The Shout Factory...any more

[drewfussclass101]

Hey,

I am so surprised by the quality and tons of extras on the best of Heres lucy dvd. Does anyone know if they plan to do any more? Does anyone know how the sales for the best of heres lucy are doins. i would say that the sales would determine if they did any more.

[ethelmaepotter]

I contacted a representative from the Shout Factory! about two weeks ago and asked if they would be releasing any more episodes of "Here's Lucy" on DVD. At this time, there are no plans to release additional episodes. What a bummer!

[comedyfreak]

Awe, what a shame. I really enjoyed my dvd's, it's my favorite of Lucy's shows. I remember watching them on prime time when they were first shown.

[TV DVD Fan]

Yeah, unfortunately the set bombed, and Shout! put probably too much effort into release 1. It really sucks.

Pat

[seventies_sitcoms]

I'll bet Here's Lucy would've been more successful if they had released a Season 1 set instead of a "Best of..." set with the episodes picked by her children. I heard some good episodes were looked over in favor of "special guest star" episodes.

[comedyfreak]

I agree with with you seventies. I would've chosen to have a full season set, I really loved the opening theme too.

[ethelmaepotter]

I think one reason it didn't sell well was because Lucie Arnaz was flapping her trap far too much.

[That Other Fan]

From what I understand the set sold very well, better than Shout anticipated in fact.

[Dizzy Arnizzy]

Originally Posted by That Other Fan

From what I understand the set sold very well, better than Shout anticipated in fact.

Right; the set did better than expected.

Here's a message someone posted at the Lucy Lounge about how the set sold. And he got this info. from a friend who worked at Shout!, so this info. is very accurrate:

Sales of the HERE'S LUCY set exceeded expectations.

There was concern whether the set would be successful (that's why they went with a "Best of..." theme), and Shout Factory did not want to be locked into a long-term obligation in case the first set's sales were low. Subsequently, a license fee was negotitated only for the first volume.

It sold better than expected, and Shout Factory has interest in doing another set. But due to the favorable sales level, the show's licensors have asked for a higher license fee, higher than Shout Factory feels it can profitably handle.

So, HL Vol. 2 sits in limbo for the time being.

------------------------------------------

15,000 [DVD sets] is the average break-even benchmark for the major studios, e.g., Paramount, Sony/Columbia, 20th-Fox, etc....[to have to sell to get back in the money] all who proportionately allocate a percentage of their outrageous overhead costs (CA and LA taxes, studio liability insurances, studio assets depreciation, management compensation packages, et. al.) to each of their products.

BUT on an incremental, out-of-pocket cash basis, i.e., direct costs... break-even is closer to 3,000 units, covering licensing/royalties, internal production costs, out-sourced disc duplication, packaging, distribution and promotion.

Shout Factory is not a major studio. An independent, small, 100% quality, professional outfit, that often struggles to hit the 3,000 mark.

Shout Factory did well with HERE'S LUCY, on a cash basis. It was budgeted for a modest profit, and large pre-order sales achieved that objective sooner than expected.

But in the market, TV season sets have a diminshing return. For example, Paramount sold 20% fewer CHEERS Season 2 than Season 1, fewer Season 3, etc. Other studios and TV series see similar trends. (ILL does seem to be a rare exception to this.) Independent distributor Anchor Bay saw its THREE'S COMPANY sales drop off significantly for Seasons 2 and 3; 4 sales have spiked due to Don Knotts' fan base, but the company expects 5 and 6 to drop off drastically.

Licensing costs for a 2nd HERE'S LUCY volume have increased. Add in the market trend for smaller follow-up sales. Shout Factory does not reasonably feel confident, that it can profitably continue at the present time.

[NOVARick]

Very good, comprehensive info. Thanks for posting.

Originally Posted by Dizzy Arnizzy

Right; the set did better than expected.

Here's a message someone posted at the Lucy Lounge about how the set sold. And he got this info. from a friend who worked at Shout!, so this info. is very accurrate:

Sales of the HERE'S LUCY set exceeded expectations.

There was concern whether the set would be successful (that's why they went with a "Best of..." theme), and Shout Factory did not want to be locked into a long-term obligation in case the first set's sales were low. Subsequently, a license fee was negotitated only for the first volume.

It sold better than expected, and Shout Factory has interest in doing another set. But due to the favorable sales level, the show's licensors have asked for a higher license fee, higher than Shout Factory feels it can profitably handle.

So, HL Vol. 2 sits in limbo for the time being.

------------------------------------------

15,000 [DVD sets] is the average break-even benchmark for the major studios, e.g., Paramount, Sony/Columbia, 20th-Fox, etc....[to have to sell to get back in the money] all who proportionately allocate a percentage of their outrageous overhead costs (CA and LA taxes, studio liability insurances, studio assets depreciation, management compensation packages, et. al.) to each of their products.

BUT on an incremental, out-of-pocket cash basis, i.e., direct costs... break-even is closer to 3,000 units, covering licensing/royalties, internal production costs, out-sourced disc duplication, packaging, distribution and promotion.

Shout Factory is not a major studio. An independent, small, 100% quality, professional outfit, that often struggles to hit the 3,000 mark.

Shout Factory did well with HERE'S LUCY, on a cash basis. It was budgeted for a modest profit, and large pre-order sales achieved that objective sooner than expected.

But in the market, TV season sets have a diminshing return. For example, Paramount sold 20% fewer CHEERS Season 2 than Season 1, fewer Season 3, etc. Other studios and TV series see similar trends. (ILL does seem to be a rare exception to this.) Independent distributor Anchor Bay saw its THREE'S COMPANY sales drop off significantly for Seasons 2 and 3; 4 sales have spiked due to Don Knotts' fan base, but the company expects 5 and 6 to drop off drastically.

Licensing costs for a 2nd HERE'S LUCY volume have increased. Add in the market trend for smaller follow-up sales. Shout Factory does not reasonably feel confident, that it can profitably continue at the present time.