Netflix Partners With iPic To Release Its Original Movies In Theaters, NATO Urges To 'Tread Lightly' (variety.com)

turkeydance quotes a report from Variety: The National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) is sounding the alarm over a recent deal between Netflix and iPic, in which the luxury-theater chain will screen 10 movies simultaneously with their release on the streaming service. The lobbying organization represents the country's theater chains and has been a staunch defender of traditional release windows that keep films exclusively on screens for roughly 90 days before they debut on home entertainment platforms. In a statement, NATO chief John Fithian warned that while iPic was free to make its own decisions, "We all should tread lightly and be mindful that over the years, the film industry's success is a direct result of a highly successful collaboration between film makers, distributors and exhibitors." The deal with iPic should help Netflix' movies quality for awards. Variety reports: "iPic will release the war thriller 'The Siege of Jadotville,' starring Jamie Dornan ('Fifty Shades of Grey'), on Oct. 7. That will be followed by Christopher Guest's mockumentary 'Mascots' on Oct. 13. This summer, iPic first tested showings of Netflix's 'The Little Prince.'" "Simultaneous release, in practice, has reduced both theatrical and home revenues when it has been tried," Fithian said in a statement. "Just as Netflix and its customers put a value on exclusivity, theater owners and their customers do too."

Comments

I asked a movie industry CEO about this

[Rakarra]

.. about a decade ago, why were movie studios really pushing ahead on the 3-D movie boom, when 3-D hadn't worked well before and audiences were ambivalent. He said that the studios were looking for something that would get people into the theaters, some way that they could differentiate themselves from just DVD entertainment, and special theaters with special gear to give you an experience you won't get on your couch. Think of arcades today -- if you can find them, they're full of games with fancy controllers, or Dave and Buster's styled attractions, not screens with games you can play on your X-Box. Same reason.

I then asked him why these same studios were also pushing 3-D TVs and projection systems and super-high-quality sound at home, and he said that the movie industry was not above shooting itself in the foot.

(This wasn't the head of Warner or Disney, it was a small independent studio that released about a movie a year)

Studios will get alarmed at something that threatens the traditional cash cow of the movie theater, just as they saw great gains in the DVD era, and also great great declines in revenue as the DVD era petered out. If the movie theaters fade, then they won't -really- know how to market and sell their films, and they'll work to protect what they know rather than face the great unknown.

Re:I asked a movie industry CEO about this

[arth1]

It's not the size that matters, but the resolution and viewing distance.

And for many movie theatres, resolution is downright crappy.compared to the size of the screen. Anyone sitting front-row see blurry pixels.
Never mind that the diagonal projection that many theatres do to save space needs a very well calibrated lens setup - which they don't have. So you get one corner that is far blurrier than the opposite corner.

Add the overpriced concessions, and that more than half the audience don't have a grain of manners in their bodies, and will pick up their mobile phone during the feature.

No, going to the movies is just not worth it anymore. Compared to the days with 70mm analog and large auditoria, before mobile phones became ubiquitous, it's now crap in all ways. I'd rather watch at home, for better quality, no 3rd party breaking the suspension of disbelief, far better seating, and even if buying a BD or HD streamed movie, it's cheaper than the theatre if you have snacks or are more than one person.

Re:Acronym collisions!

[the_Bionic_lemming]

I hate theaters. The people who have to use their phones, the ones chatting, the children jumping around and making noise, or the laser pointers. Haven't set foot in a theater since 98, and that was because I was basically dragged into it by a girlfriend at the time. I think the last movie I went to go see was a few years before that wen a group of young females would jump out of their seats, theatrically start screaming and spinning when anything remotely different was going on in the Halloween Michael Myers movie.

the nato they mentioned are fighting tooth and nail to keep up an antiquated system. And they will be as soundly spanked as the music industry ha been.

Sorry, I enjoy my big screen, inexpensive popcorn, and a beer while watching my movies - I ave 7.1 dolby and as an added bonus, I can pause the movie when I need to use the gents.

So if Netflix needs some help dismantling "nato" , I hope they start a kickstarter so I can help fund it.

Be realistic

[whoever57]

The only reason this is happening is because Netflix is paying the theatres to "show" the movies, so that the movies are eligible for Oscars.

Re:Acronym collisions!

[amiga3D]

I love theaters! I love the big screen and the sound and the popcorn. It's a great experience. I try to see at least 6 to 10 movies in the theater every year. Some movies just crave that big screen. We have a brand new cinema with the big GTX screen only a few miles away now and it's really nice. I haven't had a problem with my fellow movie goers in ages. Tickets are expensive so that limits the problem children and if you have a problem the theater people take care of it. The only problem I have really is finding time to go. I think there will always be a market for the big screen.