The strike by Hollywood screenwriters might seem distant to film marketing, which focuses on release-ready films, but labor turmoil is taking a toll on cinema premieres. Myriad secondary impacts from Hollywood labor strife are crimping movie marketing: * Uncertainty that film talent will do publicity for finished films. * Awards events are under boycott threat. * TV … [Read more...] about Labor Strife Crimps Film Marketing
digital distribution
Discounting Fever Engulfs Film Biz
With recession fears looming, price cuts are beginning to pop up across the movie landscape at video streamers, while being considered by theaters. In some cases, these take the form of bundling multiple streaming services or offering a cheaper advertising-supported streaming service, as Netflix and AMC+ have done recently. NBCUniversal’s mainstream video streamer Peacock … [Read more...] about Discounting Fever Engulfs Film Biz
Netflix Markets Titles, Less the Brand
Netflix is shifting its marketing focus to individual titles instead of its brand, finding a general messaging of value and breadth-of-content is no longer compelling, according to a New York Times article. The video streaming industry leader, with 230 million subscribers worldwide, finds subscribers restless and prone to canceling to jump to emerging competition from … [Read more...] about Netflix Markets Titles, Less the Brand
Streamers Apple, Amazon Swing to Cinema
Apple TV+ is reportedly joining Amazon Studios in separately investing billions of dollars in movies tailored for cinema premieres. “It may have been implausible a few years, heck, even a few months ago, that tech giants like Apple and Amazon would spend billions on theatrical movies,” writes Rebecca Rubin in Variety. Bloomberg News Service reported Apple will spend $1 … [Read more...] about Streamers Apple, Amazon Swing to Cinema
Netflix Audiences Emerge From Shadows
Netflix is pouring billions into original TV programming and competition is intensifying, so the leading video streamer is listening more closely to its subscribers. For about a year, Netflix impaneled 2,000 subscribers (out of its 223 million worldwide currently) to give feedback on its original programs in what it calls its Preview Club; this effort will grow to 10,000 … [Read more...] about Netflix Audiences Emerge From Shadows
Streamer Foreign Films Fill Indie Gap
The homegrown indie-film sector characterized by prestige movies is suffering, but moviegoers are getting relief. Similarly-crafted, high-minded movies are playing in the U.S. that streamers commissioned from overseas producers. A case in point is German-made World War I drama “All Quiet on the Western Front,” which Netflix gave a truncated U.S. cinema run. All the U.S. … [Read more...] about Streamer Foreign Films Fill Indie Gap
Streamer Erases Cigarettes From Posters
Look what today’s cancel culture got now! HBO Max is sanitizing movie posters of cigarette/cigar smoking which gets knocked by film fans on social media and makes for some bizarre-looking images. “Angry movie fans took to Twitter to reveal the missing smokes on HBO Max’s feeds, which appeared to be scrubbed from iconic movie posters for Robert Altman’s ‘McCabe … [Read more...] about Streamer Erases Cigarettes From Posters
Streaming Film Gets Cinema Run
Sensing a gap in theatrical releases, Paramount Pictures has added a limited cinema run for made-for-streaming urban film “On the Come Up.” Time is short because the PG-13-rated youth drama is scheduled to premiere on the Paramount+ streaming service Friday, Sept 23. “On the Come Up” was well received at a Toronto International Film Festival screening days ago, giving … [Read more...] about Streaming Film Gets Cinema Run
New Streaming Deals Upend Status Quo
Release windows for theatrical and video-on-demand in the streaming age are unsettled, suddenly experiencing significant upheaval across the globe. An animated Disney film skips theatrical in France (see accompanying “Strange World” image) to go straight to Disney+ streaming. And a separate Apple TV+ deal for a Brad Pitt movie reportedly incorporates an unprecedented … [Read more...] about New Streaming Deals Upend Status Quo
Rattled Video Streamers Tackle ‘Churn’
Experiencing sudden chaos from an unexpected leveling of growth, Netflix, Disney+ and other subscription video-on-demand (S-VOD) services are shoring up their economics, trying to curb costly customer churn. Hot competition among S-VOD platforms made for lax industry practices such as generous account sharing; signups with no contracts allowing for quick cancellations; and … [Read more...] about Rattled Video Streamers Tackle ‘Churn’