Universal putting all current cinema movies on iTunes etc

OU812 · 17-03-2020 12:14pm #1

https://www.macrumors.com/2020/03/17/universal-theatrical-movies-dod-itunes/

That’s the cinema industry changed forever.

jface187 · 17-03-2020 9:37pm

Does anyone know if I can rent this through sky or PlayStation store? I like watching things on my T.V.

I don't know if it's the death of cinema yet. The studio can't afford to make this big massive films (avengers etc) just for streaming. This smaller low budget films might be going day and date with streaming & cinemas.

johnny_ultimate · 18-03-2020 12:39am

jface187 wrote: »

Does anyone know if I can rent this through sky or PlayStation store? I like watching things on my T.V.

If you link your YouTube app on the PS4 to your Google account you can watch anything you buy or rent on the Play store from there. I don’t think the Universal films are there yet, but if they do show up that’s your best bet

Sleeper12 · 18-03-2020 12:45am

jface187 wrote: »

Does anyone know if I can rent this through sky or PlayStation store? I like watching things on my T.V.

I don't know if it's the death of cinema yet. The studio can't afford to make this big massive films (avengers etc) just for streaming. This smaller low budget films might be going day and date with streaming & cinemas.

The Apple TV app is available on the Firestick. I rented a couple of movies myself today. Apple are the best value. They charge 5 euros for a 4k HDR movie. Most other streaming sites don't have 4K or if they do you can pay 7 or 8 euros just to rent it.

Apple TV app is available on RuKu and obviously any Apple tv or phone. I'm guessing that you can mirror from the iPhone to chrome cast or a smart tv

Sleeper12 · 18-03-2020 12:46am

jface187 wrote: »

Does anyone know if I can rent this through sky or PlayStation store? I like watching things on my T.V.

I don't know if it's the death of cinema yet. The studio can't afford to make this big massive films (avengers etc) just for streaming. This smaller low budget films might be going day and date with streaming & cinemas.

The Apple TV app is available on the Firestick. I rented a couple of movies myself today. Apple are the best value. They charge 5 euros for a 4k HDR movie. Most other streaming sites don't have 4K or if they do you can pay 7 or 8 euros just to rent it.

Apple TV app is available on RuKu and obviously any Apple tv or phone. I'm guessing that you can mirror from the iPhone to chrome cast or a smart tv

jface187 · 20-03-2020 10:40pm

Thanks for the tips. All three titles are on the Sky Store at 18 euro each.

I would have went to the cinema to see the Hunt, but only on one of the bargain days. 5-10 euro deal days, sometimes with a drink & popcorn include in those deals.

18 euro just a bit too much. I know when I was younger I would buy a least one new Dvd a week (at least 20 euro) and rent a couple too, but those days are long gone now.

icdg · 21-03-2020 8:58am

OU812 wrote: »

That’s the cinema industry changed forever.

Not at €18 a pop it isn’t. It might be a stopgap for some during this current situation, but in normality I think I’d be hesitant to rush to pay that when I could wait a couple of months for the price to fall dramatically. For that price I expect a cinema experience and I just don’t get that in my sitting room.

Bare in mind also that with working at home now a big thing, streaming bitrates are now going to be reduced by some major providers which will mean picture quality being affected, particularly at 4K.

Oafley Jones · 21-03-2020 10:04am

icdg wrote: »

Not at €18 a pop it isn’t. It might be a stopgap for some during this current situation, but in normality I think I’d be hesitant to rush to pay that when I could wait a couple of months for the price to fall dramatically. For that price I expect a cinema experience and I just don’t get that in my sitting room.

Bare in mind also that with working at home now a big thing, streaming bitrates are now going to be reduced by some major providers which will mean picture quality being affected, particularly at 4K.

I’m sure content you own/rent isnt affected by the downgrade?

icdg · 21-03-2020 10:10am

No, only streamed content. Doesn’t effect Sky who only offer download of course.

GarIT · 21-03-2020 10:14am

icdg wrote: »

Not at €18 a pop it isn’t. It might be a stopgap for some during this current situation, but in normality I think I’d be hesitant to rush to pay that when I could wait a couple of months for the price to fall dramatically. For that price I expect a cinema experience and I just don’t get that in my sitting room.

Bare in mind also that with working at home now a big thing, streaming bitrates are now going to be reduced by some major providers which will mean picture quality being affected, particularly at 4K.

If you have a family and live in Dublin it is €18 is a lot less than the €60 you'd pay to go to the cinema and now you don't have the hastle of parking, paying insane prices for treats, sitting in dirty uncomfortable seats and watching on a low quality screen.

Oafley Jones · 21-03-2020 10:21am

icdg wrote: »

No, only streamed content. Doesn’t effect Sky who only offer download of course.

Or iTunes Store for example. However on the same box Apple TV’s content is noticeably affected.

Oafley Jones · 21-03-2020 10:22am

GarIT wrote: »

If you have a family and live in Dublin it is €18 is a lot less than the €60 you'd pay to go to the cinema and now you don't have the hastle of parking, paying insane prices for treats, sitting in dirty uncomfortable seats and watching on a low quality screen.

It’s almost 100 euro for us when you include the babysitter.

Sleeper12 · 21-03-2020 11:04am

Oafley Jones wrote: »

It’s almost 100 euro for us when you include the babysitter.

Why would you bring the babysitter??? :pac::pac::pac:

Harry Palmr · 21-03-2020 11:19am

Incredible fall off in a week.

Mar 19, 2020 Thursday 79 $143,641 -41.7% -97.3% 36 Onward $33,296
Mar 18, 2020 Wednesday 78 $246,568 -81.3% -96.2% 38 Onward $61,529
Mar 17, 2020 Tuesday 77 $1,321,687 -59.1% -88.1% 41 Onward $346,334
Mar 16, 2020 Monday 76 $3,234,151 -72.8% -53.4% 47 Onward $753,347
Mar 15, 2020 Sunday 75 $11,892,439 -39.7% -50.8% 51 Onward $2,687,350
Mar 14, 2020 Saturday 74 $19,710,626 +9.6% -50.3% 50 Onward $4,675,724
Mar 13, 2020 Friday 73 $17,977,298 +237.8% -32.4% 52 I Still Believe $3,993,234

Oafley Jones · 21-03-2020 12:14pm

Harry Palmr wrote: »

Incredible fall off in a week.

Mar 19, 2020 Thursday 79 $143,641 -41.7% -97.3% 36 Onward $33,296
Mar 18, 2020 Wednesday 78 $246,568 -81.3% -96.2% 38 Onward $61,529
Mar 17, 2020 Tuesday 77 $1,321,687 -59.1% -88.1% 41 Onward $346,334
Mar 16, 2020 Monday 76 $3,234,151 -72.8% -53.4% 47 Onward $753,347
Mar 15, 2020 Sunday 75 $11,892,439 -39.7% -50.8% 51 Onward $2,687,350
Mar 14, 2020 Saturday 74 $19,710,626 +9.6% -50.3% 50 Onward $4,675,724
Mar 13, 2020 Friday 73 $17,977,298 +237.8% -32.4% 52 I Still Believe $3,993,234

Unsurprisingly, onward will be available on Disney+ from April. That’s the States BTW, although I’d say it won’t be much longer here.

OU812 · 21-03-2020 1:35pm

Oafley Jones wrote: »

Unsurprisingly, onward will be available on Disney+ from April. That’s the States BTW, although I’d say it won’t be much longer here.

Good decision in their part. It’s dead in the water out in the cinema but will drive subscriptions online.

Cinema industry is in a huge amount of trouble after this.

irishguy1983 · 21-03-2020 1:39pm

Just saw it is 17.99 to rent Invisible Man....Who the hell is going to pay that???!! I don’t really see the point to this if they are going to charge so high...

OU812 · 21-03-2020 1:50pm

irishguy1983 wrote: »

Just saw it is 17.99 to rent Invisible Man....Who the hell is going to pay that???!! I don’t really see the point to this if they are going to charge so high...

It's less expensive than most brand new DVD or Blu-ray releases, if you've a couple of people that want to watch it together (as much as they can) it's not so expensive.

OK, it's not a huge tentpole movie, but it was quite successful up to last week in the cinema.

I think prices will change as they see what happens & we may get an influx of titles once we get a clearer picture of the situation - how long cinemas are going to be closed for etc.

Production has stopped on almost everything in TV & movies & won't ramp up again for several months.

21-03-2020 3:35pm

17.99 - too much tbh

especially when there are other ways.

irishguy1983 · 21-03-2020 3:41pm

OU812 wrote: »

It's less expensive than most brand new DVD or Blu-ray releases, if you've a couple of people that want to watch it together (as much as they can) it's not so expensive.

OK, it's not a huge tentpole movie, but it was quite successful up to last week in the cinema.

I think prices will change as they see what happens & we may get an influx of titles once we get a clearer picture of the situation - how long cinemas are going to be closed for etc.

Production has stopped on almost everything in TV & movies & won't ramp up again for several months.

OK - I suppose I was thinking when I go to cinema it costs 10 for just me or cheaper on a Tuesday....Even paying for a second would only cost 20....

Don’t think that will take off but who knows...

21-03-2020 3:53pm

I think that they should have gone for 10 dollars / euros

anyways I suppose that it only applies to current movies so it's a once-off as the other ones will be postponed.

Agent Coulson · 21-03-2020 4:11pm

I'd pay €19.99 to rent Black Widow, James Bond or F&F 9 in this current climate but not for what they have released The Hunt and The Invisible Man are just B movies really.

I was going to go see The Hunt in the cinema that would have been an afternoon discount showing however I can wait for that to come to Netflix or Prime.

Agent Coulson · 26-04-2020 8:59pm

5 weeks later or so I wonder how well this worked out financially for them compared to a cinema release?

If nothing else it was a good test case to see if people would pay for instant releases at home instead of going to the cinema.

I think 9.99 would have been a better price point myself however I as I said above I would have paid 19.99 for F&F 9, Black Widow or Bond or in other words major releases.

jface187 · 26-04-2020 9:13pm

Yeah, I hoped the price would dropped for the hunt by now. If it went down to ten euro I would had gotten it for the weekend.

OU812 · 26-04-2020 9:46pm

The movies that slid to home release were (for the most part), B-Movies.

Although I enjoyed the invisible man, didn’t bother with the hint, trolls was desperate (even the kids thought so) & onward was a decent release.

Would have been interesting with a tent pole movie.

There was a memo leaked between the production houses that stated there was now a requirement to work together in strategy that their industry has changed forever and they’ll now have less screens and less people attending. They need to concentrate on developing a robust home distribution strategy & platform.

Think it was in the Hollywood reporter.

Guy:Incognito · 27-04-2020 4:26pm

jface187 wrote: »

Yeah, I hoped the price would dropped for the hunt by now. If it went down to ten euro I would had gotten it for the weekend.

I'd imagine most people don't go to the cinema alone so 20 isn't bad imo considering that could be for anything up to about 10 people.

Jin luk · 27-04-2020 4:33pm

The cinema was good when all we had at home was an auld 24 or 26" box tv with really bad quality.

Most people have at least a 39" or more in their houses nowadays with UHD.

Add the cost up for a couple to go to the cinema at least 50euro for 1 viewing of a movie on a big screen, and uncomfortable during this time.

Or be nice and relaxed at home drink in hand feet up for a subscription of no more than a tenner.

And thats the legit way plenty going with the dodgy boxes these days also.

Cinemas are finished.

And also the foreign movies and tv shows on netflix are superior to anything hollywood pumps out these days.

Guy:Incognito · 27-04-2020 4:39pm

I much prefer the cinema for things I want to sit and watch properly. Properly dark room. No knocks at the door,phone ringing, distractions or tablets or things. People more likely to shut up and watch.

When I'm watching stuff at home I tend to be browsing stuff online at the same time.

johnny_ultimate · 27-04-2020 4:39pm

To me the price is acceptable for a film you really wanted to see, but probably a bit much for something to just pass a few hours. Never Rarely Sometimes Always is getting a digital release next month after theatrical plans were scuppered, so will gladly pay a few quid extra to watch that as it’s been too of my list for a while now. But not going to pay nearly double the price of a cinema ticket for a curiosity watch of The Hunt so will wait for that to fall to normal digital rental price.

That said, I don’t have much problem with the ‘premium’ releases given the current circumstances. I’d agree most people usually watch films with someone else, so it’s not bad value to see a new film if you consider the price of a cinema trip for two. Different prospect if it’s just for one. Ultimately if there’s a market for it, it makes sense for VOD at the moment - would be fascinated to see numbers of how Universal’s approach has done. Whether this’ll have a lasting impact beyond the crisis of the moment is another question entirely. I know I can’t wait to get back into a cinema once they’re up and running again.

OU812 · 27-04-2020 5:04pm

I LOVE the cinema. Dark room with no distractions & great sound is hard to beat.

However, I’m waiting for an atmos speaker setup to be delivered, & we’ve plans to extend our living room and I’ll be able to fit in a 65”+ screen possibly even a projector. (currently have a 55”)

To be honest, once I get that all sorted, it’ll probably be very rare for me to go to the cinema.

I’d welcome an at home platform for tent pole movies. Even if they’re timetabled & not on demand.

Decuc500 · 27-04-2020 7:12pm

Jin luk wrote: »

Cinemas are finished.

And also the foreign movies and tv shows on netflix are superior to anything hollywood pumps out these days.

Every few years something shiny and new comes along and we're told cinemas days are numbered. But yet cinema still prevails and it will this time too.

I don't think covid19, streaming, illegal downloading, dodgy boxes etc etc will put an end to cinema.

They said the same thing when television and then home video came along.

I wouldn't underestimate peoples desire to get out of the house and experience a film in a movie theatre.

jface187 · 27-04-2020 7:50pm

Jin luk wrote: »

The cinema was good when all we had at home was an auld 24 or 26" box tv with really bad quality.

Most people have at least a 39" or more in their houses nowadays with UHD.

I see this comment a lot "Most people have.." I don't know anyone that has massive T.V. or those expensive sounds systems. Of course people do, but I don't think it's to the level some people make it out to be.

Ironically the younger generations don't really care about fancy T.V.'s since they grew up watching everything on phones/tablets.

I think the comment about cinema suriving to be true. But of course, some will go out of business with everything going on and things will change.

CastorTroy · 27-04-2020 8:16pm

I like the cinema if it's like how you describe as no distractions and dark room. But more often than not these days it's got ones on their phones the whole time with the screens as bright as possible.

FluffPiece · 27-04-2020 10:27pm

I've always thought cinemas would do well if they could turn each cinema room into a faraday cage of some kind. Dunno how feasible it would be, probably impossible. But the idea of it would be good if it was possible to implement.

You could still get a signal in the foyer or bathrooms etc, just once you go into the screening itself, no signal of any kind... It would be nice.

ixoy · 27-04-2020 10:57pm

FluffPiece wrote: »

I've always thought cinemas would do well if they could turn each cinema room into a faraday cage of some kind. Dunno how feasible it would be, probably impossible. But the idea of it would be good if it was possible to implement.

Mobile phone blockers were quietly tried here and had to be switched off because it's illegal to block phone signals.

Nigel Fairservice · 27-04-2020 11:00pm

An interesting move by Universal but I'm not sure I'd pay $20 to watch a new release at home. I have a decent set up at home if I did want to watch movies but I love going to the cinema. I'd probably go twice a month, maybe 3 if there's a few interesting movies out. Anything I don't see in the cinema I'll pick up later on one of the streaming services and not for $20.

I walk past a cinema on my way home from work and there's nothing I like more on a Friday evening after work than going in and taking in a movie. It's a bit of peace and quiet for a few hours, no distractions. Some movies also benefit from a shared viewing experience which can be hard to replicate at home.

CastorTroy · 29-04-2020 1:02pm

AMC cinemas not impressed

AMC Theaters will no longer play Universal movies after Trolls World Tour’s on-demand success
https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/28/21240637/amc-theaters-universal-trolls-world-tour-disney-warnermedia-digital-streaming

OU812 · 29-04-2020 3:04pm

Universal have a huge amount of product that’s appealing to the masses. If they can’t see it in odeon, they’ll go somewhere else. They might not come back.

AMC/Odeon shooting themselves in the foot with this.

Varik · 30-04-2020 2:59pm

Lets see if AMC ect can keep that resolve for Fast 9.

Wonder if that $100 million is total or just the studio cut, most platforms take 30% but that's still tiny compared to the even US domestic which is meant to be around 50% and even higher outside the US of box office.

Mitch Connor · 30-04-2020 3:04pm

OU812 wrote: »

Universal have a huge amount of product that’s appealing to the masses. If they can’t see it in odeon, they’ll go somewhere else. They might not come back.

AMC/Odeon shooting themselves in the foot with this.

AMC are the biggest US domestic chain. their power is huge.

Universal will make some form of non-apology in the end and say they ment they will look at putting movies out on either platform, but tent-pole titles like Fast9 will remain theatrical releases adhering to the agreed theatrical window.

Cinema's shouldn't be getting the criticism on this imo. The Universal statement (and their follow up to AMC's) is BS.

I don't understand why people are accepting of Universal saying they will do away with the agreed theatrical model, and thinking the Cinema's should just role over and accept it.

OU812 · 30-04-2020 5:01pm

AMC is facing a mammoth issue. Getting people back in the door.

There will be people who will go back almost immediately, however, the bulk of people are going to stay away.

Who wants to sit in an enclosed space with a load of strangers?

Although their share price has surged 25% today (based presumably on the current events), it’s still way down.

Over 60% of their revenue comes from the ticket nut. So their logical move is to cut that by approximately 10%? Doesn’t make sense.

06-05-2020 2:49pm

Varik wrote: »

Lets see if AMC ect can keep that resolve for Fast 9.

Wonder if that $100 million is total or just the studio cut, most platforms take 30% but that's still tiny compared to the even US domestic which is meant to be around 50% and even higher outside the US of box office.

20% take for movies online apparently so Universal keep 80%

podcast on the subject

https://www.wsj.com/podcasts/the-journal/the-movie-that-might-change-hollywood-forever-istrolls/e1faa763-ae6c-421c-b510-3e3e3205b3d1

06-05-2020 2:57pm

A decent article on the subject

https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/29/21239703/trolls-world-tour-amc-digital-streaming-theaters-nbcuniversal-disney-warnerbros

AMC will back down

OU812 · 06-05-2020 6:08pm

Was reading an article earlier stating that Disney are now considering adjusting how they release movies that they may go to online rental the day of cinema release & Disney+ Two weeks after cinema release.

This would enable them to drive subscribers while still tending to those who like the cinema environment.

pixelburp · 07-05-2020 10:36am

Think everyone was surprised by the $100 million taken by Trolls: World Tour, but it's hard to know how much of that was an aberration, and how much an indicator of future trends. CoVid resulted in a sudden influx of households with kids stuck indoors - kids who ordinarily should have been in school, on play dates, or just generally out & about. Based on my own social circle, there were a lot of panicking, frustrated parents trying to keep everyone from totally climbing the walls. The prospect of a family-friendly movie would have been enticing.

Can't imagine that financial success automatically maps onto something like Fast & Furious 9 - which apart from anything else, will have a much higher projection of success than Trolls: World Tour (checking boxofficemojo, the first film pulled ~$350 from cinemas so hardly on a par with the F&F franchise - number 8 was a $1 billion success).

OU812 · 07-05-2020 11:22am

pixelburp wrote: »

Think everyone was surprised by the $100 million taken by Trolls: World Tour, but it's hard to know how much of that was an aberration, and how much an indicator of future trends. CoVid resulted in a sudden influx of households with kids stuck indoors - kids who ordinarily should have been in school, on play dates, or just generally out & about. Based on my own social circle, there were a lot of panicking, frustrated parents trying to keep everyone from totally climbing the walls. The prospect of a family-friendly movie would have been enticing.

Can't imagine that financial success automatically maps onto something like Fast & Furious 9 - which apart from anything else, will have a much higher projection of success than Trolls: World Tour (checking boxofficemojo, the first film pulled ~$350 from cinemas so hardly on a par with the F&F franchise - number 8 was a $1 billion success).

I agree with this analysis, however, F&F8 was also an aberration as Paul Walker died before production ended & there was a lot of sentiment about it as well as interest in them using CGI to finish his scenes.

Big "BUT" though is now the mould has been broken & the distributors are going to want to adjust how things happen in the future.

titan18 · 07-05-2020 11:34am

OU812 wrote: »

I agree with this analysis, however, F&F8 was also an aberration as Paul Walker died before production ended & there was a lot of sentiment about it as well as interest in them using CGI to finish his scenes.

Big "BUT" though is now the mould has been broken & the distributors are going to want to adjust how things happen in the future.

That was 7 when Walker died and that did 1.5 bn. 8 did 1.2 bn. F9 will be missing The Rock as a flag bearer so likely will do less but could still break the 1bn depending on if it's good and what else releases at the same time.

You can't really put that on digital only like Trolls. Universal only really has Jurassic Park, Minions/Despicable Me and Fast and Furious franchises that they can hold over cinemas. if this was Disney, it'd be a huge blow, but cinemas hold more power over Universal imo.

JohnFalstaff · 07-05-2020 11:49am

This is all part of a larger seismic shift that is currently changing the entertainment industry in general, and Hollywood in particular. The days of the mega agencies like WME being able to offer 360 packaging deals to studios look to be over.

The new centres of power lie with the distributors, which includes the streamers, who will most likely soon be allowed to own cinema chains in the US. The Paramount Decree passed back in 1948 changed the cinema industry, and it looks like it's going to be terminated.

AMC could well be bought out by the likes of Disney, Amazon, or Netflix in the next 12 months.

OU812 · 07-05-2020 1:01pm

titan18 wrote: »

That was 7 when Walker died and that did 1.5 bn. 8 did 1.2 bn. F9 will be missing The Rock as a flag bearer so likely will do less but could still break the 1bn depending on if it's good and what else releases at the same time.

You can't really put that on digital only like Trolls. Universal only really has Jurassic Park, Minions/Despicable Me and Fast and Furious franchises that they can hold over cinemas. if this was Disney, it'd be a huge blow, but cinemas hold more power over Universal imo.

Correct on FF7. Apologies.

I’d put a large portion of the the billion dollar box office of 8 on curiosity of how they continue without him and people who just got into the series because of 7.

Hard to believe the first movie was about a bunch of DVD robbers.

One of the most successful franchises in universals history.

johnny_ultimate · 07-05-2020 3:10pm

Little bit closer to home, a few of you might be aware Curzon / Artifical Eye (which is both a distributor and an exhibitor in the UK) has for the last few years run a premium-priced on demand service for new releases. Basically they've put up all their new releases day-and-date on their home video service at cinema-ticket prices. This has meant the other bigger UK arthouse chain Picturehouse had effectively blocked Curzon releases from screening in their cinemas. Curzon did make a once-off shift to their own policy for Parasite, though, so it could screen widely (a wise decision given those record box office numbers!)

Anyway, seems Curzon were way ahead of the curve here. They've put a bunch of new releases up on VoD only in the past few weeks, and they've had their best ever weekend now.

Good news for a couple of small films that might otherwise have gotten lost (I know I signed up for the first time to watch Moffie after hearing really good things about it). Potentially another challenge for independent cinemas in the long-term, though.

pixelburp · 07-05-2020 3:17pm

titan18 wrote: »

That was 7 when Walker died and that did 1.5 bn. 8 did 1.2 bn. F9 will be missing The Rock as a flag bearer so likely will do less but could still break the 1bn depending on if it's good and what else releases at the same time.

You can't really put that on digital only like Trolls. Universal only really has Jurassic Park, Minions/Despicable Me and Fast and Furious franchises that they can hold over cinemas. if this was Disney, it'd be a huge blow, but cinemas hold more power over Universal imo.

JohnFalstaff wrote: »

This is all part of a larger seismic shift that is currently changing the entertainment industry in general, and Hollywood in particular. The days of the mega agencies like WME being able to offer 360 packaging deals to studios look to be over.

The new centres of power lie with the distributors, which includes the streamers, who will most likely soon be allowed to own cinema chains in the US. The Paramount Decree passed back in 1948 changed the cinema industry, and it looks like it's going to be terminated.

AMC could well be bought out by the likes of Disney, Amazon, or Netflix in the next 12 months.

Thing is, even though I'm totally guilty of also trying to read the same tea leaves & predicting the future, there's really no way of being sure of what the outcome is going to be. Pick any walk of life and we're into true uncharted territory for the coming months and years. I don't believe we'll be back to 100% normalcy, even a year hence.

Someone will make away like bandits, that much is certain 'cos there ain't no crisis capitalism can't create profit from; but given Hollywood's generally cautious business logic (after all, it is the industry where everyone's in a race to be second), maybe no studio will want to be the one to take the leap into an untested field.

Universal putting all current cinema movies on iTunes etc

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