The Platinum Edition line went from one a year to two a year, as did the Diamond Edition line. But this was the early-aughties/early-teens when physical media was still a dominant consumer product. We're in uncharted territory now as digital streaming is largely coming to the forefront: Netflix, Hulu, Vudu, MoviesAnywhere, Disney's Unnamed Streaming Service. Physical media sales, especially on catalog titles, are dropping every year.pikachufan1336 wrote:Interesting, but how do we know if there is going to be three per year. Just because it happened once this year doesn't mean it will happen again.
The Signature Collection line started with two titles a year, but this year surprised everyone by dropping three. The sparsity of new content made for the releases shows that Disney is more keen on getting the product out there again rather than making it worth a wait, as evident by this year's three releases. There simply will not be time to space out these physical releases to two a year and have it overlap with Disney's streaming service. By then, most consumers would be happy to spend $$/month to have every Disney film available at the click of a button, rather than going to a store and buying a disc. Three releases a year is not only probable, but it's likely gonna be the last time these films get a physical media release. It's a limited window to work with, especially with catalog titles. Many people who were content with buying the Diamond Editions are passing on the Signature Collections, and for good reason.
That's not even a tradition, just a convenient timing for the past two home media releases. Fantasia has been released multiple times in theatres: 1940-41 as a roadshow release, 1942 as a general release, and re-issues in 1946, 1956, 1963, 1969, 1977, 1982, 1985, and 1990. It took 50 years before the "tradition" started, and even then, its first home media release would take place a year later in November 1991.JeanGreyForever wrote:Fantasia's placement depends on whether or not Disney will still go by tradition and only release it in every year ending with an 0.
The November 2000 release was the studio's big holiday catalog release, as "Platinum Edition" as we know it didn't exist yet (though a few old-timers look to the Fantasia Anthology as the pilot entry of what would become that series), and also a way to connect the original film to its sequel Fantasia 2000. Its release more-or-less delayed Fantasia 2000 hitting DVD when it normally would have, as around this time (throughout the 90s/00s, really), new films got home video release 6 months after its debut, Fantasia 2000 took 11.
When Disney originally announced in 2003 that they'd expand the Platinum Edition line to include four more titles (Pinocchio, Fantasia, Peter Pan, and Sleeping Beauty), all but Fantasia saw release. Peter Pan wound up in the Spring 2007 slot, Sleeping Beauty in Fall 2008, and Pinocchio in Spring 2009. At that point, many assumed, Fantasia would close it out as Fall 2009. But instead, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs came out that fall, starting the "Diamond Edition" line, and announcing in its booklet that the displaced Fantasia would come the following year. Of course, by the time 2010 actually rolled around, Beauty and the Beast was moved from Spring 2010 to Fall 2010, and Fantasia again got kicked out of the line, instead seeing a release in November 2010 as a Two-Movie Collection with Fantasia 2000. So I honestly would not be surprised to see Fantasia released as a mid-level Signature Collection in June of next year, especially as the other predictions fall more in line with what Disney plans to do regarding live-action remakes. Unless we suddenly get an announcement of Pastoral Symphony: The Movie, I can't see them holding out Fantasia for 10 years simply because it's a new "tradition."
Albert