COVID-19 Theater Reopening Delays Cloud Distribution Model

Theater closings created a “real problem” for the movie industry’s formula for blockbusters and “how we consume video” overall, said Brett Sappington, Interpret vice president, on a Brightcove webinar Thursday. Citing studios’ long-term schedules, Sappington said “they plan years in advance for the exact weekend whenever they’re going to release something" to ensure the schedule doesn’t hit another big release: March-July since lockdowns “really screwed up calendars for not just now, but on into the future.” Streaming successes while theaters have been dark prompted “good discussions on premium video,” said Brightcove analyst Jim O’Neill. Streaming was up 40% in Q2, said O’Neill, noting Netflix added 26 million subscribers in two quarters. Disney had more than a 70% subscriber spike after Hamilton’s release July 3, and Universal’s Trolls World Tour took in $100 million from streaming revenue in Q1: Both had been planned for theatrical release, he noted. Studios are delaying some big-budget releases as theater reopenings stretch out. O’Neill cited AT&T CEO John Stankey’s comments (see 007230052), saying it's inevitable that some Warner Bros. movies that were slated for theatrical release this year would move to streaming platforms. Tenet, which cost $200 million and has been pulled for now, won't go to streaming first. On whether digital distribution could eventually replace movie theaters, Sappington noted that being in a theater with “bunches of other people … feels unsafe to me." Though Sappington is certain it will be safe again to return to theaters, he also said unknowns remain.