There is a special duality in the area of content consumption. While the coronavirus epidemic deepened the ditch that stretched between traditional cinema and home movie watching, in some respects bridges formed over the gap separating the two sides. Naturally, due to the pandemic and temporary cinema closures, people are only slowly returning to movie theaters, and they are used to having to reach for a switch or a mobile phone to access content.
But no matter how big it is in our living room television, and whatever sound system we have, technically an average person can’t compete with the equipment of cinema chains. The huge – especially IMAX – screen supported with Dolby Atmos sound technology will always have its own charm, which blockbusters can remind us the most after months of “quarantine”.
such as Deadly Pace 9, Black Widow, Space Jam: A New Beginning, The Suicide Squad, and Dune. At the same time, there is serious preparedness for streaming, crazy content production and agreements that reshape the market, rearrange the chessboard.
For a handful of dollars
Rarely do market-breaking businesses like Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox take place, but now it has happened again: three years after AT&T acquired WarnerMedia, the giant has already gotten rid of it as WarnerMedia merges with Discovery. This creates one of the most powerful media giants in the United States, which will be a major challenger for Disney and Netflix in the field of streaming (as well).
The resulting media literacy includes units such as CNN , Cartoon Network, HBO, Cinemax, Warner Bros. movie studio, HBO Max streaming platform, DC Entertainment, Discovery Channel or even Discovery + streaming. Of course, such mergers do not take place in two days and the competent authorities must also nod to the agreement, but this is a serious weapon.
And on the other side of the coin, there’s a promise: back in December 2020, Warner announced that in 2021, all major movie premieres would be premiered immediately on HBO Max in the United States. Then it turned out that in 2022, the company will no longer follow this method and will exclusively dedicate new screenings to cinemas. It is planned to have to wait 45 days for his films to be uploaded to streaming platforms after the premiere. This is a major change, as it was previously 90 days out of the so-called theatrical window, and Warner Bros. is not the only one to step in shortening it; Disney did the same, with just a few screws.
The mouse company Mickey recently introduced a solution called Disney Plus Premiere Access for some of its creations: an additional amount for content on Disney + in addition to the subscription fee, along with a movie show American viewers, which include the Black Widow, the Monster, and the Jungle Tour, also had access to it. Later, however, the strategy will change, as the legend of Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings from Marvel’s barn, as well as Free Guy, branded by Ryan Reynolds, will now target cinemas only. However, Disney can also halve 90-day exclusivity, allowing them to be added to Disney + after just 45 days in cinemas. Industry trends show that sooner or later other studios will switch to this or a similar system, although the Black Widow scandal may still confuse this emerging system because there is apparently still room to polish.
For a few dollars more
Meanwhile, there have been serious developments in the other “battlefield”. A similar event to the WarnerMedia-Discovery sensation was the acquisition of MGM by Amazon, making the launch of its streaming platform, Amazon Prime Video, richer with franchises such as James Bond, Pink Panther, Rocky, Poltergeist or the films of Dr. Szöszi (Agent 007’s next adventure, No Time to Die, however, remains a movie premiere.)
Ingestion has not taken place, but Sony Pictures is roasting its roast on two fires: agreed also with Netflix and Disney. The former has a five-year contract under which Sony films (such as Spider-Man, Jumanji or Hotel Transylvania) will be uploaded to Netflix in the United States after cinema distribution and DVD release, plus the streaming service provider will have a pre-emptive right to direct online
As far as Disney is concerned, under the agreement, Sony Pictures’ blockbusters from 2022 to 2026 will also be available on Disney +, but only after they have farmed on Netflix for some time.
And Netflix doesn’t want to hear about slowing down, it is spending a brutal amount on content production again this year: the latest according to a financial report, it will increase its supply from more than $ 17 billion in 2021 (it was 11.8 billion in 2020 and 13.9 in 2019). And that’s not the only notable pull, as it has opened an online store, albeit in a small one, in order to maintain its advantage over Disney’s streaming business, which is also supported by revenue from merchandising and amusement parks. For the time being, Netflix has an e-commerce site to offer things like clothing and accessories to mark its popular movies and series, and it has also recently taken decisive steps towards the world of video games.
Advertising continues the streaming platform says no, but not all rivals have it that way. WarnerMedia is introducing a new category to HBO Max: a cheaper subscription option, in exchange for occasional advertisements interrupting the show. It will be worth noting the effects of this, as some viewers have just switched from traditional television drowning in advertising to streaming.
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Compared to all this, it may not bother much water, but we are very much affected by the development of streaming in Hungary. For example, in 2021, HBO GO will definitely switch to the previously mentioned HBO Max service, Disney + will also set foot in Hungary, Amazon Prime Video will be continuously uploaded with subtitled and dubbed content, and the first Hungarian streaming service provider, Filmio, has recently launched.
Meanwhile, domestic cinemas / distributors are only now recovering from a prolonged shutdown and no one can guarantee them that one or more forced closures will not happen again in the near or distant future. What has been described so far has only given a taste of the complexity of the subject, but it is a good representation of how twisting cinema vs.
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