Yes folks, it has been a full year of “DVD Review” already. Hard to believe that we all have been enjoying the DVD technology for such a long time already. It seems like we started only yesterday and funny enough, this week, the week of our anniversary, also sees the first DVD releases of 20^th Century Fox, the last major player in the DVD field. I have to admit that when we started a year ago, I wouldn’t have thought it would take Fox and Paramount so long to actually join the bandwagon, but I guess better late than never, right? Next month we will then see the first Dreamworks releases and with Universal currently preparing the first Amblin titles for release, I think, DVD looks better than ever.

It is an exciting time and this anniversary also marks an exciting point for “DVD Review”. Not only have we proven that we are not a nine-day wonder, but a solid publication that continuously attracts more and more readers. I think it is the time to thank all of you, all the people who have helped to make “DVD Review” what it is. All the people who gave us support and their comments, which helped to make these pages more accessible and richer in content than any other DVD related site on the Internet. Of course, our thanks also extend to the studios and publishers of DVD, who have supplied us with information and all those great, exciting film releases on this great new home video format. As of last week, sales have exceeded 1 million DVD players in the US market, which means that DVD is stronger than ever and growing daily. Over the past months, DVD player sales have increased steadily and we believe this coming Christmas season will see DVD literally flying off the shelves.

Technical flaws seem to have been ironed out as well for the most part. From the studios that have been releasing titles for a while now, we hardly see releases that don’t work on certain players anymore. Although some of the newcomers still fight their beasts, it is obvious that within the next 6 months all those problems should be history. Compression problems also seem to be at bay these days, as most major DVD publishers put out really highly quality discs these days and we would like to thank and congratulate all of them for their restless efforts.

Over the past twelve months we have continuously tried to further the content of “DVD Review” and to make sure to cover all aspects of DVD. Although it is impossible to cover everything, I feel, our latest additions will fill yet another series of gaps. Let’s take our “Hotseat” column, for example, our new regular column. Every other week we will briefly talk to a selected industry personality about exciting issues. It is designed to get feedback on interesting questions directly from the source. We can all speculate, of course, why Anchor Bay just won’t release dual layered discs, but isn’t it better to hear it first-handed from the folks themselves? That’s the notion of this column and I would like to sincerely thank Anchor Bay’s Vice President of Product Development, Jay Douglas, for his offer to take the Hotseat as our first guest. Whenever interesting questions come up regarding publishers’ policies or certain specific titles, we want to make sure to put the people in the Hotseat and grill them over the issue. Your input is invaluable for this column, as we need to know what bothers you the most, so that we can ask the right questions.

Our title announcements and street date updates have become a valuable, trusty, and timely source of information for many of you over the past months. We want to continually ensure the quality of our announcements and information, and for that reason we have established the Film Vault. Here you can find valuable information in one spot that you won’t find anywhere else in such an accumulated way. The database doesn’t only allow you to search for certain titles and genres, it also lets you create complete title listings for any studio, including already released titles, as well as the announced discs. The highlight of the Film Vault are the quick lists however, which give you a quick overview over THX certified titles, dual layer discs, commentary tracks and more. Since we will continually expand and maintain the database, I am sure it will soon become another one of your favorite parts of “DVD Review”. It has been a major undertaking to get this database up and running and still, it is not complete. There are far over 2.500 DVD titles in the database at this point, but we have not been able to fill in all the details for each and every film - partly because we simply don’t have the information. This means that for the weeks to come, the database will be further expanded, so check back for new features regularly, or simply use it at your leisure. And while we’re at it, expect some serious expansions in our editorial coverage in the weeks to come as well… finger licking good, of course.

Finally, I am proud to announce that we have been able to expand our reviewer base. We have long been looking for skilled writers that are able to meet the high standards we impose on ourselves, and I am glad to let you all know that we have been fruitful. As of last week, Mr. Tom Liam McDonald has joined the team. Check out his first DVD review of the Hammer classic “Dracula  Prince Of Darkness”. Tom has been a professional writer for as long as mankind walks the Earth - well, almost - and contributes his writing to various print magazines, such as “PC Gamer”, “Maximum PC” and “Fortean Times”, as well as other online publications, such as “Gamespot”. He has been reviewing films for over 10 years and is also a BFA in film from New York University. Tom and I have known each other for a number of years, and it is my pleasure to have him on board. If you wish to give him a warm welcome, or if you ever have questions or comments on his work, you can directly write to him at tmcdonald@dvdreview.com.

We also have two more reviewers preparing their work for us at this point, once again, both of them professional writers with a lot of solid background. They are currently working on their first DVD reviews, and hopefully soon I will also be able to pull the curtain for those dedicated and professional writers.

Until then, enjoy the “new” DVD Review and let us know what you think, will you? Your feedback is precious to us, as it is the only way for us to find out what we can do to make “DVD Review” better yet and more suitable for your needs. Our feedback section should make it easy and quick for you to submit your comments and suggestions to us, so please make use of it.

Before I leave, I would once again like to thank all of you and invite you to swing over to our newly opened sections. They are exciting and full of information, some of which you can’t get anywhere else. With your help we will continue to be the ultimate DVD source of information on the Internet!

Take care everyone and off, into the next exciting year...

 November 1, 1998

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