It's hard to believe, but some folks in the industry are still pushing the need for Digital Cinema conversion. Now more then ever, cinema exhibition is under attack:
- The studios are moving to further shorten the theatrical release window
- Even with a stellar May box office and a great June (thus far) total gross is
still down almost 7% vs. 2010.
- Digital Cinema does not provide any presentation enhancement value.
- 3D is fatiguing due to high admission surcharges and under-whelming
content
It's time for exhibitors to reassess the landscape and adjust. As the future unfolds, content streaming (movies included) through a myriad of outlets and web enhanced devices is inevitable. There is no logical reason for the studios to give cinemas first dibs on movie releases. The new distribution outlets will demand quicker and quicker release dates and they will have mass viewership and revenue dollars in their favor. Not to mention the fact that this would virtually eliminate Hollywood's piracy issue.
Netflix, just one player in the streaming game, has 25 million subscribers. Amazon, another, 80 million users worldwide. For example, with an admission price of $10 a $70 million blockbuster movie is seen by 7 million moviegoers over a weekend. If that same movie were streamed to an array of web devices from SmartPhones to tablets and it was not $10 but say $7/view - do ya think 10 million people would download it. How about 15 or 20 million. Hell, American Idol gets over 23 million viewers each week. You can see where I'm going with this, there is just too much money involved for the studios to pass this up.
What I am saying will happen but will take some time to evolve. However, cinemas must react now and change their business model. It can be done but it won't be easy. One thing I know for sure - investing in D-Cinema equipment and conversion is not the answer to exhibitors' problems or their future.
Best and Happy Movie Going
Jim Lavorato
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