F.C.C. Makes It Easier for You To Stay Home to See Movies
Bad news if you're a movie theater owner; good news if you don't want to see Iron Man 2 with some idiot kicking the back of your seat the entire time. From the New York Times: "[The F.C.C.] approved a request to allow companies that sell movies via video-on-demand services to activate signals that would block the copying or other re-use in home entertainment systems of recent releases." Uh-huh. And what does that mean for you?
With the added layer of Big Brother-like security -- don't worry, the movie studios will only be able to control what you record for 90-days -- movie studios will be free to release more of their products in a VOD format without the fear of having them copied. So, this is just the first step on a path that will end with you watching Iron Man 3 from the comfort of your own couch on the day it opens in 2015. Sounds fun, right?
Well, maybe. Of course this would be a major death blow to movie theaters owners -- expect to see them pushing for more 3D screens as a result -- but it could also mean higher prices on the consumers' end; would it shock anyone to see Paramount charging $15-20 for Iron Man 3 on Demand? Still, the added benefit of not having to deal with fellow human beings might outweigh any price gauge. Not that I'm still bitter about the guy sitting behind me at Iron Man 2 for playing footsie with my seat. For future reference: Three dirty looks in one movie means stop.
· F.C.C. Allows Movie Studios to Block Copying of New Video-on-Demand Releases [New York Times]
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Comments
"would it shock anyone to see Paramount charging $15-20 for Iron Man 3 on Demand?"
Nope. Or more than $20 maybe? Figure for every 1 on-demand rental, 3 - 5 (or more) people are potentially watching it...
"Not that I’m still bitter about the guy sitting behind me at Iron Man 2 for playing footsie with my seat. For future reference: Three dirty looks in one movie means stop."
You should have gotten verbal! I _hate_ seat kickers.
On the one hand, I like the concept of studios opening more avenues for consumers to, you know, consume. On the other hand, has Hollywood learned nothing from the music industry? Digital Rights Management will always fail. $20+ bucks for 1 VOD viewing? Some 12 year-old will hack it and get it on Bit Torrent in no time. I hate seat kickers, too, but at least I get the big screen with them.
I know this is going to date me, but I was an usher(ette) at the Picwood Theatre on Pico near Westwood in the eighties (before they tore it down to make way for that paean to LA Olympics Architecture, the Westside Pavilion). Armed with parking attendant flashlights, we were actually charged with keeping the peace and evicted seat-kickers, popcorn throwers and anyone who talked. Breaking up trysts in the back row was another matter... I hate to think that we have to pay extra to the Arclight just to get an undisturbed filmgoing experience, which should be a basic expectation, like focus and air conditioning. (The Arclight, BTW, is run by Pacific, who ran the Picwood. Thanks, Pacific!) The theatre owners are shooting themselves in the foot by not providing a good customer experience. I also resent paying twelve bucks for a matinee at the Bridge for "Avatar" and having it be out of synch and missing the blue channel, requiring a five minute hike to tell the manager and then another HOUR before they could reboot their system and restart the show. I didn't used to dread going out to see a movie. No wonder this is happening.
BTW, thanks for the rant space. 🙂
it will likely be a while before this is open market. but it would be handy for those award screeners for the oscars and such
This post reminded me of Classic Superman. What a fantastic film!