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Movie Theater Chains Threatening To Boycott Blockbusters Over VOD? Yeah, Okay.

April 14th, 2011 by Caffeine Powered

You can chalk this news story up to some of the most wondrous blustering you’ll see anywhere. Major theater chains are threatening to not play serious summer blockbusters, pissed because Universal, Sony, Warner Bros., and 20th Century Fox have agreed “to a new Premium Video On Demand service.” Mentioned last year, this service will kick off on this month on DirecTV.

Slashfilm:

The new service, which goes into practice this month on Direct TV, will feature films 60 days after their theatrical release for the cost of $30. Theater owners don’t like this model one bit and see it as the biggest blow yet to their already dwindling business. But would they really not show a sure fire money maker like  Deathly Hallows or is it just an empty threat? Read much more after the break.

[cont.]

The studios would argue that at today’s box office, 50% of a film’s gross is usually made in the opening weekend and most films are completely done within a few weeks. So, for most movies, a 60 day window wouldn’t be that big of a deal. Very few films are still making considerable money after 60 days.

The flip side of that is theater owners believe a wide adoption of this on demand window will discourage large families from coming out to their theaters. That, too, makes sense. For a family of four, $30 for a movie compared to the upwards of $40 just for tickets, plus concessions, seems like an economic no-brainer. But if you’re willing to spend $30 in 60 days, why not wait another 60 and just buy the DVD?

How do you feel about all this? I think the theaters are full of shit. Good luck boycotting something like Deathly Hollows, it’s just going to sink your battleship even quicker. Secondly, I’m not sure how successful the premium service is going to be. I sure as fuck aren’t going to pay $30 to watch a movie 60 days after it’s dropped. I’ll pay $11 in the theater, and if I like it enough, fucking rent it on Netflix a month or so after this fleecing service.

Hit me with your thoughts.