We knew it was coming, we just didn't know who would do it and when. The dreaded "window", which is the delay between the theater debut until the film is available online, cable, satellite or on optical disc is apparently about to get a dramatic reduction. However, siting the undercutting of ticket sales, AMC, Cinemark and National Amusements theaters make no bones about it, they will not even screen a movie with this sort of marketing schedule.
Director Steven Soderbergh's newest film "Bubble" will be broadcast on the high-definition network HDNet on the same evening as the theatrical release, four days later, you can snag the DVD.
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But the "Bubble" experiment with unveiling DVDs at the same time as the theatrical release is an anomaly, and the big theater chains are trying to keep it that way. The biggest chains, including AMC Entertainment, Cinemark Entertainment and National Amusements, have said they have no interest in carrying a film with a model that could undercut their own business. "We feel that day and date (for a DVD release) dilutes the theatrical release," said Terrell Falk, a Cinemark spokeswoman. "This wouldn't be something we would show." |
What impact this could have is unknown at this point, but once the gate is opened a crack, the pressure will surely cause it to swing wide open. In fact, this movie is the first in a series of six "day-and-date" DVD releases that the Oscar winning Soderbergh will be directing. Times they are a changin'. Lets hope that there is enough of a market left for the theaters. Maybe they will survive, what do you think? What would it take to keep people coming to the big screen?
Source: C|Net
