More than 168 million viewers accessed films on their smart phone in the last quarter of 2017. While traditional TV has far greater reach (292 million), a medium that barely existed 10 years ago now gets more video viewing than desktop or DVD viewing.--Variety.com.
Recently, Disney announced its move to offer two streaming outlets: one for films and the other for sports. Robert Iger, CEO of Disney, justified the huge investment as follows: It's high time we got in this business. The profitability and the revenue-generating capability of this initiative is substantially greater than the business models we're currently served by.
Streaming films has indeed become a deluge as new outlets are popping up each day.
So, goodness gracious, how do independent filmmakers with limited resources, with minimal awareness of what's going on, cope with these breathtaking developments?
One quick, easy, and economical way is to book their film on our CINEMAflix DIRECT Program. For a basic cost of $950.00, we'll encode the film, do the necessary QC (Quality Control), and prepare and submit the package to the major digital platforms and cable VOD stations like iTunes, Amazon, Hulu, Fandango Now, Google Playstation, Sony Play, TubiTV, Hoopla, Xfinity, and Spectrum.
MOST IMPORTANTLY: we'll add more outlets as they become available so the film can be accessed by millions of viewers from around the world.
NEWS BRIEFS:
For no charge or fee, anyone with a library card can now stream thousands of feature films, including the Criterion Collection.---Jen Carlson, The Gothamist.
This access is currently available only with a New York or Los Angeles public library card. However, it's inevitable that more city libraries will be offering this deal in the coming months. Push your local library to get with this program.
After receiving $1.1 billion from the Canadian Pension Fund, WME-IMG, the super-agency, is putting a sizable chunk into financing films, television series, and even Broadway shows.---Tatiana Siegel, The Hollywood Reporter.
THE NEW YORK TIMES
IS MAKING STREAMING RESPECTABLE:
Film buffs have already noticed this remarkable development: The New York Times is now reviewing films that are streaming on such outlets as Netflix, Amazon, and iTunes. They also have a section on the TV Page each day that lists recommended films that are streaming and the outlet for each film. They are doing this despite outrage from the major theatrical chains. Very gutsy.
FILM EXCHANGE:
Claire Atkinson reported in the New York Post that the movie theater business is turning into a horror show. She cites AMC's 27% stock plunge. When will the theater chains sober up and realize they can't keep upping ticket prices, charging unconscionable prices for concession food, and expect patrons to keep showing up. It's going to get worse as home viewing with large flat TV screens, superb sound bars, and the abundance of streaming outlets, continues to be a more economical and desirable option.
