Right? I'm still pissed by the obscene and unnecessary delay in the release of Shada. And I still have to wait a few more months for The Macra Terror.
I'm really wondering at this point, are the delays coming from some obscure BBC rule about the UK having to get stuff a certain amount of time before it can be released elsewhere, or are they just being jerks for no reason? Because it can only be hurting the release financially. I mean, come on, how many people in the US do you think have already seen The Macra Terror animation because they got tired of waiting for the US release? I haven't (not for moral reasons, I'm just not invested enough in that particular story to go hunting on the internet), but between importing the blu ray and other means I bet they've lost some money by not just releasing the damn thing on or near the same day as the UK. This obviously doesn't apply to the season sets as much, especially not with BritBox making Classic Who so easily watchable in the US despite many of the DVDs being ridiculously expensive. But, these delays have got to be having some kind of negative impact on the reconstructed stuff's sales overseas, and I can't see any reason why they keep doing it. Even if its only a slight dip from what the sales could be, why bother with the delays? Its not like NuWho comes out delayed outside the UK.
Season 23 trailer; Out next Monday on this side of the Atlantic: https://www.doctorwho.tv/news/?article=the-collection-season-23-announcement
Does anyone know if the first Tom Baker set is likely to be re-released? The prices it goes for are insane.
The companies that release Doctor Who on Home Media are masters of artificial scarcity. I've seen shows much more obscure then Doctor Who get wide DVD releases that you can easily find years later for fair prices, but with Doctor Who its pretty much up to chance whether anything connected to Classic who will be purchasable without taking out a loan. I can go and get pretty much any NuWho DVD set for around $20 if I looked long enough (I can literally get the whole 9-12th Doctors runs for $60 for three DVD sets of the complete runs), but would have to sell a kidney to get stuff like The War Games or The Two Doctors in the US. On the other hand, if DVDs were region free like most Blu Rays are, I could probably have every Classic Who serial for the price 2-3 out of print dvds go for now. Of course, this only applies to the US/North America. The Tom Baker blu ray, for example, might be common or rare over there, I don't know, I just know that classic who in general is pretty easy to find cheaply, at least based off prices from UK sellers I see online.
^ Region free players are very inexpensive and easy to find these days. I have both War Games and Two Doctors, but I don't need any spare kidneys, but thanks anyway! But seriously, I think upcoming Classic series blu ray releases will relieve the scarcity.
They're not exactly cheap, and the ones that are cheap are also notoriously unreliable. Luckily Britbox exists in the US, although even then it doesn't have every serial that you can get on DVD. If Britbox didn't exist, I'd do the same thing I do with old video games that have no chance of ever getting official re-releases. Doctor Who may not be HUGE in the US, but its definitely big enough to have more DVD circulation (and to not have the US wait half a year for stuff for absolutely no reason).
Several years ago I bought a region free blu ray player from Amazon for the price of a regular one. Haven't had a problem with it. Before that, I got a region free DVD player. Same story. Similar price to a regular one and no problems. They're out there.
The availability or lack of region feee players really isn;'t relevant. Doctor Who on DVD shouldn't be treated like its a niche show that won't make its money back if they keep DVDs in print and don't overcharge for everything. Britbox in the US at least keeps Classic Who watchable, but the OOP DVD situation, along with the forced scarcity and long wait times for most releases, is still pathetic.
You indicated it was a problem so I was trying to be helpful by stating that the these region free players are readily available and inexpensive. If you don't want to go that route, that's your choice. I'm sure they publish DVD and blu rays based on supply and demand. I'm guessing sales for the classic series are lower than many might think. Reprints might not be worthwhile financially. If they made decent money from them, you can be sure they'd keep making them!
One has to wonder... who knows more about the business of selling and distribution of DVDs and Blu rays... the people who actually do it for a living, who sees how much is costs to make, advertise and distribute the media or the people on the internet who don't do any of it, but offer opinions... Hm.
Excuse me for not trusting the people that make the US wait half a year plus for stuff like The Macra Terror or Shada, something which has no legitimate reason outside of possibly some obscure BBC directive, to know anything. That said, if you want to believe that corporations are always smart and right, well that's your right (and they love that you have that opinion, FYI).
^ No, they're not always maximally efficient. But, if there's a profit to be had, BBC Worldwide will be on it. If they expect to lose money, yeah, we'll wait. One thing you're not understanding is that BBC Worldwide doesn't get extra money on those inflated eBay prices. Yeah, people sell some stories for a lot, but that's not going to the BBC. And, it's a shallow market. A few people will pay that much--but not many will.
Obviously I have forgotten more than those imbecile Suits have ever known. But of course, I'd be too good were I in a corporate position like that, which is why I never will be allowed to be. Because competence has no place in the Corporate World! I'd also write, like the best Doctor Who ever, but BBC isn't interested in quality Doctor Who these days!
I know, right? Those Suits wouldn't last five minutes in the real world, meaning this BBS. There's a reason they seclude themselves in their ivory towers with their leather chairs and docile unchallenging employees.