Krow wins Blu-ray launch account
Blu-ray Disc Association, the group of companies behind one of the new rivals to DVD technology, is understood to have appointed Krow Communications to handle the format’s launch in the UK.
It is believed the brief includes above-the-line activity, direct marketing and digital work, which could also be adapted for other European markets. The pitch was handled by intermediary The Haystack Group (MW July 27).
The association is led by Sony, and also encompasses technology firms including Apple, as well as Hollywood studios such as Twentieth Century Fox and Warner Home Video.
No one at Blu-ray Disc Association or Krow was available for comment as Marketing Week went to press.
Meanwhile, Sony is to start selling movies in the Blu-ray format in the UK next month. The first titles to be made available from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment will include new releases and back catalogue issues such as Hitch, The Fifth Element and A Knight’s Tale.
Until now, Sony has only sold Blu-ray titles in the US and Canada. The UK is one of 15 other countries to be targeted with the discs, including South Korea, Germany and Australia. The titles are expected to be sold at a similar price to a DVD at launch.
A rival technology known as High Definition DVD is backed by Toshiba, NEC and Microsoft. The systems are being included in the next generation of games consoles, with Blu-ray included in Sony’s PlayStation 3 and HD DVD in the Xbox 360. Both formats offer better quality pictures and storage capacity than a traditional DVD.
Krow was set up last year by former D’Arcy chiefs Barry Cook and Nick Hastings, ex-Euro RSCG planning director Malcolm White and John Quarrey, previously chief executive of Arc EMEA.
