Peter Jackson and James Cameron write letter opposing Premium VOD Service
This letter, which was put together by James Cameron and his producing partner Jon Landau in conjunction with NATO (the National Assn. of Theater Owners ), is set to coincide with Thursday's launch of the Adam Sandler comedy Just Go with It, which will be the first Home Premiere title available to HD customers for $29.99.
Along with James Cameron and Jon Landau, other letter signers include Michael Bay, Kathryn Bigelow, Guillermo del Toro, Roland Emmerich, Peter Jackson, Shawn Levy, Michael Mann, Todd Phillips, Brett Ratner, Adam Shankman, Gore Verbinski, Robert Zemeckis, Karyn Kusama, Antoine Fuqua, Todd Garner, Lawrence Gordon, Stephen Gyllenhaal, Gale Anne Hurd, Bill Mechanic, Jamie Patricof, and Robert Rodriguez.
Here is the letter in full:
AN OPEN LETTER FROM THE CREATIVE COMMUNITY ON PROTECTING THE MOVIE-GOING EXPERIENCE
We are the artists and business professionals who help make the movie business great. We produce and direct movies. We work on the business deals that help get movies made. At the end of the day, we are also simply big movie fans.
Lately, there's been a lot of talk by leaders at some major studios and cable companies about early-to-the-home "premium video-on-demand." In this proposed distribution model, new movies can be shown in homes while these same films are still in their theatrical run.
In this scenario, those who own televisions with an HDMI input would be able to order a film through their cable system or an Internet provider as a digital rental. Terms and timing have yet to be made concrete, but there has been talk of windows of 60 days after theatrical release at a price of $30.
Currently, the average theatrical release window is over four months (132 days). The theatrical release window model has worked for years for everyone in the movie business. Current theatrical windows protect the exclusivity of new films showing in state-of-the-art theaters bolstered by the latest in digital projection, digital sound, and stadium seating.
As a crucial part of a business that last year grossed close to $32 billion in worldwide theatrical ticket sales, we in the creative community feel that now is the time for studios and cable companies to acknowledge that a release pattern for premium video-on-demand that invades the current theatrical window could irrevocably harm the financial model of our film industry.
Major studios are struggling to replace the revenue lost by the declining value of DVD transactions. Low-cost rentals and subscriptions are undermining higher priced DVD sales and rentals. But the problem of declining revenue in home video will not be solved by importing into the theatrical window a distribution model that cannibalizes theatrical ticket sales.
Make no mistake: History has shown that price points cannot be maintained in the home video window. What sells for $30-a-viewing today could be blown out for $9.99 within a few years. If wiser heads do not prevail, the cannibalization of theatrical revenue in favor of a faulty, premature home video window could lead to the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenue. Some theaters will close. The competition for those screens that remain will become that much more intense, foreclosing all but the most commercial movies from theatrical release. Specialty films whose success depends on platform releases that slowly build in awareness would be severely threatened under this new model. Careers that are built on the risks that can be taken with lower budget films may never have the chance to blossom under this cut-throat new model.
Further, releasing a pristine, digital copy of new movies early to the home will only increase the piracy problem-not solve it.
As leaders in the creative community, we ask for a seat at the table. We want to hear the studios' plans for how this new distribution model will affect the future of the industry that we love.
And until that happens, we ask that our studio partners do not rashly undermine the current - and successful - system of releasing films in a sequential distribution window that encourages movie lovers to see films in the optimum, and most profitable, exhibition arena: the movie theaters of America.
We encourage our colleagues in the creative community to join with us by calling or emailing NATO at 202-962-0054 or nato@natodc.com.
Sincerely,
Michael Bay
Kathryn Bigelow
James Cameron
Guillermo del Toro
Roland Emmerich
Antoine Fuqua
Todd Garner
Lawrence Gordon
Stephen Gyllenhaal
Gale Anne Hurd
Peter Jackson
Karyn Kusama
Jon Landau
Shawn Levy
Michael Mann
Bill Mechanic
Jamie Patricof
Todd Phillips
Brett Ratner
Robert Rodriguez
Adam Shankman
Gore Verbinski
Robert Zemeckis
Comments (55)
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KJ Johanson
If the studios want to bring in more people and by extension, more money to the theatres, they should re-release their older titles in theatres like Cineplex has with their Digital Film Festival and their Classic film series.
Seeing Back to the Future with an audience and on the big screen was a whole new experience as was the emotional punch I got seeing It's A Wonderful Life (I'm excited to see both Butch Cassidy and Spartacus later this summer).
And at less then a regular movie admission, it's a great way to see an old favorite, introduce a classic to someone who maybe hasn't seen it and a way to bring in extra revenue.
I know it's not a overall fix, but it's just one of the ways to bring people back to the theatre.
11 months agoby @KJ-JohansonFlag
Johnnyblaze09
To the top directors of this time, I understad how much love you have for making very interesting movies and the excitement of playing your work in theaters, worlwide, gaining back the effort you gave. But then the 2 months early release VOD, I believe you have a cut with it; from the people who's lazy to go to theaters anymore for whatever reason they've got and then I think this would solve the problem.
1 year agoby @johnnyblaze09Flag
Stephanie Fryar
I wonder if any of the people who signed their names to this petition have actually paid money to sit in a movie theater where they're among average people? I wonder if they've ever had to deal with the indignities of having to tolerate cell-phone chatterers, bratty, seat-kicking kids, crying babies and clueless parents, along with constant texters and tweeters who are more interested in who they're texting than what's on the screen.
While I understand where a few of these people are coming from, for those of us who don't have a godzilla-plex to go to (the "closest" godzilla-plex near me is some 12 miles away), VOD can be an option, albeit an expensive one. As for myself, I'll do what I've been doing for quite a while... wait for the DVD of the movie I want to see to come out, so I can watch it in the comfort and privacy of my own home.
1 year agoby @stephanie-fryarFlag
Spiggyspic
Wow. These guys are more worried about money taken out of their pockets than entertaining audiences. If they really cared about their craft they would want people to see it in any format they choose. Why do theatre tickets have to be so high? So they can pay Michael Bay millions for a half-assed effort at filmmaking, and then he can go buy another sports car, some coke and hookers. As expensive as movie tickets and popcorn is, theatres will never vanish. Piracy will never stop, and Tyler Perry will keep making movies. Someone, somewhere will have to suffer, but in the meantime, let me watch what I want, where I want, and pay accordingly. These directors make too much money, they're not curing cancer. F*ck you Cameron, you're here to entertain US, not the other way around.
1 year agoby @spiggyspicFlag
Bane. Ferguson
EXACTLY WHAT I THOUGHT BITCHES!
1 year agoby @Zak-FFlag
J.P.
@slysnide Yeah. The premium VOD service just won't catch on. Unless it got pushed to a month after a films release, It's just not profitable. Putting an overpriced service such as this at the midpoint area between a films release and it's dvd release just won't work. Period.
1 year agoby @jptheredskullFlag
slysnide
Who's gonna pay $30 to see a bad movie 2 months after release? Really, rarely do really good movies come out anymore. And @jptheredskull has a point, Pay Per View was charging the same for the same service a decade ago. And then @brian has a point too, in that it's no secret that the movie companies invented Blu-Ray to enhance the home viewing experience to be close to a theater. As let's be honest, plenty have spent (or intend to spend) money on flat screens or large projection screens against blank walls at home to simulate a theater, with the creature comforts of home, minus the crap to deal with at the movies. Home Entertainment has evolved enough for such a preference for in home viewing over theaters. I feel the same. However, the directors are being nieve in that the vast majority of piracy occurs within a couple weeks of a film's release. Thus, the value for pirated copies goes down after 2 months, especially when you only have 1 to 2 more months to wait for the film to be released on home media. Pirated films are expensive regardless of how sh*tty the quality of the video is. So given that, and the majority of dvd/blu-rays releasing within 3-4 months anyway, plus the cheap price of renting, then this won't dent the business at all. For as @dan1 @jimthar @bawnian-dexeus said, there's still plenty who prefer the theatrical experience. Me, I can save $15 by renting two for $5 a month with whatever snack or beverage I want than dishing out at a theater where everything's ridiculously overpriced. While piracy plays into it, there are firewalls included with such VOD systems to prevent people from recording with their own system while it plays; meaning the only thing they can do is record with a camera on a tripod which will do jack for the sound and image transfer as you're seeing an image on a screen through an image on a screen. It doesn't work that well. So I agree that it's not a reputable idea to go VOD as @ejk1 @cupid @highcaliburinc said. Altough, don't underestimate the value of $30. People flocked to the internet for music as there was on average two or three good songs on a 12-track CD which has the capacity to fit way more, yet you gotta buy two volumes totalling 22 or so songs at $15 each minimum when I can fit 30 on one CD after paying for the ones I want online. Follow the money. Point being, the internet was CHEAPER, whereas VOD is far more EXPENSIVE and 2 months after the theatrical release. Hence, it's cheaper to go to a theater when a film's released than to wait 2 months to pay triple the cost for a quick viewing when you're already just a month or two away from the home media release. Or more to the point: the way cheaper rental market.
1 year agoby @slysnideFlag
J.P.
@rudy LOL. Hair is the true measure of a man.
1 year agoby @jptheredskullFlag
Rudy
@jptheredskull
Your hair looks like cotton candy. 8D
1 year agoby @rudyFlag
Brian
@dan1 Haha. Yes! I was totally being sarcastic! :)
1 year agoby @brianFlag
Dan
@brian Avatar? lol. Doesn't he talk enough about that franchise? :P
1 year agoby @dan1Flag
skywise
@jimthar Thats a really good argument and i couldnt agree more. However some films like say the scarecrow movie Husk which is acted better than any killer scarecrow movie has the right to be, released to VOD gives this young filmaker a viewing audience and a following that he might not have achieved by putting that film out in theaters.
I just dont know yet. But i can see where these guys are coming from.
1 year agoby @skywiseFlag
Brian
I just want Cameron to talk more about The 'Tar.
1 year agoby @brianFlag
Dan
@jimthar Yep, that's pretty much my argument.
1 year agoby @dan1Flag
Jimthar
i agree. seeing a movie in the theatre for the first time is much better than watching it at home or on tv. i cant tell you how many movies i've rented or seen on HBO for the first time and thought, "damn i wish i would have seen that in the theater"! the big screen is where it's meant to be seen and it should stay that way. if you're too f*cking lazy to leave the house and go see a movie then i think you should just have to wait until it comes out on dvd. you poor babies out there will just have to deal with it. i agree with the directors. screw this new sh*t. technology is ruining everything nowadays.
1 year agoby @jimtharFlag
skywise
The Mighty Jackson has spoken. So shall it be done on Earth as it is done in Middle Earth.
that was stupid but seriously i dont blame these guys.
1 year agoby @skywiseFlag
ZanyZap
@jptheredskull: Whoa, settle down hoss... But it's a noteworthy comparison.
I respect the theater going experience, and I don't have a bluray player so I will naturally be a douche about the subject.
1 year agoby @zanyzapFlag
Chillyonehb
VOD, PPV, Etc. The main point here, FEAR of PIRACY. They said it themselves. It all comes back to the almighty Dollar, and any erosion of their Profits will be Stopped, if they have anything to do with it. I Love how they talk about the "Moviegoing Experience"...What a Crock-O-Shiite. Money, Money, Money, Money...OOOH!!!
1 year agoby @chillyonehbFlag
J.P.
@bawnian-dexeus Yeah, same here. Pay Per View was never popular in my house for the same reasons as you. I only get Wrestlemania now.
1 year agoby @jptheredskullFlag
Bawnian©-Dexeus
@jptheredskull you should see the amount of DVDs I have. It's quite impressive. Yeah, Paper View films was never popular for my house.
1 year agoby @bawnian-dexeusFlag
Bawnian©-Dexeus
@jptheredskull yeah, I remember some of it. although in my household, the only paper-view paid was for HBO Boxing matches and recently, Wrestlemania
1 year agoby @bawnian-dexeusFlag
J.P.
@bawnian-dexeus @rudy @corey @dan1 @ejk1 @brian @bane5000 @cupid I just had an epiphany. Remember back in the 90s and early 2000s when like two to three months after a movie came out you could rent it on Pay-Per-View for like 20 to 30 bucks and like around 2002 to 2004 the fad fell out due to increased DVD/VHS sales and the fact it was too fricking expensive? This is exactly that. VOD IS THE NEW FRICKING PAY PER VIEW!!!!!!!! :P
1 year agoby @jptheredskullFlag
Worth5Bucks
we the directors, in order to form a more perfect movie going experience...
1 year agoby @mattbierwagenFlag
Bawnian©-Dexeus
Well, it happened once before back with the rise of television. Audience members were more inclined to stay at home an receive quality entertainment rather than going to the theater. And that in fact was caused by not having a good variety of films available for them. Then when TV was the new hit thing, everyone preferred to stay at home, and the theaters began to suffer for it. Radical changes to get the people back, and well, yeah, they managed to get back their audience, and if I'm not mistaken, correlation between the TV broadcast net works and the movie studios to advertise their films and get them back. And now it seems we're heading right back to square one. What with all this new technology and media windows, pull and push technology, etc... And not to mention the fact that no one wants to see ADs anymore, which is another issue. VOD is good now because it's easy to find films for a very low price, but the physical sales are going to drop by hell of a lot. And $30? Really? Unless they expect every house have a family of 5 and over. But for some individuals is way too much. And yes, prices for tickets have gone up, apparently. I mean, I'm not from the U.S. so I'm now experiencing the whole 8-10 dollar price per ticket, which is a big change up from PR where it was between 5-7.55, and Large pop corn with a large coke never broke 5.35, with tax, and still hasn't. Thank God for this Matinee thing. And since i'm not completely ignorant about it, I'm not going to say "Quit bitching about it. If you have a job, then pay the damn price and move on." But I'm not going to stand by that because its not fair and not the right choice of words. That would have been me 5 years ago. So yea, theater ticket prices need to go down a bunch, and concession too.
1 year agoby @bawnian-dexeusFlag
Rudy
When I first read "Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Michael Bay..." I thought, oh sh*t they're teaming up for a new movie? Then when I read they wrote a letter against VOD i was like. f*ckf*ckf*ckf*ck!!
1 year agoby @rudyFlag
Corey
Best thing I've read all day.
1 year agoby @coreyFlag
Dan
I don't, my last few theater experiences were pleasant enough. I don't like the idea of people sequestering themselves more at home then we already do. It seems our society is moving in that direction, and the excuse for it is: because we don't know how to behave in public. We don't know how to behave in public because of all the little gizmos we obsess with these days that encourage our isolation.
Last time I visited the folks, I actually saw some members of my family facebook each other, while under the same roof, instead of just talking to one another. Wtf?
I get that some people have kick ass setups at home, I myself do too, but it still doesn't equal the experience of going to the theater, seeing it on the big screen, and experiencing it with others. I guess I just like the social experience and getting out of the house. VOD is for this generation's ADD crowd. I personally can wait the usual time for the Blu-Ray's and DVD's, I'm not about to die.
And what @ejk1 said, as well. I don't want to spend MORE at the theater because some impatient people decide to spend more at home.
1 year agoby @dan1Flag
ejk1
Well, for starters, 60 days is two months. On to the matter at hand, the directors. I am in full agreement with them on this subject. This will not only kill the Blu-Ray and DVD market, but may force theaters to raise prices of movies even further. I have no desire to spend fifteen or twenty bucks per ticket to a movie, but I fear that is where we will go. This has to stop somewhere, and it may as well end here.
1 year agoby @ejk1Flag
Brian
I understand the director's points, and the stance they take in how they want their films to be experienced....but I think they're a little out of touch with reality. They see their movies in private screening rooms. They have probably never been to the movies with a regular audience in decades. As a moviegoer.... the movie going experience is falling short. Theaters are charging more and more, and audiences are getting worse and worse with cell phones, talking during films, and the like. I personally have an expensive home theater I've spent time, love and money on...and I'd WAY rather experience a film for the first time at home rather than deal with the tripe that is "going to the movies" these days. The world needs the option. Hell, I need this VOD option!
1 year agoby @brianFlag
Dan
Wow, look at all those names. Nice.
1 year agoby @dan1Flag