In recent months has been much talk about early VOD for theatrical but studios have been talking about this for years in 2011 Universal wanted to release Tower Heist as VOD release charging $59.99 three weeks after its cinema opening but after exhibitor’s outcry, threats to boycott and 32 filmmakers including Michael Bay, Kathryn Bigelow, James Cameron, Michael Mann, Todd Phillips, Antoine Fuqua, Robert Zemeckis, and Guillermo del Toro signed their names to an open letter urging Hollywood to abandon plans for a premium VOD service Universal cancelled their plans.
NATO said “NATO would like to thank Universal for responding to various theater owners’ concerns and canceling the PVOD test it was contemplating. They have been engaged with individual exhibitors on this test, and while it was something that many theater owners could not ultimately support, the open and collaborative nature of the dialogue is appreciated. NATO recognizes that studios need to find new models and opportunities in the home market, and looks forward to distributors and exhibitors working together for their mutual benefit,”
In 2015 Paramount Pictures announced plans to trial early VOD with Scouts Guide To The Zombie Apocalypse and Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension releasing them on VOD after dropped to under 1,000 screens which created exhibitor outcry and many boycotted their release and the two films took $18.3m and $3.7m at the US box office but were released on VOD 46 days after release.
In 2016 Sean Parker (who revolutionized music 18 years earlier with Napster) announced plans for The Screening Room reaction from exhibitors was as expected but many filmmakers including Ron Howard, Peter Jackson, Steven Spielberg, J.J. Abrams all backed his VOD plan while James Cameron, Todd Phillips and Nicolas Winding Refn were against. A year later The Screening Room came back to CinemaCon but had yet to sign up any studios or exhibitors but there was much talk about early VOD and it will come in the next few years.
But exhibitors need to realise they can’t have their cake and eat it too as the way audiences are watching films has changed much of this change is due to their greed. UK admissions in 1984 where 54m they had been dropping off steadily since 1948 when admissions were almost their highest ever 1.5 billion but apart from a few odd years including 1978 due to Star Wars dropped year on year. But in 1985 admissions started to rise again thanks to AMC who decided to open the first multiplex cinema in the UK despite in Milton Keynes. In the years that followed many more multiplexes were built (Odeon were very slow getting into the multiplex game preferring to do as they had for years cut up their single screen cinemas into multiplexes) and admissions grew year on year within 6 years they had almost doubled. Was massive growth in 1993 thanks to Jurassic Park taking over £46m at the box office which saw a box office expert in January 1994’s Screen International to predict admissions would top 200m by 2000.
In 1996 to celebrate 100th anniversary of cinema June 2nd was National Cinema Day all cinemas were £1 which saw admissions increase dramatically for the year was repeated the next year and was similarly successful. (I’m surprised National Cinema Day didn’t become a yearly event did ask BFI and others in 2015 if there were any plans to do similar in 2016 but nothing was forthcoming). Admissions kept growing steadily for the next few years and then in 2001 thanks to the first Harry Potter film increased by 20m to 175.9m. In the years since they have been flat but annual box office has almost doubled while the films being made are the same studios were making when admissions were increasing.
Have asked this question many times but no-one can give an answer why did admissions stop growing in 2002? My answer is in 2003 exhibitors started getting greedy and started dramatically increasing ticket prices but had prices stayed steady admissions would be over 275m now. Similarly, in the US I believe admissions would be over 2 billion instead of the 1.3 billion they have been for the last 20 years even though average price according to NATO has gone up from $6.03 to $8.95 up 48%, in reality, they are up over 150%. While a Netflix monthly subscription is $11.99 in the US and £8.99 in the UK for 4K streaming which is less than the price of one cinema ticket.
To quote The line from Pretty Woman when Vivian goes back into the shop that refused to sell her a dress but then came back next day wearing designer clothes going up to the assistant saying, ‘do you remember me, I came in the shop yesterday and you refused to help me, you work on commission, big mistake, huge I have to go shopping now’.
The same could be said about cinemas as they take a share of ticket sales but make most of their money on confectionery sales with up to 900% profit on popcorn. It’s not rocket science but as if you sell more tickets for a lower price more people will be willing to buy overpriced popcorn and confectionery rather than sneak it in from outside. When to see Dunkirk this week at my local Vue and it was £12.99 look at the food displays and the pricing of the items is shockingly expensive bags of sweets for £3 you can buy a Tesco’s next door for £1. it is a false ecoonmy for exhibitors to keep increasing ticket prices but its what they have done for the last 60 years since the late 50s when admissions started to decline against the arrival of TV.
With 90% of the total box office for most films, even Disney films taken in their first 6 weeks and then most played out of cinemas by week 8 early VOD is needed if only to stop illegal Chinese streaming. Thanks, Hollywood’s obsession with China which had been their savior as they sold off much of Hollywood to China many films open same day in China as the US so within a few weeks of release most of the films are available on illegal streaming sites.
In the last few months, it looks like China’s obsession with Hollywood is ending after spending billions buying Legendary Pictures, AMC Cinemas, Odeon Cinemas and buying stakes in many film production companies, studios, and individual films Wanda Group is scaling back less than a year ago when they planned to invest billions in all six Hollywood studios and were close to buying a major stake in Paramount Pictures.
If there was a flexible VOD window would mean flops could be released within weeks if their theatrical release as once a film is played out of cinemas there is now very limited second run theatrical window. So even exhibitors couldn’t complain if films like The House were released on VOD 5 weeks after theatrical rather than waiting another 10 weeks?
Would love to live in the world Christopher Nolan lives in believing Netflix are the enemy and cinema was the place to watch films first as watching a film in the cinema is of course far better than watching at home. But as home technology improves with 4K HDR TVs Dolby Atmos home cinema with Sky this week announcing this week they will soon start broadcasting films and sport in Dolby Atmos (BT Sport screened Premiere League matches in Dolby Atmos last season) home cinema has become a mini cinema for many. While Netflix has grown dramatically in size over recent years (famously Netflix were desperate to sell to Blockbuster in 2000 for $50m but weren’t interested 10 years later Blockbuster stores were shutting down and now only a few in Alaska remain while Netflix is now worth over $80 billion with over 105 million subscribers worldwide and growing.
While cinema has been artificially supported by ticket inflation and surcharges from PLF, 3D and Event Cinema last weekend to see Dunkirk at BFI IMAX £22 and to see Andre Rieu concert was up to 100% more than regular prices (did a random price check online comparing ticket prices from Cineworld, Vue, Everyman and Odeon cinemas at cinemas in Glasgow)
IMAX said this week after a drop-in profit they will cut back on 3D and screen more films in 2D. 12 years ago studios started on the 3D adventure this was after 2 years of no growth bringing back 3D was a sign of desperation as it was bought in by exhibitors and studios in 1950’s when admissions were dropping against competition from TV at that same time launched many picture formats including Cinerama, Aroma-Rama, Smell-O-Vision, CinemaScope, VistaVision and 70mm similar to now with exhibitors adding PLF. and 4DX.
As with audiences in the 50s cinemagoers enjoyed the 3D experience when it returned with films like Avatar but then exhibitors and studios got greedy saw it to increase profits adding a third to ticket prices and retro-fitting many films. Cinemagoers realised that 3D to many of these films didn’t add anything to the cinema experience apart from a third more to prices but when it was a film like Gravity or Hugo they were happy to pay as it was a part of its plot. Sky TV closed their 3D channel in 2015 and TV manufacturers have cut back on the amount of 3D TVs produced the only country where 3D is strong is in China where they are retrofitting most of the films that are released and are more 3D screens than non.
But in recent years even films that were made in 3D the box office share that was 60% – 40% 3D Vs 2D has switched and now exhibitors don’t show 3D on their biggest screen and only do a few shows a day except for the first night of War for Planet of the Apes when all screenings on Tuesday night were 3D.
where many headlines after IMAX announcement said 3D is dead but exhibitors will still book Star Wars The Last Jedi in 3D and people will watch it. While are rumours that Avatar 2 could launch 3D without glasses if that was possible and prices weren’t increased it could make another comeback.