Earlier this week the news broke that SummerSlam 2017 will only be released on DVD, not Blu-ray, when an updated schedule was published here at WrestlingDVDNetwork.com.
Since then the official WWE Home Video licensee in the UK has issued a statement on the matter. The statement confirms that plan to produce this year’s SummerSlam as a DVD-only title.
While a Blu-ray edition appears to have been in the works at one point, we can now consider it cancelled as the social media notice reiterates our earlier report that a SummerSlam 2017 Blu-ray will not be offered in any region; be that the United States, Canada, UK or Australia.
WWE’s run of SummerSlam Blu-ray releases in the United States is not unblemished (you may recall the 2011 edition was cancelled last minute), however since then the event has always made it to the format, and by our count the UK has had a SummerSlam Blu-ray offering every year since 2009.
The update from WWE Home Video UK follows below:
We’ve had some questions regarding SummerSlam – which is now up for pre-order, and as some of you have noticed, is only on DVD.
Despite original plans to release SummerSlam in both DVD & Blu-ray, plans have unfortunately changed.
The overall market for Blu-ray is declining greater than that of DVD and quite rapidly in some territories, where retailers are simply not backing the format.
Blu-ray is expensive to produce and manufacture (much more than DVD) and we are regrettably unable to release titles on formats where decreased sales volumes mean we lose money.
In a difficult physical entertainment market, we need to run a profitable business in order to maintain our WWE license and keep releasing 12 x PPVs and 12 x non-PPV titles to fans every year.
Like WWE/ Warner in the U.S., E1 in Canada, and Madman in Australia, it is with regret that we are unable to release SummerSlam 2017 on the Blu-ray format.
We’re sorry to disappoint in this instance.
The Great Balls of Fire PPV and last Sunday’s Battleground PPV will be a tag team in WWE’s next “Double Feature” pack that’s scheduled to release to fans this time next month.
We can now unveil the artwork planned for the two disc set!
The cover of “Double Feature: Great Balls of Fire & Battleground 2017” will feature Brock Lesnar and Samoa Joe on the RAW side; Jinder Mahal and Randy Orton on the SmackDown Live side.
Get WWE’s new GREAT BALLS OF FIRE&BATTLEGROUND 2017 DVD…
– USA: August 29th. Grab the next “WWE Double Feature” DVD soon here on Amazon.com.
– UK/Europe: September 18th. Get the next “WWE Double Feature” DVD here on Amazon.co.uk.
– Australia: September 27th. Grab the next “WWE Double Feature” DVD at Madman.com.au.
Speaking of the “Double Features”, the newly-released Extreme Rules & Money in the Bank 2017 DVD had an Amazon exclusive in Canada. It comes packed with another of the WWE collectible coins needed to fill the display case that was bundled with the WrestleMania 33 DVD.
You’ll recall that the first coin featured The Undertaker. This time the coin is Money in the Bank-themed and features Dean Ambrose who was a MITB Ladder Match winner back in 2016.
Picking up Amazon exclusive SummerSlam and Survivor Series DVDs will complete the collection!
Thanks to WDN readers Jordan and Jeffrey for giving us a first look.
A new WWE DVD is about to hit stores; “Kurt Angle: The Essential Collection” will officially release to United Kingdom on Monday and to the United States on Tuesday! Get your copy.
If our in-depth review of the Kurt Angle DVD yesterday didn’t entice you, perhaps this new clip might which previews the 30 minute Iron Man Match with Shawn Michaels, featured in the compilation:
BLU-RAY BONANZA!!
Angle’s “Essential Collection” and this year’s SummerSlam may not be on Blu-ray but so many past favorites did hit the format. Before the week is out all of the WWE Blu-rays linked to below will be auctioned off cheap on eBay — why not grab a few missing from your collection?
Add me as one more who is sick of DVD only releases. I always buy the BR version of every release for a good reason. Just like so many others on this site I think it is a bad idea to assume we are all content to sit back and watch the death of BR in WWE. I can’t get excited about a DVD only release like I have about so many BR releases in the past. Now whith the DVD releases its like, meh. So what.
Sorry to be off topic but why is Amazon dragging their feet lately when it comes to shipping orders? The ER/MITB double feature and Kurt Angle’s set have yet to ship for me. The double feature may have changed, but I cancelled that for now but Angle’s set hasn’t shipped when it should have by now.
Its just disappointing that wrestling fans are mostly low income. I really think that has to do more than “its fake” with the genre having such a stigma. Low income. Low education.
What statistic is this based on? Just sounds like an assumption. I don’t think it’s that wrestling fans “can’t afford” to buy BluRays. It’s probably just that seeing wrestling in HD isn’t their priority, and they prefer to shell out the cash for their movies in BluRay. It’s not like wrestling contains wicked CGI and scenic landscapes, etc. As long as you can see the match, maybe for most fans that’s enough,
It’s based on surveys that have been done over the years. Nielsen Scarborough does surveys on many topics, including sports fan statistics and demographics. Wrestling fans, based on these surveys, are shown to be in a very low tax bracket and the majority have never been to college. This is why high-end advertisers do not like taking out ads on wrestling shows because the average wrestling fan is not the key demographic for those companies. That’s why you never see Budweiser or expensive car commercials during WWE shows for example. That’s why when people say wrestling fans are “cheap”, it’s because of surveys that have been done. Doesn’t mean every last wrestling fan has no money or is poorly educated, it means on average that is the type of fan that wrestling draws. WWE has done their own internal surveys that showed similar results. Here is a survey that was done 3 years ago: http://m.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2013/04/22/In-Depth/Fight-fan-avidity.aspx?.
I don’t understand why this is such a bummer to some of you people. No summer slam blue ray isn’t a catastrophic event. Get over it. My god if u want it enough guess you have to settle for good ol fashioned dvd,it’s really starting get ridiculous enough is enough already it’s not the end of the world,if you want it enough buy the DVD,you will save a few bucks in the process.
And can probably expect that statement from everyone else on this site that feels the same way. Just read any of the comments about it the last few days.
And it is an inferior product. Just like VHS is an inferior product to DVD and just like blu-ray is an inferior product to 4K. What about that upsets you, other than it’s the truth?
It upsets me because it’s all you talk about every single time it comes up you feel the need to say the same thing over and over again, it’s getting real old.enough is enough is enough already find something else to complain about. And no it’s not just you but it’s mostly you every single time.
Sure at least it’s a different topic for you and even though it’s been weeks it’s still repetitive beyond annoying and don’t pretend you don’t realize that everybody knows it and agrees with me on here too that your blu ray argument is getting old.and I suppose you are all for there being no commentary on the unrealesed set too?? Wouldn’t surprise me.
Everyone agrees that my blu-ray argument is getting old? Apparently not. Have you read the majority of comments lately regarding blu-ray cancellations? Seriously. And also I already said how I feel about the Unreleased set having no commentary back when it was first announced.
Furthermore I never mentioned blu-ray at all when responding to your original comment. I was talking about digital purchases. You’re the one that brought up me complaining about blu-rays.
Like it or not, DVD IS an inferior product to Blu-ray. Its just people don’t like change and rather stick to their ancient equipment. I still see people actually “tape” shows, like in using a VCR….like come on now.
I believe its not a complaint but fact. DVD absolutely sucks compared to Blu-ray, especially when the event is recorded in HD. Might as well WWE go back to releasing Betamax, LaserDisc and VHS.
At this sad point, I can only hope WWE descides to produce the final last piece of the Holy Grail of the Bluray/DVD media on blue: The Undertaker.
Why? For a lot of reasons..one of them being the Summerslam 2015 match against Brock….
I hope for a unblurred, uncut, unedited version..the fantastic ending to that great great story told is tarnished..literally..on present home video edition, and problaly still on the Network.
c’mon. too expensive to produce? these companies make millions of dollars a year and this is their excuse? sounds like their saying the blu-ray sales r not in demand as much as the d.v.d sales which i don’t understand that as popular as blu-ray d.v.d’s have been 4 the last 7 or 8 years. may as well stop recording movies and tv shows on blu-rays. off the record, ‘THE TERMINATOR PART 2:JUDGEMENT DAY’, the up-coming 3-d blu-ray, 4 some stupid reason, will only be available in the united kingdom and canada and NOT in the united states. why? there has been NO explanation 4 that which means if you want to purchase this, you will have to also purchase a REGION-FREE 3-d blu-ray player. these companies r getting really tiresome with this ‘I DON’T HAVE TO EXPLAIN’ reddic. it’s really getting annoying.
Blu-rays are still very popular. Just not with wrestling fans. As for why, look up “professional wrestling advertising rates” and you’ll get your answer.
Thomas, this site seems to be really stressful for you. For real, you get all worked up over nothing. These comment sections are here for people to voice their opinion. You can’t yell at everyone when they type something you don’t like. Perhaps taking a deep breath and going for a walk in the park will make you feel better. It’s a stress-reliever for a lot of people.
But that’s how billion dollar companies stay billion dollar companies, and how they become billion dollar companies in the first place. They make the wise decisions and don’t produce items that won’t sell. That’s in everybody’s best interest, from the office staff, to the talent to the bosses. You start ignoring that something is a bad decision and just do it anyway, and that’s when, over time, you get into financial trouble. Seriously, it’s not hard to understand,
If imagine that will be on BluRay, but I honestly don’t think that match will be unedited on it. It’s the PG era now, and an unblurred middle finger is simply unlikely.
I’ve noticed since the advent of the double feature format, the covers have been displaying more close-ups of the wrestler’s faces than average, probably to compensate for space. It’s like the packaging image found on the front of cereal boxes (not counting Money in the Bank 2017).
Long version: please here me out or refer to short version below.
Are streaming services the culprit here? Of course, WWE has the network and their docs have been featured on digital platforms. I don’t think it’s due to digital sales. They’re often more expensive to produce than physical media due screen application concerns and the very fact it’s still in it’s infancy regarding distribution base. Basically, more third parties, higher costs. At least this is how it is with books vs. e-books. This may explain why the big wrestling promotions have not offered Blu-ray 4K/Blu-ray/DVD/digital combo packs.
With more competition out there, DVDs and Blu-rays are going to take a sales hit. Who knows, future of physical media may become niche for the epitome of die-hard collecting. Until there’s digital rights management (DRM) for content like there is for music, superior internet connection bandwidth access, and resolution between companies disputing licensing agreements there’s still a strong market for product ownership and not at the mercy of rent and pay walls. Pay walls (EX: WWE Network) are great for supplements but should not act as a total replacements.
TL:DR (short version):
Physical media needs no internet connection. Don’t need to worry about licence disputes ruining access to content. DRM has a long way to go. Quality and services need to improve in many areas. Slow economy does not help either.
P.S.
I live in the largest city in the United States land wise with a million + population. Has a good mixture of urban, suburban, and rural dwellings. Situated on the Atlantic with a river which flows north. And our internet speed is CRAP.
which in many cases likely results in collectors going back to pirating again.
I mean, if you still want to “own” it (due to the reasons you mentioned) but think it’s laughable you should settle for a worse quality than the Network broadcast, there is pretty much only one outcome.
You don’t need internet service to watch digital copies. Once you buy a digital copy of anything, you own it. You can download it to your hard drive and watch it whenever you want on pretty much whatever device you want. If you buy a hard drive with a few terabytes of storage, you can store about 3-4,000 hours of HD video on it. That’s the equivalent of fitting every WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA PPV ever on 1 hard drive and still have plenty of room left over.
Maybe this courteous official response that is back up with solid reasoning will deter the moaners from constantly labelling them as stupid for not releasing BluRays. I really appreciate WWE DVD UK taking the time to actually address the issue, since they don’t actually have to do so.
That’s a very sad state of affairs regarding WWE Blu-Rays. I for one loved the slim packaging and the extra content. It always angered me that WWE didn’t stick to a single format. I understand progressing forward to Blu-Rays, but going backwards is a bit annoying. Sometimes I look at my collection and think, “I don’t have the Blu-Ray of that?” and then I realize WWE didn’t release it although it is a fairly new release, choosing not to go with Blu-Ray. It’s hard enough to find retailers who carry WWE DVDs these days, but to find them on Blu-Ray seems almost impossible.
The reason why Blu Ray sales are on the decline is for one direct reason for sure. Up here in Canada, our Walmart stores don’t – nor ever have – carried WWE Blu Rays. Only WWE DVDs. So if you go to buy a WWE video from there, it’s always going to be the DVD of it. So no wonder WWE Blu Rays have a hard time selling when they don’t even get distributed properly world wide!
Im in Indiana & the last Mania Blu-ray my towns Walmart had was 31. The last non-Mania Blu-ray was ECW Unreleased vol 2. Whats sad is if i went 40 miles to another towns Walmart, they had last years SummerSlam on Blu-ray. Same goes for the Mania sales. A different Walmart 30 miles away had it, my towns didnt. I think my towns Walmart has had the Mania sale twice since those have started. The last one they had went up a week before Mania & wasnt taken down til June or July.
True. I am also in Canada and have bought blurays online from Amazon and Best Buy. As the press release says Blu ray format is declining faster than dvd sales. Sucks….but I guess we have to face economic reality for these companies than complain about it.
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Add me as one more who is sick of DVD only releases. I always buy the BR version of every release for a good reason. Just like so many others on this site I think it is a bad idea to assume we are all content to sit back and watch the death of BR in WWE. I can’t get excited about a DVD only release like I have about so many BR releases in the past. Now whith the DVD releases its like, meh. So what.
@Shane C. Montgomery, I don’t like people complaining ok
Sorry to be off topic but why is Amazon dragging their feet lately when it comes to shipping orders? The ER/MITB double feature and Kurt Angle’s set have yet to ship for me. The double feature may have changed, but I cancelled that for now but Angle’s set hasn’t shipped when it should have by now.
Its just disappointing that wrestling fans are mostly low income. I really think that has to do more than “its fake” with the genre having such a stigma. Low income. Low education.
Yeah and so is your mother
Now there’s a mature response.
What statistic is this based on? Just sounds like an assumption. I don’t think it’s that wrestling fans “can’t afford” to buy BluRays. It’s probably just that seeing wrestling in HD isn’t their priority, and they prefer to shell out the cash for their movies in BluRay. It’s not like wrestling contains wicked CGI and scenic landscapes, etc. As long as you can see the match, maybe for most fans that’s enough,
It’s based on surveys that have been done over the years. Nielsen Scarborough does surveys on many topics, including sports fan statistics and demographics. Wrestling fans, based on these surveys, are shown to be in a very low tax bracket and the majority have never been to college. This is why high-end advertisers do not like taking out ads on wrestling shows because the average wrestling fan is not the key demographic for those companies. That’s why you never see Budweiser or expensive car commercials during WWE shows for example. That’s why when people say wrestling fans are “cheap”, it’s because of surveys that have been done. Doesn’t mean every last wrestling fan has no money or is poorly educated, it means on average that is the type of fan that wrestling draws. WWE has done their own internal surveys that showed similar results. Here is a survey that was done 3 years ago: http://m.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2013/04/22/In-Depth/Fight-fan-avidity.aspx?.
Buy WWE Great Balls of Fire on DVD, get a free coaster!
Welcome to 1999! Still have my WMXV DVD…
I don’t understand why this is such a bummer to some of you people. No summer slam blue ray isn’t a catastrophic event. Get over it. My god if u want it enough guess you have to settle for good ol fashioned dvd,it’s really starting get ridiculous enough is enough already it’s not the end of the world,if you want it enough buy the DVD,you will save a few bucks in the process.
Why buy an inferior product(DVD) when you can buy it on digital. At least the digital version is in HD.
“An inferior product” I could only expect that statement from you LP1. Every time you never cease to upset me.
And can probably expect that statement from everyone else on this site that feels the same way. Just read any of the comments about it the last few days.
And it is an inferior product. Just like VHS is an inferior product to DVD and just like blu-ray is an inferior product to 4K. What about that upsets you, other than it’s the truth?
I’ll be getting the Angle dvd set. You don’t hear me crying about it.
although that’s a bit different.
none of the matches on that set were originally broadcast in high definition. so there is little difference.
there is however a huge difference between a 2017 hd broadcast and a dvd.
It upsets me because it’s all you talk about every single time it comes up you feel the need to say the same thing over and over again, it’s getting real old.enough is enough is enough already find something else to complain about. And no it’s not just you but it’s mostly you every single time.
I haven’t mentioned anything about blu-rays in weeks. Perhaps you’ll feel more af home if I complain about DVDs having matches with no commentary.
Sure at least it’s a different topic for you and even though it’s been weeks it’s still repetitive beyond annoying and don’t pretend you don’t realize that everybody knows it and agrees with me on here too that your blu ray argument is getting old.and I suppose you are all for there being no commentary on the unrealesed set too?? Wouldn’t surprise me.
Everyone agrees that my blu-ray argument is getting old? Apparently not. Have you read the majority of comments lately regarding blu-ray cancellations? Seriously. And also I already said how I feel about the Unreleased set having no commentary back when it was first announced.
Furthermore I never mentioned blu-ray at all when responding to your original comment. I was talking about digital purchases. You’re the one that brought up me complaining about blu-rays.
Obviously you just don’t get the point as usual so as you say “good day sir”
Like it or not, DVD IS an inferior product to Blu-ray. Its just people don’t like change and rather stick to their ancient equipment. I still see people actually “tape” shows, like in using a VCR….like come on now.
I believe its not a complaint but fact. DVD absolutely sucks compared to Blu-ray, especially when the event is recorded in HD. Might as well WWE go back to releasing Betamax, LaserDisc and VHS.
But surely if you grew up with VHS like methen it’s not a great hardship to watch a DVD?
@LP1 Know your role and stop your complaining about everything
Thomas your act is getting old.
@LP1 your act and your attitude towards me is very unacceptable
Hmm. So perhaps Jinder vs Cena vs Shinsuke
At this sad point, I can only hope WWE descides to produce the final last piece of the Holy Grail of the Bluray/DVD media on blue: The Undertaker.
Why? For a lot of reasons..one of them being the Summerslam 2015 match against Brock….
I hope for a unblurred, uncut, unedited version..the fantastic ending to that great great story told is tarnished..literally..on present home video edition, and problaly still on the Network.
c’mon. too expensive to produce? these companies make millions of dollars a year and this is their excuse? sounds like their saying the blu-ray sales r not in demand as much as the d.v.d sales which i don’t understand that as popular as blu-ray d.v.d’s have been 4 the last 7 or 8 years. may as well stop recording movies and tv shows on blu-rays. off the record, ‘THE TERMINATOR PART 2:JUDGEMENT DAY’, the up-coming 3-d blu-ray, 4 some stupid reason, will only be available in the united kingdom and canada and NOT in the united states. why? there has been NO explanation 4 that which means if you want to purchase this, you will have to also purchase a REGION-FREE 3-d blu-ray player. these companies r getting really tiresome with this ‘I DON’T HAVE TO EXPLAIN’ reddic. it’s really getting annoying.
DVD gives Blu-Ray the school boy! Excellent booking!
Blu-rays are still very popular. Just not with wrestling fans. As for why, look up “professional wrestling advertising rates” and you’ll get your answer.
@LP1, Stop your complaining and whining about everything else
Thomas, this site seems to be really stressful for you. For real, you get all worked up over nothing. These comment sections are here for people to voice their opinion. You can’t yell at everyone when they type something you don’t like. Perhaps taking a deep breath and going for a walk in the park will make you feel better. It’s a stress-reliever for a lot of people.
But that’s how billion dollar companies stay billion dollar companies, and how they become billion dollar companies in the first place. They make the wise decisions and don’t produce items that won’t sell. That’s in everybody’s best interest, from the office staff, to the talent to the bosses. You start ignoring that something is a bad decision and just do it anyway, and that’s when, over time, you get into financial trouble. Seriously, it’s not hard to understand,
The ending of Taker vs Brock from SummerSlam 2015 if completely unedited on the Network.
*is
If imagine that will be on BluRay, but I honestly don’t think that match will be unedited on it. It’s the PG era now, and an unblurred middle finger is simply unlikely.
I’ve noticed since the advent of the double feature format, the covers have been displaying more close-ups of the wrestler’s faces than average, probably to compensate for space. It’s like the packaging image found on the front of cereal boxes (not counting Money in the Bank 2017).
How is the quality of those collectable coins? Just curious.
Long version: please here me out or refer to short version below.
Are streaming services the culprit here? Of course, WWE has the network and their docs have been featured on digital platforms. I don’t think it’s due to digital sales. They’re often more expensive to produce than physical media due screen application concerns and the very fact it’s still in it’s infancy regarding distribution base. Basically, more third parties, higher costs. At least this is how it is with books vs. e-books. This may explain why the big wrestling promotions have not offered Blu-ray 4K/Blu-ray/DVD/digital combo packs.
With more competition out there, DVDs and Blu-rays are going to take a sales hit. Who knows, future of physical media may become niche for the epitome of die-hard collecting. Until there’s digital rights management (DRM) for content like there is for music, superior internet connection bandwidth access, and resolution between companies disputing licensing agreements there’s still a strong market for product ownership and not at the mercy of rent and pay walls. Pay walls (EX: WWE Network) are great for supplements but should not act as a total replacements.
TL:DR (short version):
Physical media needs no internet connection. Don’t need to worry about licence disputes ruining access to content. DRM has a long way to go. Quality and services need to improve in many areas. Slow economy does not help either.
My, this turned out to be a passionate post.
P.S.
I live in the largest city in the United States land wise with a million + population. Has a good mixture of urban, suburban, and rural dwellings. Situated on the Atlantic with a river which flows north. And our internet speed is CRAP.
×largest city in the “continental” U.S.
which in many cases likely results in collectors going back to pirating again.
I mean, if you still want to “own” it (due to the reasons you mentioned) but think it’s laughable you should settle for a worse quality than the Network broadcast, there is pretty much only one outcome.
You don’t need internet service to watch digital copies. Once you buy a digital copy of anything, you own it. You can download it to your hard drive and watch it whenever you want on pretty much whatever device you want. If you buy a hard drive with a few terabytes of storage, you can store about 3-4,000 hours of HD video on it. That’s the equivalent of fitting every WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA PPV ever on 1 hard drive and still have plenty of room left over.
Maybe this courteous official response that is back up with solid reasoning will deter the moaners from constantly labelling them as stupid for not releasing BluRays. I really appreciate WWE DVD UK taking the time to actually address the issue, since they don’t actually have to do so.
I agree. And it’s great to see DVD give Blu-Ray the school boy! Excellent booking!
That’s a very sad state of affairs regarding WWE Blu-Rays. I for one loved the slim packaging and the extra content. It always angered me that WWE didn’t stick to a single format. I understand progressing forward to Blu-Rays, but going backwards is a bit annoying. Sometimes I look at my collection and think, “I don’t have the Blu-Ray of that?” and then I realize WWE didn’t release it although it is a fairly new release, choosing not to go with Blu-Ray. It’s hard enough to find retailers who carry WWE DVDs these days, but to find them on Blu-Ray seems almost impossible.
DVD gives Blu-Ray the school boy! Excellent booking!
DVD gives Blu-Ray the school boy! Great booking!
The reason why Blu Ray sales are on the decline is for one direct reason for sure. Up here in Canada, our Walmart stores don’t – nor ever have – carried WWE Blu Rays. Only WWE DVDs. So if you go to buy a WWE video from there, it’s always going to be the DVD of it. So no wonder WWE Blu Rays have a hard time selling when they don’t even get distributed properly world wide!
yeah. i mean i have only found wwe blurays at best buy, and fye.
walmart did get wwe blurays at times or they do for there maina sale every year.
i cant even remember the last bluray walmart had. wm 30 ? but yeah and with more blurays getting canned from wwe, maybe there not selling.
yet people complain when something does not get released on bluray yet they dont sale X.X
Im in Indiana & the last Mania Blu-ray my towns Walmart had was 31. The last non-Mania Blu-ray was ECW Unreleased vol 2. Whats sad is if i went 40 miles to another towns Walmart, they had last years SummerSlam on Blu-ray. Same goes for the Mania sales. A different Walmart 30 miles away had it, my towns didnt. I think my towns Walmart has had the Mania sale twice since those have started. The last one they had went up a week before Mania & wasnt taken down til June or July.
True. I am also in Canada and have bought blurays online from Amazon and Best Buy. As the press release says Blu ray format is declining faster than dvd sales. Sucks….but I guess we have to face economic reality for these companies than complain about it.