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CBS Home Entertainment (formerly CBS Video, currently branded as CBS DVD for DVD releases and CBS Blu-ray for Blu-ray releases) is the home entertainment arm of CBS Corporation.

CBS Video Enterprises[link]

CBS, Inc. owned a home video arm, CBS Video Enterprises (CVE), established in 1975.

In 1980, CVE formed a joint venture with MGM, MGM/CBS Home Video licensed the film library of MGM for release on home videocassette, following the early leads of Paramount Home Video, 20th Century Fox's Magnetic Video division and Columbia Pictures Home Entertainment (now Sony Pictures Home Entertainment).

In addition to the MGM film library, the company released output from CBS News, CBS Records, the CBS television network, CBS Theatrical Films, and the motion picture division of Lorimar.

By 1981, MGM/CBS had expanded from VHS and Betamax to RCA's CED system as well. In 1982, CBS withdrew from the MGM joint venture. The MGM/CBS company reorganized into MGM/UA Home Video.

A short time later, CBS purchased a stake in 20th Century Fox's home video operation, and formed CBS/FOX Video. The new company reissued many of CBS' properties issued under the CBS/FOX label, in addition to films under the 20th Century Fox banner. Two specialty labels, Key Video, and Playhouse Video, were also created.

The CBS/FOX joint venture was reorganized in 1990, with Key Video and Playhouse Video ceasing operations, and Fox Video was created to release the mainstream output of 20th Century Fox. CBS continued to issue their product and programming under the Fox Video label until 1998, and utilized the CBS/FOX label for BBC Video programs until 1999.

In 1998, CBS/FOX ceased existence as a company, shutting the Fox partnership down, mainly because of CBS' merger talks with Viacom, the parent company of rival studio Paramount Pictures. FOX's distribution arm is now 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment also had a musical movie by Warner Bros called My Fair Lady was on videocassette from CBS Video in 1996

The new division[link]

The CBS/Viacom merger was completed in 1999, but then were split again at the end of 2005. However, both companies are still controlled by National Amusements. As such, distribution for all releases by CBS DVD (the new branding for CBS Video) is handled by Paramount Home Entertainment. On September 26, 2006, CBS Home Entertainment was joined with CBS Paramount Domestic Television, CBS Paramount International Television, and King World to form CBS Television Distribution.

This includes:

• Programs owned by CBS Studios, with certain exceptions such as:
  • Until 2001, CBS owned the rights to several Dr. Seuss animated specials produced by the network in association with DePatie-Freleng Enterprises. The last video releases made by CBS were in 2000, with distribution by Paramount. CBS sold the rights to the specials to Universal Studios (which has a theme park license for the Dr. Seuss universe, and which also made several feature-length film versions of Seuss stories) in 2001. Universal (ironically now a sister company to CBS rival NBC) has released the specials on VHS and DVD in the following years.
  • Until 2004, CBS owned the rights to the animated Garfield cartoon specials and the show Garfield and Friends. CBS sold the rights to the specials and Garfield and Friends to 20th Century Fox. (which produced the live-action Garfield movies.)
• The video rights to the television holdings of Republic Pictures (which CBS now owns distribution rights and partial copyright to)
• The library of theatrical films owned by CBS (such as those produced by Cinema Center Films, and several features produced in the 1980s that were originally distributed theatrically by Warner Bros.)
  • Until 2009, the only exception was My Fair Lady, whose video rights were controlled by WB, though a VHS edition was released by Paramount. CBS/Paramount regained video rights in 2009.

CBS Corporation formed CBS Home Entertainment as a new home entertainment arm in 2007. However, Paramount continues to distribute a majority of CBS DVDs as of 2010. There are some exceptions. For example, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment won the right to release material from the newly formed incarnation of CBS Films beginning in 2010, under license from CBS Home Entertainment. Image Entertainment holds the video license for the original Twilight Zone series. Many Viacom-produced miniseries (such as the 1981 remake of East of Eden) which are now owned by CBS, as well as material from CBS News, have been issued through different video labels (though some more recent CBS News productions have been issued on DVD by CBS/Paramount).

Criticism[link]

The company has been criticized by many for being unwilling to secure music rights for DVD, something that its predecessor, Paramount Home Entertainment (which still distributes the library on DVD), was usually willing to do, even going so far as to replace the entire musical scores on episodes of The Fugitive, My Three Sons, and Nash Bridges. Many episodes of The Odd Couple have appeared in edited form on CBS DVD releases (Seasons 2-5) even going as far as starting episodes in the middle of a scene just to avoid securing music rights.

On the other hand, such series as Star Trek and Bonanza have been issued on CBS DVD uncut in their original telecast versions, complete with all the original music as broadcast.

Past names[link]

• CBS Video Enterprises (1975–1980)
• MGM/CBS Home Video (1980–1982)
• CBS/Fox Video (1982–1998)
• CBS Video (1990–2004)
• Worldvision Home Video (1980–1995)
• Simon & Schuster Video
• King World Direct
• National Telefilm Associates Home Entertainment (1984–1986)

External links[link]

• Official site

Home video is a blanket term used for pre-recorded media that is either sold or rented/hired for home cinema entertainment. The term originates from the VHS/Betamax era, when the predominant medium was videotape, but has carried over into current optical disc formats like DVD and Blu-ray Disc and, to a lesser extent, into methods of digital distribution such as Netflix.

The home video business distributes films, telemovies and television series in the form of videos in various formats to the public. These are either bought or rented, then watched privately from the comfort of home by consumers. Most theatrically released films are now released on digital media, both optical (DVD or Blu-ray) and download-based, replacing the largely obsolete VHS (Video Home System) medium. The VCD format remains popular in Asia, though DVDs are gradually gaining popularity.

History[link]

Prior to the advent of home video as a popular medium in the late 1970s, most feature films were inaccessible after their theatrical runs for the general public. They were only viewable in theatrical re-releases, revival houses and television broadcasts. Super8 versions (often heavily edited) of some of the more popular theatrical features were sold at high prices since the late 1960s (see section Packaged movies at Super 8 mm film).

The first company to duplicate and distribute home video was Magnetic Video, established as an audio and video duplication service for professional audio and television corporations in Farmington Hills, Michigan, USA, in 1968. Although Avco's 1972 Cartrivision system preceded Magnetic Vision's expansion into home video by a few years, it took until the late 1970s that VHS and Betamax became widely available for home use. Major United States players in the video rental business today include Blockbuster Video and Netflix.

Special-interest video production[link]

Until the mid-1980s feature film theatrical releases such as The Wizard of Oz, Citizen Kane, or Casablanca were the mainstay of video marketing and helmed by large studios like Universal, 20th Century Fox and Disney. At that time, not many consumers owned a VCR, and those who did tended to rent rather than buy videos. Toward the end of that decade, a rise of smaller companies began creating special interest videos, also known as "non-theatrical programming" and "alternative programming," and "selling-through" to the consumer.

"Home video is an exciting new area of opportunity for adventuresome publishers willing to produce new programs. Today's limitations within the video marketplace may be gone tomorrow. More people are finding innovative ways to create visually stimulating entertainment and information for the video tape player... Like contemporary book publishing, you can produce and distribute yourself to very narrow markets or seek broad-based distributors for mass-oriented appeal"^[1]

Special Interest Video is a huge and steadily increasing venue for products exposing new and old subjects through the medium of camera and tape. It is a new form of publishing, a specialty line of products for vertical "readership" and an exploding territory of subjects, audiences and new uses. Six years ago, dog handling videos, back pain videos and cooking videos were suppositions on a drawing board. Three years ago these took life. Now, along with golf and skiing tapes these S.I. videos are beginning to claim a marketshare. The wild part of this new video publishing adventure is the wide diversity of support with which each product comes to the market. New technology has changed the territory.^[2]

"Cambridge Associates puts the growth of the special interest genre at close to 600% in the last five years, to $625 million in supplier revenues last year."^[3]

Time gap until home video release[link]

A time period is usually allowed to elapse between the end of theatrical release and the home video release to encourage movie theater patronage and discourage piracy. Home video release dates usually follow five or six months after the theatrical release, although recently more films have been arriving on video after three or four months. (Christmas and other holiday-related movies are generally not released on home video until the following year when that holiday is celebrated again.)

Exceptions to the rule include the Steven Soderbergh film Bubble. It was released in 2006 to theaters, cable TV and DVD only a few days apart.

TV programs[link]

Many television programs are now also available in complete seasons on DVD. It has become popular practice for defunct TV shows to be released to DVD one season at a time every few months, and active shows to be released on DVD after the end of each season. Prior to the television DVDs, most television shows were only viewable in syndication, or on limited 'best of' VHS releases of selected episodes. These copyrighted movies and programs generally have legal restrictions on them preventing them from (amongst other things) being shown in public venues, shown to other people for money, or copied for other than fair use purposes (although such ability is limited by some jurisdictionas and media formats: see below).

Pre-Certs[link]

After the passage of the Video Recordings (Labelling) Act of 1985 in the United Kingdom, videotapes and other video recordings without a certification symbol from the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) on their covers - or on the tapes themselves - were no longer allowed to be sold or displayed by rental shops. These tapes are called "Pre-Certs" (e.g., Pre-certification tapes). Recently these tapes have generated a cult following, due to their collectability.

DRM[link]

There is great controversy about recent attempts to increase protections for rights owners using technical means such as Macrovision and CSS, and by the enactment of laws such as the DMCA, potentially hindering otherwise-lawful "fair-use" rights.

See also[link]

Articles

• Copyright law
• Direct-to-video
• Film distribution
• Home cinema
• Laserdisc
• Rental shop
• Videocassette recorder

Categories and lists

• Category:Home video companies of the United States
• Category:Video
• Category:Years in home video
• List of notable home video companies
• List of years in home video

References[link]

1. ^ "Home Video Publishing: Are You Ready?" by Michael Wiese, PMA Newsletter, July 1987, pp.6-13
2. ^ "Special Interest Comes of Age," by Bo Lebo, PMA Newsletter, May 1990, p.18
3. ^ "Special Interest," Video Insider, 7/1/91, p.6