Sony&Disney begin streaming movies still in theaters "in a bold move against piracy"

Tar.Aldarion

http://www.theverge.com/2013/6/24/4458644/disney-sony-on-demand-streaming-korea

I and others have thought for a long time that companies will have to change things up to still be viable, an initial start? A lot of people wanted this and it is beginning to happen.

super_furry

About time. The way people are consuming media has changed greatly over the last decade and there are so many people pirating things because they can't obtain them legitimately in the way that they want.

jaykhunter

Fantastic. I know going to the cinema is great and all, but it takes up an evening, between getting tickets, to and from transport, waiting through ads & trailers etc. I'd love to have the opportunity to order it from home and boom! start watching it.

I think the only thing holding it back is that this service might gouge double-dip sales (i.e. people seeing it in the cinema and buying it on DVD a few months later)

Sad Professor

This is only happening in South Korea, though, where piracy is rampant. Apparently far, far worse than anywhere else in the world. Eventually they may be forced to do the same elsewhere, but not without an enormous amount of resistance from cinemas. They might be happy to give you the latest indie releases (that barely get a theatrical run as it is) for the same price as a cinema ticket, but expect to pay a substantial premium for blockbusters.

It's an interesting move but one that could seriously damage the industry. A lot of the major chains will simply boycott the studios who get behind this and even if it does take off it's not going ti be cheap. Expect to pay €50+ for the privilege of watching Transformers 4 in your home. It may be a cheaper alternative for large families or groups of friends but I can't see myself using the service unless it offers more than just mainstream cinema. The great thing about VOD in the US is that it has a wide selection of smaller films that will at most, get a token cinema release.

Of course the flip side is that these releases become the source for higher quality pirate releases.

wolfpawnat

As a person who doesn't get a chance to get to the cinema, but wants to see movies, I welcome anything that allows me to watch them. I always wanted to be able to rent online and watch at my own leisure in an evening. The cost of a cinema to me is far too much, I would have to pay tickets, taxi home and a babysitter. Too much for a movie, but I hate having to wait for the DVD release I hear all the good bits before I ever get to see it

Bullseye1

This is quite shocking (not that I had any interest in this particular movie).

Tim Burton's film version of Alice in Wonderland was nearly not screened at Odeon cinemas in the UK, Ireland, or Italy in 2010 after Disney attempted to reduce the exclusive theater release window from 17 weeks to 12 weeks in order to bring forward the DVD launch.

Sad Professor

The multiplexes are pretty powerful. Imagine how much damage they could do if they banded together and boycotted a big 250 million tent-pole film. They could probably bring down a studio.

johnny_ultimate

I'm personally not completely convinced VOD is the the future - it's part of the future, but I struggle to believe a lot of viewers will pay the premiums associated with simultaneous VOD releases. Still, curious to see how the South Korean trial plays out, certainly the best country to try it out in given both their illegal download rates and excellent broadband infrastructure.

S.M.B.

VOD in South Korea yet they still feel the need to stagger the Pixar release schedule throughout the world for marketing purposes.

For once the UK & Ireland aren't getting it too bad with Monsters University coming out 3 weeks later than in the US but that figure has been up to 6 months in the past.

tricky D

The new media distribution channels have changed the landscape. The music and movie industry simply have to adapt to this new reality. Instead they have moaned, made excuses, alienated the end consumer and dragged their heels. They're still relying far too much on the old experiences and business models which don't quite bear up to current consumer demands and trends. When the likes Netflix and iTunes started in the US, they replaced a good deal of the piracy, but the media companies let those companies step into and exploit the gap in the market when they had an opportunity to do so themselves.

The really need to start getting a better grip of the notion 'adapt or die'.