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AMC has announced the launch of a new on-demand video streaming service that's designed to compete with Apple's iTunes Store and Amazon's Prime Video, allowing film fans to rent and buy movies once their theater run ends.

amc-theaters-on-demand.jpg

Called AMC Theaters on Demand, the online store launches today with around 2,000 films in its catalog, with new releases being added after their standard theatrical run.

Movie studios including Disney, Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures, and Paramount have agreed deals with the theater chain to sell and rent movies both old and new over the video-on-demand service. Each film can be rented for between $3 and $5.99, and purchased for between $9.99 and $19.99.

The program resembles one that Cineplex in Canada has offered for some time, but AMC is the first major American chain to offer a similar service.

According to The New York Times, the new service aims to capitalize on AMC Stubs, the chain's fast-growing customer loyalty program that launched last year and already covers more than 20 million households. Taking up the market left behind by the now-defunct MoviePass, AMC Stubs A-List members can see up to three movies a week for one monthly price.
AMC Stubs members bought about six million tickets to "The Lion King" over the summer. When "The Lion King" becomes available digitally on Tuesday, "those people will all get a personalized message from AMC saying that they can now enjoy it at home through AMC Theaters On Demand," said Elizabeth Frank, AMC's chief content officer.
AMC is said to have been working on the video-on-demand service for more than two years and was close to introducing AMC Theaters On Demand this summer, but delayed the launch while it fine-tuned the technology and online store design.

Article Link: AMC Entertainment to Launch Video on Demand Digital Movie Service Today
 

SeeYaNetflix

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Oct 3, 2019
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First off, there is no more iTunes(on a Mac anyways) and also, I already own the 4K bluray for the new Lion king so I have no idea what the author of that article is even talking about when he refers to it coming out on Tuesday.
 

genovelle

macrumors 68020
May 8, 2008
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First off, there is no more iTunes(on a Mac anyways) and also, I already own the 4K bluray for the new Lion king so I have no idea what the author of that article is even talking about when he refers to it coming out on Tuesday.
Lion King will be available via digital services in addition to DVD and Blu-ray
 

cardfan

macrumors 601
Mar 23, 2012
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So many subscription services. I’ll be broke.

If you really thought this was a sub then your first thought should’ve been sign me up! Lol
[automerge]1571137116[/automerge]
There will be a shake out soon enough, everyone is jumping on the subscription bandwagon, but there's just not enough (in my opinion) demand to support the amount of supply.

Not a perpetual sub anyways. I can see going one month, watching what you want, then canceling. But even that will be kind of a headache. That’s the point of atv app I guess with all the unwanted ads now for channels.
 

H3LL5P4WN

macrumors 68040
Jun 19, 2010
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If there were an AMC in my relative vicinity (there's one all the way across town), and if this service worked with Movies Anywhere (so I'd get the movies in the Apple ecosystem, where they should be), this would be real tempting. There's no mention of 4K, however.

Now this is interesting:

Yet there are also more than 20 million households who subscribe to AMC’s more general Stubs loyalty program, according to the Times. Offering those members additional benefits, including a free digital version of a movie they paid to see in theaters, is one way to introduce more people to AMC’s Theaters on Demand service, while also encouraging those same consumers to actually go to a theater showing.
 
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JohnApples

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Mar 7, 2014
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Cool, I guess, but what benefit does this offer? There are already so many services from which I can buy and rent digital movies... iTunes, Vudu, Xbox, PlayStation, YouTube, Amazon, Google Play... why would I choose this one?

Only thing i can think of that would make me use this service is if I could earn/redeem my Stubs points for rentals and purchases. Or perhaps if you see a movie at an AMC theater, you’ll get some sort of discount once it comes to Digital.

EDIT: I do see now it says you earn Stubs points.That’s something, though I don’t know if it’s enough for me to split my digital library. Add Movies Anywhere/iTunes integration and I’ll be interested.
 
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4jasontv

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This seems exactly the same as everyone else. If you want to differentiate a service like this I can think of a few things AMC could do.
1. Earlier access to new releases
2. If I rent a movie and like it than let me keep it for the difference in cost.
3. Let me use it to access limited showings or region exclusive events. For example there have been some live performances I’ve missed because I couldn’t be there the one day it was and some small productions sometimes only release in select cities and I’m no where near them.
4. Give me access to previous films in a series if I buy tickets to the new one in one of their theaters.
5. Let me watch the movie on my phone or iPad while in the theater in case I need to use the bathroom or if we need to step outside the screening room because a kid is acting up.
 

2010mini

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Jun 19, 2013
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This seems exactly the same as everyone else. If you want to differentiate a service like this I can think of a few things AMC could do.
1. Earlier access to new releases
2. If I rent a movie and like it than let me keep it for the difference in cost.
3. Let me use it to access limited showings or region exclusive events. For example there have been some live performances I’ve missed because I couldn’t be there the one day it was and some small productions sometimes only release in select cities and I’m no where near them.
4. Give me access to previous films in a series if I buy tickets to the new one in one of their theaters.
5. Let me watch the movie on my phone or iPad while in the theater in case I need to use the bathroom or if we need to step outside the screening room because a kid is acting up.

1. not up to AMC.
2. Studios and content owners will say NO.
3. The venue that already has the rights to that limited or regional showing will say NO.
4. Snowball’s chance in hell of that happening
5. Ewww. In a public bathroom???
 

PastaPrimav

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Nov 6, 2017
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This is not "competition". This trend benefits no one.

The end result is we get 30,000 apps with all different navigation UI, all different playback UI, all different varying quality of media and streaming and features, and no one has any idea where their media is.

This is the worst thing to come out of streaming. What I want to know is, who is responsible? You might say "the content owners" but they can't be held responsible because they are expected to be the scum of the earth trying to milk every dollar from their worthless content.

Personally I hold Apple responsible for this, because they failed to unify video content providers like they did with Music. Steve Jobs did it with Music, and did a decent job getting the iTunes Movie and TV Show stores up and running as a first step. Since then, it has been up to Eddy Cue to take video streaming into the future and he has failed miserably.

Apple TV Channels was the right idea, but they moved forward without handling what actually mattered....getting everyone on board. Instead of getting all my media through Apple TV Channels like I should, I get 0. Because they didn't lock up any of the major players and they didn't even subsidize what little content is available.
 

4jasontv

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Jul 31, 2011
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1. not up to AMC. - it's the theaters pushing back on this not the content creators.
2. Studios and content owners will say NO - studios and content owners should have no say in the sale price of a good.
3. The venue that already has the rights to that limited or regional showing will say NO. - I doubt that, most of these limited or regional viewings is because the theaters charge to much, not because they place showing restrictions on them.
4. Snowball’s chance in hell of that happening - why not? We routinely don't watch movies because someone in the group never saw the previous ones.
5. Ewww. In a public bathroom??? - People are already doing that; the difference is the content not the concept. Implementing this would be easy: one wifi network per screen with time restricted access based on your ticket. Bonus for the theater as it would encourage people to upsize their drinks and get more food.
 

2010mini

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Jun 19, 2013
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1. not up to AMC. - it's the theaters pushing back on this not the content creators.
2. Studios and content owners will say NO - studios and content owners should have no say in the sale price of a good.
3. The venue that already has the rights to that limited or regional showing will say NO. - I doubt that, most of these limited or regional viewings is because the theaters charge to much, not because they place showing restrictions on them.
4. Snowball’s chance in hell of that happening - why not? We routinely don't watch movies because someone in the group never saw the previous ones.
5. Ewww. In a public bathroom??? - People are already doing that; the difference is the content not the concept. Implementing this would be easy: one wifi network per screen with time restricted access based on your ticket. Bonus for the theater as it would encourage people to upsize their drinks and get more food.

most of his wish list is not feasible given the current licensing/distribution rights.

the bathroom WiFi streaming would most likely come under The same licensing rights.
Movie theaters lease the movies from the studios directly or through a middleman. They really don’t make money on the movies while it is showing live. So what exactly is their incentive to let you stream it outside of the screening area??? Who’s paying for the equipment upgrades and security to prevent piracy?
 

4jasontv

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Jul 31, 2011
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most of his wish list is not feasible given the current licensing/distribution rights.

the bathroom WiFi streaming would most likely come under The same licensing rights.
Movie theaters lease the movies from the studios directly or through a middleman. They really don’t make money on the movies while it is showing live. So what exactly is their incentive to let you stream it outside of the screening area??? Who’s paying for the equipment upgrades and security to prevent piracy?

Considering the things I listed would drive people to see more movies in the theater I would expect both theaters and content creators to support it.
 

2010mini

macrumors 601
Jun 19, 2013
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Considering the things I listed would drive people to see more movies in the theater I would expect both theaters and content creators to support it.

Yeah.... they make their money off food not movies. So......
 
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