DMC Exclusive Disney Blus

[Ben]

So is that the whole DMC closing or just the Canadian club? Sounds like the latter (for now). I guess D+ plugs that gap now, except it doesn’t really, as we know.

I better take a look and see if there’s anything to and to your last order — I can think of one or two DVDs (gosh, remember them?) that I’d probably kick myself for not ever getting.

Shame, the end of an era for sure…

[Daniel]

Maybe it's just the Canada branch? Guess we'll see. Here's the email:

After serving Canadian households for 16 years, we’ve made the difficult decision to close Disney Movie Club in Canada effective October 15, 2023, as consumer behavior and viewing preferences continue to evolve.

It’s always been our mission to offer Club Members the best in Disney movies, along with Members-only perks and exclusive discounts. Unfortunately, declining Membership has made it challenging to continue Club operations.

We’ll be announcing your last Featured Title offer in August 2023 (and it’s a great one!). As always, you’ll have 10 days to accept or decline the Featured Title. The last date to place orders will be September 25, 2023.

Your Disney Movie Club account will be closed effective October 15, 2023. Our Customer Care Team and DisneyMovieClub.ca will continue to be available to you until then. If you have questions or need assistance, please reach out to a Disney Cast Member at 1‑800‑362‑4587, Monday through Friday, between 8 a.m. and 11 p.m. Eastern Time.

For key dates concerning refund types and unused credit, please see the FAQs.

We are incredibly grateful for the time you’ve chosen to spend with us. Thank you for being a valued Club Member! Keep wishing on those stars!


Sincerely,
Disney Movie Club Member Services


P.S.–Here’s a little “spoonful of sugar”...although Disney Movie Club is closing, you’ll still be able to purchase Disney Blu-rays™ and DVDs from your preferred retail provider throughout Canada.

For more detail, please visit the FAQs page at disneymovieclub.ca.

[Ben]

Yeah, def sounds like just the Canuck branch…for now. I guess it won’t be long before the whole Club folds. Intrigued to see what the "great" last offering will be…

[Randall]

I expect it'll just be whatever new release they're putting out that month. I wouldn't get your hopes up. I doubt they'll be stocking anything too new and exciting, certainly no desired exclusives, for the last month. I don't anticipate any more gold-cover catalog exclusives.

[Ben]

Oh, no…no hopes up here, hence the quotes on "great" and ellipses instead of an exclamation point. I almost added that it’ll probably be Mars Needs Moms in a Disney100 steel tin, or something, but got scared that might be too near the truth!

[Randall]

And DVD only!

[Ben]

Yes!

[Daniel]

That's a wrap:



Sad but not surprising.

[Ben]

I kind of guessed this might be coming along after Wish — the big 100 movie — didn’t get a DMC offering. At least there’s a fair old length of time to order your last few titles. Rand and I basically did our last hoovering up when they closed his Canadian branch last year.

Regular Disney disc offerings next? High profile releases are getting fewer and farther between, with several now only getting BD-only issues and not 4Ks.

And how long for Disney Insiders!? I wants me Cinderelly!

[gaastra]

Sony is getting the rights to release all disney dvds looks like.

https://comicbook.com/movies/news/sony- ... roduction/

Is disney insiders next?

[Ben]

Well…basically excellent news. Disney was a massive proponent of Sony's Blu-ray back in the day, and Sony's discs are often second to none in terms of tech specs and quality. I would expect Sony to start delivering on some of the bigger titles while their Mill Creek deal handles some of the more barebones catalog titles, but if anyone is going to keep BD going for as long as it can, it’s Sony, and they’re huge advocates and supporters of 4K too. Naturally the titles will be key, but if Disney aren’t interested in physical but obviously still see the value, this should work out well for all sides, including us!

[Randall]

Bits update:

BREAKING ON THE BITS [UPDATE] – Regarding the Disney/Sony physical media news that we broke this morning on The Digital Bits, we’ve learned the following additional information from our industry sources:
Once again, we’ve confirmed that Disney is indeed in the process of transitioning to a licensed physical media distribution model via an agreement with Sony Entertainment.
As part of this deal, Sony will market, sell, and distribute new Disney releases plus catalog titles on physical media (4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD, etc.) to consumers through retailers and distributors in the U.S. and Canada.
This shift is consistent with other strategies that Disney is working to implement company-wide, as exemplified by the company’s recent transitions in other markets.
Per usual, Disney regularly evaluates their approach to the physical media market as the home entertainment business and industry at large continue to rapidly evolve alongside consumer behavior.
This agreement will allow Disney to continue offering its films and TV shows via physical media retailers and distributors, and most importantly to disc consumers more efficiently.
The transition for Disney handing over its physical media operations to Sony has recently commenced and will probably take several months to complete.
The first Disney title that will be managed by Sony on physical media will be The First Omen (20th Century Studios), which releases theatrically on 4/5/24 (digital and physical street dates are TBD will be announced in the coming months).
Watch for further updates on The Bits website and on X/Twitter (@billhuntbits & @thedigitalbits) in the days and weeks ahead.

So, this is similar to how Fox handled MGM releases, or how Warner handled Paramount releases for a while. My feeling is that likely nothing great will come of this for consumers, aside from a smattering of well-authored discs of recent films or the very biggest catalog titles. The writing is on the wall. I assume Disney would still hold sway in deciding what gets released and when, and their overall disinterest the last few years has been disappointing. Mill Creek hasn't released The Shaggy Dog on Blu-ray, and I doubt that Sony will either. Though, I'd love it if they did.

However, you never know. Things change. Paramount eventually ended the WB deal, and is now pumping out way more catalog titles on their own.

[Ben]

I wouldn’t expect Mill Creek to issue The Shaggy Dog on Blu, as that deal was for decidedly "B titles" and deeper catalog oddities along the Touchstone lines that Kino were doing, or older 20th titles (the deal did announce that a lot of these releases, which still haven’t started to happen yet, would largely be reprints of Touchstone and then-Fox catalogs). But Sony proper could very well release The Shaggy Dog and I’ll be as surprised as anyone if it doesn’t eventually happen. I think we‘ll actually get quite a few Disney classics this way — there’s a reason they shuttered DMC as part of the deal…

[EricJ]

I wouldn’t expect Mill Creek to issue The Shaggy Dog on Blu, as that deal was for decidedly "B titles" and deeper catalog oddities along the Touchstone lines that Kino were doing, or older 20th titles (the deal did announce that a lot of these releases, which still haven’t started to happen yet, would largely be reprints of Touchstone and then-Fox catalogs).

It's more that Disney will be USING Sony to sell their Touchstone and Fox titles, but doesn't bode well for the B-tier 60's-90's Disney titles DMC used to make exclusive--
If we get The Shaggy DA, it'll be more than I expect of them.

[Randall]

Yeah. What I meant was, Disney wouldn't license out the likes of Shaggy Dog before, and I doubt they're doing it now. I don't think the Sony deal is going to bring out more than what we already had happening - newer films and the biggest catalog titles. I hope I'm wrong, but I suspect that the Disney strategy is to keep its mid-range family classics exclusive to its streaming service(s), and maybe pay-per-view.

I do think we'll get better Atmos tracks on Sony-produced discs, though.