Posted on 03/16/2020 12:25:32 PM PDT by BBQToadRibs
Universal Pictures, in a bold move to confront the coronavirus’ threat to the movie industry, is collapsing the theatrical window.
In an extraordinary step, the studio on Monday said it will make its movies available in the home on the same day as their global theatrical releases, beginning with DreamWorks Animation’s “Trolls World Tour,” opening April 10 in the U.S.
The company will also make movies that are currently in theatrical release available on-demand starting as early as Friday, starting with “The Invisible Man,” “The Hunt” and “Emma.”
The movies will be available on a wide variety of on-demand services, including iTunes and Google Play for a 48-hour rental period at a suggested retail price of $19.99.
The decision is a radical departure from the longtime industry practice of waiting 90 days between a movie’s release in theaters and when it is available for home viewing. Theaters have long resisted collapsing the so-called theatrical window, fearing it would undermine their business by discouraging consumers from going to the multiplex.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Theaters have been dying for a long time. it is just not “the Thing” it used to be.
Completely overhauling the business model may be a great idea.
Radical move? How about, in a desperate move to save their @sses from losing loads of money? How’s that hyped up panic feeling now, Hollywood?
I called it.
Available on BitTorrent 10 minutes later for 100% off.
Kidding! If they are doing this, then show some support!
How noble. Instead of paying $10 a ticket at the movie theater to watch a crappy movie, you can now spend $20 to watch it at home. I suppose the advantage is that you can invite all your friends over to suffer with you and hope they don’t have the virus.
This is actually a good idea. There were some movies over the past year that I would have happily paid theater prices for to watch at home. Going to the cinema has become such an unpleasant experience that I missed movies I would have liked to see - but they are not yet available to watch at home.
I love the big screen but hate the talkers. Old people my age are the worst.
Movie audiences used to be much better behaved. Also, no such thing as cellphones. Ushers (from years ago) used to be very proactive about addressing and even ejecting any unruly patrons. Nowadays, they are worried about lawsuits, accusations of racial discrimination, etc.
$19.99 for a movie, no thanks
$19.99 for the whole family to watch the movie. And a couple friends. That’s a bargain. And no $5 pop and $10 popcorn.
Remember no crowds, so it may be a bargain for a large family who are all in quarantine.
Why not?
Everything is closed, no sports on TV. 24/7 virus coverage on the news.
Here are my reviews:
The Invisible Man - nothing abut viruses in the movie
The Hunt - nothing abut viruses, but a stupid movie
Emma - nothing abut viruses in the movie
Most people go to the theaters with more than 1. I figure it costs me $75-$100 to go to the movies nowadays.
3 adult tickets $30-$40
Eat out before the movie $35-$45
Popcorn/drinks at theater $20
Its why I don’t go to the movies much anymore.
15 years overdue.
20 bucks??? Nope.
“Interesting move. Might set a precedent for future business models in the industry.”
I have a strong belief that a LOT of business models are going to change because of this CV pandemic, starting with schools (esp. higher education). Why do you need dozens of profs per department, huge classrooms, student centers, dorms, gyms, huge admin staffs, huge maintenance and campus cops...when everyone can take classes online? Why pay a private school $40K - $60K just for tuition (which is bankrupting the country) when you can pay 1/4 of that cost for online classes. You could even have 3/4 or more of the schools out there just run out of business, because who needs all of them? I hope that this is one result of the CV, the destruction of the Education-Industrial Complex.
Another change could (and should) be the unification of all state licensing of doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers. Why CAN’T they work in a different state, they have the skills? Why CAN’T we respond in an emergency because of these petty dictatorships (A.K.A. state licensing boards)? What about retired docs and nurses - shouldn’t we have a ready reserve, similar to the military, in case of an emergency - just like this one?
I look forward to some of the changes. Not the ones that reduce our liberties, to be sure - and there will be LOTS of attempts to do that, starting with that idiot meglomaniac, Andrew Cuomo (Fredo’s big bro).
“$19.99 for the whole family to watch the movie. And a couple friends. That’s a bargain. And no $5 pop and $10 popcorn.”
“Might set a precedent for future business models in the industry.”
It seems that the WORLDWIDE APOCALYPSE might have some very positive unintended consequences such as this. Families might find out that homeschooling is a good thing. Companies might see that production remains the same or increases when ees work from home. Everyone will live cleaner lives, making all illnesses more rare.
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