December 2010
1 post
A True Home-Theater Experience
A new movie service is proposing to bring Hollywood movies into subscribers homes the same day they hit theaters. The price tag for this ultimate home theater experience? $20,000 for a digital delivery system, plus $500 per film. While this may be at the extreme high end, it does seem to indicate the direction that film distribution is heading - a narrowing of the gap between when a film plays...
November 2010
1 post
Netflix Price Increase, Streaming Only Plan
Interesting to note the shift in consumer habits in Netflix as reported in an article in today’s WSJ:
The company, which says its customers now use its Web-streaming service more than its by-mail rentals, will charge $7.99 a month for customers that only want to watch films and TV shows delivered over the Internet.
“We are now primarily a streaming video company delivering a...
October 2010
1 post
TV - Here, There, and Everywhere?
The WSJ posted in yesterday’s Opinion Page excerpts from a speech by Jeff Bewkes - chairman and chief executive of Time Warner, Inc. He foresees a new era of TV watching, augmented by 21st digital technologies, communications, and devices:
But now television is at a critical moment in its evolution. Whether audiences continue to enjoy this golden era of TV will depend largely on whether...
August 2010
5 posts
Hollywood Shorts Itself
Hollywood - for all its bright lights - still maintains a dense shroud of secrecy over how its net grosses are accounted for. The threat of fiscal transparency may have been a motivating factor in the industry sponsored provision outlawing movie-futures trading that was successfully lobbied into the July 21 federal financial reform bill. According to an article in New York Magazine about the...
Foreign Tastes Shaping Hollywood
Seems American audiences aren’t the only ones who dictate the latest Hollywood fare:
The rising clout of international audiences is a sea change for Hollywood. Decades ago, a movie’s foreign box office barely registered with studio executives. Now, foreign ticket sales represent nearly 68% of the roughly $32 billion global film market, up from roughly 58% a decade ago, according to...
Netflix vs. The Public Library
The public library is not only a great place to check out books, but it has also become one of the most popular spots to rent a film:
According to the survey released by the Online Computer Library Center, public libraries in the U.S. lend an average 2.1 million videos/day, which edges out the 2 million discs shipped by Netflix and almost as much as the combined total of DVD rentals at Redbox...
Internet Pay-to-play?
In yesterday’s WSJ Opinion Page, Peter Funt argues that customers will pay for online content:
Yet often overlooked is the fact that virtually all trend lines in recent communications history have moved, with success, from free distribution to some form of pay model. The viewing and listening public has demonstrated repeatedly its willingness to spend for content, so long as there is some...
May 2010
3 posts
Japan Prize 2010: Call for Entries
Wanted: Innovative TV Programs, Films, Websites and Games with Educational Value
The JAPAN PRIZE 2010 has begun accepting entries on April 1.
Outline of the Contest:
Established in 1965 by NHK, the JAPAN PRIZE has been widely acknowledged as a unique contest contributing to the development of educational broadcasting and media. The targets of the current contest include not only TV programs but...
What's the latest trend among high-end fashion...
According to a recent article in the WSJ:
“Arty, sometimes obscure videos have long been produced by fashion houses looking for a subtle way to peddle their brand to a discriminating audience. But such efforts have been limited to the big brands and scattershot, reflecting the high cost of production and screen time. While getting a 30-second television commercial can be expected to cost at...
April 2010
1 post
What do soybeans, greenbacks, and "Hangover 2"...
The first two are commodities currently traded in the futures market - and they many soon be joined by Hollywood movies. According to an article in the 3/24 NYT:
“The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has been reviewing applications from two companies that, if approved, would open markets to trade movie contracts. Buyers and sellers on the markets would place money on whether a movie...
March 2010
1 post
Apple Scrambling for iPad Content
Maybe the iPad’s tagline “wonderful and magical” should be downgraded to “neat and handy”. According to an article in today’s WSJ, Apple is scrambling to line-up content for its multi-media device in time for its release. Sounds like it will take some time before consumers will be able to realize the full potential of the tablet:
“Apple Inc. is...
February 2010
6 posts
YouTube dabbles in indy film rentals
The result of YT’s foray was less than overwhelming. This begs the question - especially In light of Carr’s article (see previous entry) - what value does online distribution bring to indy filmmakers? As the technology for making films has become more accessible, there has been a sharp increase in competition for limited venue space. Non-traditional avenues of distribution, like the...
Plentiful - and cheap - web content?
NYT’s David Carr writes about the cheap web content provided by services like Demand Media. This article made me wonder about the future of how content will be provided on the web. Do free content sites like YouTube devalue filmmakers by setting the expectation that videos made for the web should be inexpensive? As Carr points out in his article, the independent producers for Demand Media...
MOMA documentary film fest →
The Museum of Modern Art in New York is hosting an International Festival of Nonfiction Film from February 17 - March 3. Click on the above header to access a schedule of films & events.
EDK: Upcoming funding deadlines →
Click on the header above to access a list of upcoming funding deadlines for documentary films. Courtesy of the European Documentary Network.
King of the mountain: China renames peak after...
From the WSJ’s CHINA REAL TIME REPORT:
“…Avatar’s box-office record-breaking success in China recently inspired officials in Zhangjiajie, a scenic area of Hunan province, to rename one of their mountains after the film. The craggy peak formerly known as South Sky Pillar (which was also known as Heaven and Earth Pillar) was rechristened “Avatar Hallelujah Mountain” at an official...
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RI Gov's budget calls for elimination of film tax...
It looks like the film tax credits will fall victim to the budget woes afflicting our state. I understand the pros and cons surrounding the tax credits: they help to attract film projects, but also take money out of the public tax rolls. It seems like a shame to thrown the baby out with the bath water by completely undoing the credits. As I mentioned in my article in Saturday’s ProJo...
January 2010
16 posts
ProJo - Adam Short: The promise for R.I. of film... →
It struck me that the lessons and triumphs of New Zealand could be applied to Rhode Island in creating a vibrant film and digital-media industry. With dim economic prospects and a chronic “brain drain” of talent, it is imperative that Rhode Island foster new industries. Our lawmakers can incentivize small companies and entrepreneurs to locate here by easing their tax, regulatory, and fee...
Apple Sees New Money in Old Media
With the new tablet device that is debuting next week, Apple Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobsis betting he can reshape businesses like textbooks, newspapers and television much the way his iPod revamped the music industry—and expand Apple’s influence and revenue as a content middleman.
In developing the device, Apple focused on the role the gadget could play in homes and in classrooms, say...
China's Homegrown Movies Flourish
“Avatar” has been flying high in China, but Beijing is clipping its wings.
On Tuesday, cinemas confirmed that they have been ordered to pull two-dimensional editions of the Hollywood blockbuster as of Thursday to make way for a state-sponsored biography of the Chinese philosopher Confucius.
Read More >
Source: WSJ Online
China pulls festival pix
The Chinese government has raised its profile on the fest circuit recently, most recently by canceling two Chinese entries in the Palm Springs Intl. Film Festival in protest over the inclusion of a film about Tibetan independence.
Chinese state-run producers were angered that “The Sun Behind the Clouds: Tibet’s Struggle for Freedom,” which deals with the Dalai Lama, was part...
Eugene Hernandez: The Doctor Is In. →
Next Thursday, the 2010 Sundance Film Festival will kick-off in Utah, ushering in a new decade of American indie cinema. This week, before the fest begins, we’re going to spend some time pondering where we are and where we’ve been by looking at the current and recent state of the film scene.
For more than twenty years, the indie film community—the loosely connected network of filmmakers,...
More than Half of Consumers Utilize Mobile Phones... →
A recent Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT) Enterprise Mobility Solutions annual research study of holiday shoppers identified that more than half (51 percent) of consumers across 11 countries used their mobile phones for in-store activities such as comparison shopping and getting peer feedback, product information and coupons, which signals the increasing importance for retailers to adopt mobile shopper...
CES: Netflix Friends Hollywood
While the tensions between rental rival Redbox and the studios have turned ugly, Hollywood executives have mostly tried to keep the peace with Netflix, a huge purchaser of DVDs from the studios. On Wednesday, Netflix announced a deal with one of its big studio partners, Warner Brothers, under which it agreed not to rent Warner movies for 28 days after their DVD release, an arrangement that could...
New TV Apps Borrow a Page From iPhone
A longtime quest to bring the Internet to the living room has entered a new phase, borrowing a page from Apple Inc. and its iPhone.
Companies are now racing to build marketplaces for TV programs that act much like iPhone apps, able to interact with social-networking services, play games, call up movies and other Web content—all using a remote control, rather than a computer equipped with...
WSJ Opinion: The Future on TV
This may not be the year America cuts the cable cord and drops its subscription to pay TV. But it will likely be a year of sublime creative destruction in the home-video entertainment business.
Comcast’s proposed acquisition of NBC has elicited the usual panic from the usual worrywarts wondering who will possibly be able to compete with the new cable-cum-programming giant.
A better...
Vimeo to Launch Support for 1080p →
In case 720p wasn’t enough for your gorgeous, transcendent works of motion picture art, Vimeo will begin hosting 1080p videos by the end of this month.
Unfortunately, that you’ll have to be a Plus member not just to upload these files but to view them as well. Plus members pay $60 per year or $10 per month — worth it if you’re a big fan of the sort of art-house fare that makes up Vimeos niche,...
CES2010: Sharp introduces quad-pixel series HDTVs →
shawlcrochet:
Today Sharp announced their new lineup of Sharp AQUOS HDTV’s, with innovating technology in display colour. Sharp has taken the leap forward from the traditional RBG primary colours, adding in yellow as the fourth primary colour (RBGY), in what they call, Quad-Pixel technology. The new series of Sharp AQUOS will be able to produce 1 trillion colours, from the standard 1 billion...
28 Days Later: Say Goodbye to the Netflix New... →
Today is sad day for Netflix customers. The online video rental supplier has just announced an agreement with Warner Bros. that will forever alter your online rental experience. Now should you wish to rent a Warner Bros. flick you’ll have to wait out a 28-day holding period after the film’s initial DVD release date.
Of course the partnership rooted in money-making greed — Warner Bros. wants you...
Mobile TV Gets Closer As Backers Cut a Path
Watching live television broadcasts on mobile devices is common in some countries, but not the U.S. A new effort is taking shape to change that.
A group of broadcasters plans to use this week’s Consumer Electronics Show to promote their plans to deliver news, sports, weather and other local content to users on the go. While cellphones are an obvious target, backers of the effort also...
Cinema Surpassed DVD Sales in 2009
Last year was the first since 2002 that U.S. consumers spent more money buying movie tickets than buying movies to watch at home, underscoring the changing economics of Hollywood.
According to new data from Adams Media Research, Americans spent $9.87 billion at the box office in 2009, 10% more than in 2008, according to a report Adams plans to release Tuesday. At the same time, sales in the...
December 2009
26 posts
Studios Make Bigger Push for Digital Sales
For years, studios have been betting that online distribution of movies and TV shows would turn into a robust business. Instead, they barely budged. A few years ago, Walt Disney Co. began pushing out its movies online at the same time that the DVDs became available. Many others have followed suit.
Online movie sales will bring in just $237.7 million to studios this year, calculates Tom Adams,...
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Eugene Hernandez: The Future of Festivals? →
“We are going to see, in the future, a lot of films leaping into distribution right from the festival platform,” Copper stated, “If not during the festival then the day after—it’s going to happen this year.” Sundance is expanding its event into eight other cities for one night next month, but taking a wait and see approach on distribution initiatives. Meanwhile other festivals—namely SXSW and...
Beijing Preserves Limits on Movies
A decision by the World Trade Organization reaffirming its stance that China’s restrictions on imported films, music and books are illegal could help some media companies sell more products in China, but isn’t expected to radically shake up the field, analysts said Tuesday.
China said it regretted the WTO’s ruling on its appeal. Unless the restrictions are lifted, the U.S....
Apple TV Proposal Gets Some Nibbles
CBS Corp. and Walt Disney Co. are considering participating in Apple Inc.’s plan to offer television subscriptions over the Internet, according to people familiar with the matter, as Apple prepares a potential new competitor to cable and satellite TV.
The proposed service by the maker of iPhones and iPod music players could, in at least some scenarios, offer access to some TV shows from a...
China Plea Dismissed by WTO
The World Trade Organization on Monday dismissed an appeal from Beijing over the WTO’s August ruling against Chinese restrictions on distribution of Hollywood movies and other Western media, sealing one of China’s biggest-ever losses at the WTO.
The decision, if implemented by China, could prove lucrative for U.S. and other foreign companies. Despite its size, China remains one of...
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Final Days in China: Beijing
PLEASE NOTE: With the conclusion of my trip rapidly approaching, I’ve decided that in the interest of time I’ll condense my stay in Beijing to one entry instead of many. Brevity doesn’t really do justice to my experiences here, but neither does only spending three days in this incredible city. I could use three weeks to dig deep and explore. I woke up early Sunday morning to take a van to the...
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The Award for Best Award Show Mover and Shaker...
But now it looks like the brothers are fighting back—and the critics are on their side. “Inglourious Basterds”—the World War II film starring Brad Pitt that the brothers produced with Universal Pictures—became a box-office hit this summer. The Quentin Tarantino-directed movie grossed more than $100 million at the domestic box office—and garnered four nominations from Globe voters. “Nine,” the...
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'Blind Side' Scores Big for Indie Producer
After less than two weeks in theaters, “The Blind Side,” the family-friendly football movie starring Sandra Bullock, has taken in nearly $107 million at the box office. That’s more than triple the $30 million the film cost to make, after tax credits.
The movie’s success highlights the growing importance in Hollywood of independent production companies, some of which were...
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Morgan Stanley drinks the Apple Kool-Aid: The...
“Apple has a two or three-year lead” according to Katy Huberty, thanks to an installed base of 57 million handsets, 100,000 apps and 200 million iTunes subscribers with credit card numbers on file. (She will keep her eye, however, on Samsung, Nokia (NOK) and Google’s (GOOG) Android.)
Read More > Source: Fortune Apple 2.0 Blog