R.I.P. 90 Day Theatrical Window, Disney+ Misses Quarterly Target and Individual Customer Value Drops
Film Industry News Weekly Digest, Sunday May 16th
RIP to the 90-Day Theatrical WindowRebecca Rubin : The 90-day theatrical window is survived by a leaner, 45-day version. In lieu of flowers, go buy popcorn and a movie ticket at your local cinema. https://variety.com/2021/film/box-office/theatrical-window-dead-1234973333/
Disney+ subscriber growth is slowing like Netflix’s — with one worrisome difference
Disney reported 103.6 million Disney+ customers as of April 3. Analysts had projected 109 million.Disney’s disappointing subscriber additions resemble Netflix’s last quarter. But Disney charges far less for Disney+ than Netflix charges its average customer, making slowing growth more worrying if it continues.
Both Disney and Netflix can safely assume that subscriber growth will accelerate in the second half of the year as show production begins again in earnest and high-profile content comes to streaming video later this year. But there’s one significant difference between the two companies where Disney falls far short: average revenue per user. Disney+’s average revenue per user, excluding India’s Hotstar, was $5.61 per month. Netflix’s ARPU last quarter in the U.S. and Canada was $14.25 per month — up 9% from a year ago. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/13/disney-subscriber-growth-slowing-like-netflix-with-much-lower-arpu.html
Cineworld strikes theatrical deals with Disney, Universal
It is understood the Disney deal means UK Cineworld sites and those operated by Regal in the US will screen upcoming summer tentpoles Cruella (May 28 in US and UK), BlackWidow (July 9 in US and UK), and Jungle Cruise (July 30 in US and UK), all of which fall under the studio’s day-and-date theatrical-Disney+ Premier Access model. Later in the summer and early autumn come FreeGuy (August 13 in the US and UK) and Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings (September 3 in the US and UK).
In the UK, Cineworld gets a 31-day exclusive theatrical window before a film heads to PVOD, rising to 45 days if it reaches a box office target. The deal with Warner Bros in the UK is the same: a film plays exclusively in cinemas for 31 days prior to PVOD, rising to 45 days if it hits specified box office. Regal cinemas will carry Warner Bros films in the US, where this year the studio’s entire slate goes out theatrically and on HBO Max on the same day. Starting in 2022, Regal gets 45 days theatrical exclusivity prior to digital. According to Deadline, which broke the news, Cineworld is in talks with Sony and Paramount. https://www.screendaily.com/news/cineworld-strikes-theatrical-deals-with-disney-universal/5159663.article
Dwayne Johnson Movie ‘Jungle Cruise’ Hitting Theaters & Disney+ Premier This Summer
Disney’s Jungle Cruise will debut in theaters and Disney+ Premier on July 30. Disney+ Premier means that the movie will be available for in-home purchase to Disney+ subscribers for $29.99 in those territories which have the streaming service. Previously, it looked like the Jaume Collet-Serra directed movie was destined strictly for theaters.
I hear from those close to the filmmaking team that Disney presented them with options for the release of the movie. The decision to go theaters and in homes at the same time stemmed from the continued closure of offshore markets such as Europe and Brazil due to the pandemic; this despite the fact that Europe is reopening as soon as next month. Major provinces in Canada remain closed and won’t possibly see theaters reopening until mid-June.https://deadline.com/2021/05/dwayne-johnson-movie-jungle-cruise-hitting-theaters-disney-premier-this-summer-1234755464/‘Shang-Chi’ & ‘Free Guy’ Sticking To Theatrical Window This SummerThe 20th Century Studios title Free Guy (April 13) starring Ryan Reynolds and Marvel’s Labor Day entry Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will be getting a theatrical window of 45 days. Disney CEO Bob Chapek did not specify what would happen after the 45 days, like whether the pics would hit Disney+ Premier or the full Disney+. https://deadline.com/2021/05/shang-chi-free-guy-movie-theater-releases-disney-1234755831/
WarnerMedia CEO: We’re Committed to Theatrical for “Decades to Come”
“I believe in the theatrical experience, we believe in the theatrical experience,” Kilar said at the MoffettNathanson Media & Communications Summit Thursday. “You should expect us to lean into the theatrical experience for decades and decades to come.” Kilar added that “the only thing you can count on, aside from our commitment to theatrical, because it is important to customers, is the belief that windows will change....There will be stories so epic in scope, that an exclusive theatrical release makes sense,” Kilar said, adding that there would also be “other stories that may hew much closer to what you are seeing available on HBO Max the same day they debut in exhibition. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/warnermedia-jason-kilar-films-hbo-max-1234952660/
72% of UK-Ireland cinemagoers planning to return in first few months, says survey
