"Tarzan" DVD forces viewers through a jungle of previews
Some Disney fans are going ape over the slew of previews and advertisements they have to get through before they can watch "Tarzan" on DVD.
In most DVD films, after the obligatory FBI warning, a menu bar appears on the screen, directing viewers to the movie or other extra material such as interviews with the director, music videos tied to the movie or previews.
On the "Tarzan" DVD, however, viewers have to watch or fast forward past both the FBI warning and the previews before they get to the menu selection. The roughly four-minute section also touts Disney's Web site.
Viewers have posted scores of complaints on Amazon.com's movie review section, with most saying they wanted to be able to skip past the ads.
One parent wrote: "Loved 'Tarzan.' But the DVD forces you to sit through several trailers before allowing you to actually see the movie. This is no fun when your 2-year-old is screaming for Tarzan!"
A Disney executive, who asked to remain anonymous, acknowledged that the film didn't include a menu option for the ads and that the company has received complaints about it. However, the executive defended the ads as a benefit for consumers.
Tell that to Joseph Lee.
"The reason I bought my DVD player is so my kids don't have to wait for a movie to start," Lee told CNET News.com. "I have to let Disney know just how offensive this is that they would shove this material down my throat every single time my kids want to watch."
Industry observers say the length of the ads on the "Tarzan" DVD is unprecedented. Disney has about four minutes worth of ads compared with only a minute or so on most other DVDs.
Bill Hunt, editor of Digitalbits.com, an online magazine that follows the DVD industry, said the ability to skip around is one of the most attractive features of owning a DVD player.
DVDs resemble music CDs and offer much of the same features, such as being more durable and allowing viewers to move instantly to another part of the DVD. DVDs and DVD players are slightly more expensive than videos and video players, but they provide superior sound and picture qualities.