BRICK-AND-MORTAR CINEMA ISN’T
DEAD JUST YET
When you are in the mood to watch a great
film, how do you watch it? Do you schedule a
visit to the local theater, or do you simply load
up the Netflix app on your iPhone or iPad?
Chances are that you would be happy to do
either, depending on where your mood takes
you. Right now, the traditional, theater-based
model of film consumption is locking horns with
the more modern, streaming-based approach
pioneered by Netflix, but it remains unclear
exactly how this battle will unfold.
Netflix itself has given traditional theaters a lot
to think about on quite a few occasions over
the years. This includes as recently as this year,
when the streamer was locked in negotiations
with major theater chains for months before
it was announced that Martin Scorsese’s The
Irishman would be released to theaters
on November 1 before its arrival on Netflix’s
streaming platform on November 27. Even here,
though, Netflix is clearly chipping away at the
theatrical business model.
This can be inferred from the fact that,
traditionally, such leading theater chains as
AMC and Regal stipulate a 90-day exclusivity
“window” before films are released to home
streaming services. After all, the longer
these chains can keep the films on their big
screens, the more money these longstanding
gatekeepers of the cinema world can make.
However, this situation clashes with Netflix’s
own strategy of using new content as a way of
attracting and keeping subscribers.
Image: Krists Luhaers