even if it may seem that way to you

I apologise if my comments appear patronising. They aren't intended to be. I am simply trying to get across the point, that people are whinging and (proverbially) jumping-up-and-down over not hearing any news. My argument, is that fans have no right to demand information, AND that there may be a perfectly legitimate reason for why there is no news on Volume 14, and that people need to be more patient. Unless you've worked within the industry (I have, and I'm going to assume most of you haven't - though I'm happy to be corrected), then it can appear to a distributor that fans expect and demand to know information, and if they don't get it, they throw their toys out of the pram, like babies.

Has anyone contacted Fremantle? Has anyone e-mailed them, telephoned them, or written to them? If the answer is "no", then maybe those of you who do want to know, should try thinking outside of the box, rather than just moaning on one Forum, that nobody's supplying you with information.

Also, whilst you are right in that I don't know what's happening, I did use the words "maybe" to make my point, thus explaining that these are possibilities, not facts.

Originally Posted by sam tyler

Why is it that on just about every forum whether it be blu-rays, Doctor who figures or dvds, there is always someone that blindly thinks consumers should be eternally grateful to the distributor just for releasing their product?

Umm, that's not what I'm saying. Fans should be greatful, especially for a show like P:CBH which runs for such a long time (692 episodes, I believe, at about 50-minutes each!), but they should also be a little less demanding from distributors. Sometimes things happen, that the distributor has no control over. In this thread, some of the fans are demanding information, that they have no automatic right to know of.

Asking for info, is one thing. Expecting and demanding it, are another. It's the latter, I have an issue over.

Originally Posted by sam tyler

You say that they are not making much profit from Prisoner dvds, well I can assure you they are not releasing them out of the goodness of their hearts either.

That's true enough. But Fremantle also release other stuff, alongside P:CBH and so fans of this show, can't expect a monopoly, just because they want it. Releasing films and DVD's/Blu-Ray's is a juggling act, when it comes to deciding what titles to release, and when to release them. Decisions are often made weeks or months in advance, but sometimes problems occur along the way, and a release is delayed.

All I am saying, is that fans should NOT be demanding information from Fremantle. They can ask for it. They can politely request it. They can make enquiries. They should not, however, demand it!

Originally Posted by sam tyler

It shouldn't be too much for collectors to ask for a little commitment from the distributor, after all, they ask for our commitment in continuing to buy their product.

I would have thought that 13 volumes, demonstrates a BIG commitment to the series. Distributors take a gamble on some films and shows. They can't make people buy them and nor would they. But just because there appears to be a demand for something, doesn't necessarily mean that that demand will equate into actual sales.

P:CBH is a small, cult TV show, with finite appeal, to a small, but loyal audience. It's never been a major success. It's never had mass appeal. As such, over a year's worth of releases from Fremantle, it's not going to be one that is going to be given the highest priority.

Originally Posted by sam tyler

You seem to think we are not entitled to this information or any explanations, personally I think its a big ask to expect someone to buy 13 dvds of a series and take it on blind faith that the rest of the set will be released and risk owing a completely worthless half a series should they not be, especially considering the time period here which they are released over.

You aren't entitled to that info! And I say this, as someone who collects films and TV shows. You can ask for the info. You can politely enquire for it, but you aren't entitled to it by automatic right!

As no one on here has contacted Fremantle directly, to enquire, then I would recommend to those of you who DO want to know what's happening, that you contact them directly. Their contact details will be easily available on the Net, so it shouldn't pose too much of a problem for any of the fans amongst you, in this thread.

Originally Posted by sam tyler

Would it really take that much effort from the distributor to announce their commitment to bring out the full set if only to put collectors minds at rest? Well apparently it would.

In the case of a series liek P:CBH the commitment is a long one. Therefore, even with the greatest will in the world, no company could guarantee 100% that all the episodes will definitely be released in the UK. It's like asking someone to guarantee that the sun will rise tomorrow. There's a 99.9% chance it will rise, but there may be a time when it may not. There's no absolutes, when it comes to film and TV releases.

And anyway, I think more fans would be pissed-off if Fremantle promised to release all the show, and then failed to do so. It's the lesser of two evils, I'm afraid. Never promise something that you may fail to deliver. That's the general adage that most small, independant film companies abide by.

Originally Posted by sam tyler

Is it selfish of people who are regularly parting with their hard earned money to want to know they wont be left high and dry with a worthless half set of dvds, I don't think it is actually.

That depends on which side of the fence you sit on. As I've said, the distributor's could promise you they will release every P:CBH episode. But, let's say another 5 years down the line, they're two-thirds of the way into the show's release, and the company goes belly-up, through no fault of anyone's. How would you feel, as a P:CBH fan, if Fremantle promised you that you'd see all of the releases occur, and then it doesn't happen?

I suspect you'd be livid.

From a fan's point of view, yes, you want to be sure that if you commit yourself to a major purchase, like P:CBH, that you'll be able to buy the entire run. So I fully understand where you are coming from. However, the fact remains, that there are no guarantee's in life. Even less, when it comes to the vaguries and highly complex issues surrounding DVD releases.

No one, from any DVD company, unless they were one of the major's like Fox, Universal or Warner Bros, could assure you that they would release every single episode of P:CBH, because they'd either have to release all the volumes together, all at once, or they'd have to invest a significant sum of money, to be able to do it - and I'm talking sums in the order of several hundred thousand pounds, or maybe even a million or more!

No such company has that kind of income to just release all 692 episodes of P:CBH all in one go. And how many of you, would have the £600-or so quid available, to buy all of the episodes in one go, anyway?

Not many, I'd guess.

In Australia, they released the entire series in one go, but at a cost of about £600. It was a very limited release, however, and people were able to pre-order it to secure a copy. Thus the distributor knew roughly how many people were willing to commit to it.

For reasons of economy, the UK has decided to release each Volume, with 16 discs in it - double what each of the Australian ones got. However, it's still a major investment, and any company, is going to have toe a fine line between making a profit, whilst trying their best to eek out as many sales as possible, whilst - fingers crossed - hopefully being able to complete the show's entire run.

If they do complete it, it will be the longest ever release in UK history!

That's one hell of a commitment.