The official Harry Potter website has been updated with a new site to promote the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince on DVD December 8th.

Among other things, the site promotes the community screening of Half-Blood Prince with Dan Radcliffe and David Yates on December 12th at 3 PM EST.

For everything we've got on the Half-Blood Prince DVD, click here! Thanks to everyone who e-mailed with the tip.

Reuters is reporting that Walmart.com will be offering its top 10 pre-ordered DVDs for $10 this holiday season--Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince included.

Walmart.com said on Thursday the offer includes popular movie titles such as "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" and "Julie and Julia".

The full list of $10 DVDs available for pre-order can be found here.

EDIT: Speaking of good DVD prices, Amazon is currently offering the Blu-Ray version of Half-Blood Prince at $16.99. Thanks Michael!

Earlier this month we told you that an Ace of Cakes episode would feature a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the Half-Blood Prince New York Premiere after party cake.

That episode has now aired on Food Network and can be viewed online in several pieces. Thanks to Snitch Seeker, the clips can be found at this link (the video quality is not the best).

For those of you in Australia, you can check out the new Blu-ray cover for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Of interest, is the sticker saying, "Be the first to see footage from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."

Half-Blood Prince will be released on DVD and Blu-ray in Australia on November 18.

And don't forget MuggleNet has a comprehensive Half-Blood Prince DVD info page that you can check out right here!

Thanks to Shahbaz for the tip!

Amazon has posted a new 2-minute commercial for the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Blu-Ray set.

It includes some nice new looks at the bonus features we'll be getting on the special edition and Blu-Ray DVDs.

To view it, click here! Thanks to Snitch Seeker for the tip.

To learn a lot more about the Half-Blood Prince DVD and its special features, visit our info page. The DVD will be released on December 8th in the United States.

Does this new video get you excited for the bonus features?!

In early September we told you that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince had been nominated in several categories at the 2009 Scream Awards.

Thanks to HarryPotterXperts.de, we now know that Half-Blood Prince won in the "Best Ensemble" and "Holy S***! Scene of the Year" (for the bridge collapse) categories.

The awards will air Tuesday, October 27th at 10 PM on Spike TV.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince has been nominated in the Hollywood Movie of the Year Category at this year's Hollywood Movie Awards.

As of now, Star Trek leads the pack with 27% of the votes, while Half-Blood Prince is second with 21%.

Cast your vote here.

Thanks to Enrico for the reminder!

Over the past few weeks we've reported on several cool Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince DVD/Blu-Ray features, and another one specifically for Blu-Ray has just been announced today.

David Yates and Dan Radcliffe will participate in a community screening of Half-Blood Prince on December 12th starting at 3 PM EST. Fans who have a copy of the film on Blu-Ray and are registered in the BD Live community will be invited to participate. Comments from David and Dan via VideoBusiness:

"I'm really looking forward to the live community screening of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and excited to talk directly to fans of the movie about my experiences and answer their questions," said Radcliffe. "It's a wonderful way for fans and for those directly involved with making a film to share opinions and ideas."

Yates added, "I'm looking forward to engaging with the thoughts and opinions of the fans who have supported us so loyally and passionately over the years-without them the films wouldn't be the success they are."

When the Order of the Phoenix DVD was released close to two years ago, fans were treated to a nice look at Half-Blood Prince.

WB has decided to do the same with the Half-Blood Prince DVD and will include a sneak peek of Deathly Hallows. The feature was discovered when DVD Empire posted the back cover of the DVD on their website.

Remember: MuggleNet has a comprehensive Half-Blood Prince DVD info page that you can check out right here! Thanks to Maggie and Leaky for the tip.

Amazon has sent out announcements that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is now available for pre-order on DVD, Blu-ray and Amazon Video on Demand!

The DVD/Blu-ray combo can be purchased here and the single-disc DVD can be purchased here. For more info visit Amazon.

UPDATE: Photos posted on BizBash back in July show the cake (in the shape of the Hogwarts Express) along with decor at Half-Blood Prince party. Thanks, Katie!

You may remember that for the Order of the Phoenix Los Angeles premiere in July 2007, Ace of Cakes star Duff Goldman created a very cool Hogwarts cake (pictured) for the cast, crew, and special guests.

As it turns out, the cake was so good Duff was invited back to create a cake for the Half-Blood Prince New York premiere! An episode of Ace of Cakes featuring a behind-the-scenes look at his creation will air on the Food Network starting October 29th at 10 PM EST. Thanks for the tip, Mika!

On a related note, FeltBeats caught up with Duff at the Half-Blood Prince premiere and he revealed a couple details about this new cake. You can watch the interview right here on YouTube.

DVD Times has a new article out detailing what we can expect from the "Close Up with the Cast of Harry Potter" portion of the Half-Blood Prince DVD. Many cast members are contributing with fun segments totaling 28 minutes:

- Editing with Daniel Radcliffe: Daniel and editor Mark Day have a light-hearted conversation about film editing and how to get the right shot for a scene
- Special Effects with Matthew Lewis, Oliver Phelps and Tom Felton: The guys get a "science lesson" from Special Effects Supervisor John Richardson and technician Matthew Harlow.
- Owl Training with Jessie Cave: Jessie heads outside for training tips with “hootie” and owl trainer Guillaume Grange.
- Stunt Training with Rupert Grint: Rupert shows off his thrill for danger with the stunt department.

Read more details, including what other cast are doing, over at DVD Times! Don't forget: MuggleNet has a Half-Blood Prince DVD section packed with info right here. Thanks to Snitch Seeker for the tip.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince has now eclipsed the $300 million mark here in the United States. The movie currently sits at #8 on the all-time worldwide grossing list with $927.4 million, just behind Order of the Phoenix ($938.2 million).

Thanks to Snitch Seeker!

The Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince DVD will be released on Dec. 8, but the video on demand will not be available until Dec. 15, according to Video Business.

Noonan [a WHV spokesman] said the film “will be held back a week [on VOD] in an effort to further enhance the extraordinary sell-through possibility” of the DVD, calling Potter a unique property.

Thanks to Leaky for the tip!

Potter actors Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood) and Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom) released 1,000 balloons on Millennium Bridge in London today to celebrate the upcoming Half-Blood Prince DVD release and to kick off a new contest.

The contest, open to anyone 18 or older in the UK, is simple: find one of the black balloons Evanna and Matthew launched today and follow the instructions on the attached card. You'll then be entered into a contest where the winner will receive a trip to the Deathly Hallows set where they'll be turned into a painting!

This is London has video from the balloon launch, which also includes a nice interview with the two actors. They note that Deathly Hallows is going to be "insane" and Evanna reveals that the producers are keeping it true to the book and paying a lot of attention to the final battle. Photos from the event can be seen here on Getty.

Following today's announcement that the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince DVD will be released on December 8th in the US, we can now reveal that several UK retailers are listing December 7th as the release date for the UK.

Both Play.com and Amazon.co.uk are now taking pre-orders for the DVD, which comes in several different versions, including a 2 Disc Edition, a Blu-Ray release and a 'Years 1- 6' boxset.

To find out more information about the DVD's, please visit our Half-Blood Prince DVD page, where you can view the cover art and special feature listings.

It was announced earlier today by Warner Home Video that the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince DVD will be released in the United States on December 8th. There will be a 1-disc DVD, 2-disc DVD, and 3-disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo release.

You can take a closer look at the DVD cover art below:

- HBP DVD Single Disc (1, 2)
- HBP DVD 2-Disc Special Edition

We know the DVD will include an 11 minute insider look at the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park, the full documentary of J.K. Rowling: A Year in the Life, as well as other great behind-the-scenes segments you can read about here.

Thanks to HPANA for the tip!

Thanks to the BBFC there are more details about the upcoming Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince DVD, which is expected to be released in December.

We now know that the JK Rowling documentary "A Year in the Life", which follows the author as she finishes Deathly Hallows, will be included in the DVD set.

The BBFC also lists "Close Up With the Cast", "One Minute Drills", and "What's On Your Mind". Thanks to Sara and Leaky for the tip.

The list of deleted scenes from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince has appeared on the British Board of Film Classification's website. They are in line with the scenes David Yates described to us at the NYC Half-Blood Prince premiere:

- Harry and Hermione walk through Hogwarts hall (26 seconds)
- Harry and Hermione discuss Marauder's Map (1 minute)
- Harry, Ron, and Hermione discuss the Vanishing Cabinet (1 minute, 4 seconds)
- Harry and Dumbledore arrive at cave entrance (38 seconds)
- Harry and Dumbledore leave cave (19 seconds)
- Clouds gather over Hogwarts as Flitwick conducts choir (1 minute, 39 seconds)
- Harry joins Ron, Hermione, and Ginny in the Common Room (40 seconds)
- Harry and Hermione discuss Ron at Astronomy Tower (42 seconds)

Additionally, the BBFC has listed a 11 minute, 38 second look at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park. At that length, expect a pretty cool look at the park! Thanks to Leaky for the tip.

We've received word that Play.com--a UK DVD distributer--has updated its Half-Blood Prince Blu-ray and DVD pages with the cover art. They've also added the box set covers.

Check them out at the link below!
-Half-Blood Prince Blu-ray cover
-Half-Blood Prince DVD cover
-Harry Potter Complete DVD Box Set
-Harry Potter Complete Blu-Ray Box Set

These covers could change by the release date and the movies are not yet available for pre-order. These are also UK covers, so the US covers may be different.

Thanks to Simon!