Would YOU pay $30 to watch a movie at home while it's still in theaters? Hollywood studios mulling radical change to release dates

  • Studios considering releasing movies to on-demand shortly after their debuts
  • Warner Bros. suggested offering films 17 days after debut for a $50 rental fee 
  • Fox wants 30-45 days after release at $30 and Universals is looking at 20 days

Hollywood studios could soon let consumers watch movies at home soon after their theatrical debut.

Studios have proposed a model that charges consumers a $30 rental fee to view a film 30 to 45 days after it has been released.

The move comes as home entertainment revenues are slipping due to a slump in DVD sales and the studios believe advertising will have more of an effect on people at home.

Scroll down for video 

Hollywood studios could soon let consumers watch movies at home soon after their theatrical debut. Studios have proposed a model that charges consumers a $30 rental fee to view a film 30 to 45 days after it has been released.

Hollywood studios could soon let consumers watch movies at home soon after their theatrical debut. Studios have proposed a model that charges consumers a $30 rental fee to view a film 30 to 45 days after it has been released.

MOVIES ON-DEMAND 

Six out of the seven biggest Hollywood studios are looking to offer consumers on-demands streaming for new releases - instead of waiting the traditional 90 days of a theatrical run.

Warner Bros suggested releasing new movies 17 days after they opened on-demand for a $50 rental.

Fox felt a $30 rental fee to view the film between 30 to 45 days after its release may be seen as reasonable among consumers.

Universal is looking to take it a step further and bring the range down to 20 days.

Disney is not interested in the deal.

Advertisement

A new report from Variety reveals that six out of the seven biggest Hollywood studios are looking to offer consumers on-demands streaming for new releases - instead of them waiting the traditional 90 days of a theatrical run.

Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara suggested releasing new movies 17 days after they opened to on-demand for a $50 rental fee.

However, other studios, like Fox and Universal, believed the price was too high and are now working with exhibitors to create a plan that offers a lower priced premium option.

Fox is leaning towards a $30 rental fee to view the film between 30 to 45 days after its release may be seen as reasonable among consumers, while Universal is looking to bring the range down to 20 days.

According Brent Land with Variety, Lionsgate, Paramount and Sony have been in discussions with a group of exhibitors that includes AMC, Regal and Cineplex.

But Disney is not interested in the deal, which may be surprising as some of their films, like Star Wars and Marvel, tend to stay in theaters longer than most.

One issue that seems to put a hold on moving forward with the change, is that there are different models floating around Hollywood and the studios are unable to come to an agreement.

A new report reveals that six out of the seven biggest Hollywood studios are looking to offer consumers on-demands streaming for new releases - instead of them waiting the traditional 90 days of a theatrical run

A new report reveals that six out of the seven biggest Hollywood studios are looking to offer consumers on-demands streaming for new releases - instead of them waiting the traditional 90 days of a theatrical run

Some studios want to setup the service with higher prices as soon as there is a dip in ticket purchases at the theater.

‘The thinking is that it doesn’t make sense for a movie to stay exclusively in theaters if it isn’t being widely shown,’ reported Lang.

Universal seems to be the least flexible and would like its movies to be made available on premium video-on-demand early.

Whereas Fox and Warner Bros feel it makes more sense to have a different release patter for different movies.

HOME THEATER FOR ELITE CLUB

Prima Cinema created an elite club that turns your home theater room into a personal AMC, with a sleek black box that allows you to rent movies that are only available in theaters.

Members pay a $35,000 fee for the hardware and then $500 for each rental -- $600 if you want 3-D.

Members have two categories to choose from 'Coming Soon' that shows the upcoming films with its release date, synopsis and trailer.

The system is assigned to one client before it even leaves the factory and their finger print is registered to it, which means they are the only one who can rent a movie.

Clients simply browse to the on-screen 'Now Showing' carousel, decide which film to watch, and swipe a fingerprint to securely purchase.

Films are purchased on a pay-per-view basis, but remain available for purchase for as long as the film remains available in public theaters. 

Advertisement

One major problem studios may encounter is that if movies are release too early for a low price, consumers may stop going to theaters altogether.

And it seems exhibitors have made their own demands in regards to the new service.

Some have said that if they move forward with shortening the time they have exclusive access to movies, then studios must stick with the 90 day tradition for lower priced rentals and copies of movies.

These films can be rented between $3 to $6 and around $20 for a disc or digital copy.

They also demand that the Hollywood studios do not alter ‘the traditional home entertainment distribution model for between five to ten years’.

 

The comments below have not been moderated.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.