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Hollywood Pushing for iTunes to Rent Major Films Just Weeks After They Debut in Theaters

while the prices are ridiculous for some, some seem happy to pay this much. either way, the extra cost for the studio will be negligible, so they have nothing to lose here - except maybe some studios that also own theatres (like universal).

personally i'm more in the "ridiculous" camp - i can pay € 13 to see a 3D movie in imax with loud surround sound and on dual-projectors - i couldn't get to a break-even situation and keep up with technology at the same time, building a comparable system at home. (and it'd piss off the neighbours)
 
Jsameds said:
I'm happy with the theater to DVD timescales as they are. I just want an all you can eat subscription to the iTunes store for a reasonable price.
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I strongly suspect what you think is a reasonable price and what the studios - who have the final say, not Apple - think is a reasonable price, are very different. All-you-can-eat pricing for all the just-released-on-BD/DVD blockbusters would likely be many hundreds of dollars per month. If you (and likely most others) won't pay that, well, that's why it won't happen.
 
Lol, why do people act like $50 is that much for a rental. Most theaters charge around $15 per ticket. So 2-3 people going and your almost there. Plus no travel, over prices snacks, needing to find a sitter, arriving early to secure good seats, paying "convineance" fees on Fandango, etc. Plus you can't enjoy your favorite beer, liquor, or recreational marijuana inside the theater (in most cases)
 
BigMcGuire said:
In the last 5 years I've gone to the theatres 3 times. EACH TIME, I had something that completely ruined the experience.

I had a group of teenagers having their own dialogue - when I turned around to let them know it was bothering me, they threatened to fight me. Another time, I had a kid who was tapping his foot, when I turned around, his dad encouraged him to keep tapping and laughed at me loudly. He did this throughout the entire movie.

I'm done with theatres. DONE. I'm not blowing $13 a ticket x2 (for my wife and I) for a ****** experience.

I will GLADLY WAIT until it comes out on Apple TV and pay the $6.99 for rent to watch in the privacy of my own home where *******s like those people in the theatres don't exist.

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$50 a MOVIE?! LOL. ...... LOL. Ahahahaha. I can't justify the $20 to BUY a movie I will only watch once - I have to wait the 2? weeks it takes to be available for rent at $6.99. Ok, I can see how this works for big families, but it is just the wife and I.

At this rate, I'll just wait till it comes out on Netflix. Some of Netflix' original content is far better than what passes for movies today.
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I haven't had any major issues in years. I go to the theaters maybe 4 times a year and it's usually on a weekday first thing in the morning. Not much rift raft before noon assuming the area you are in.


Side note who here remembers in the early 2000's when cell phones became mainstream and people's phones would ring during the movies?(some of the younger members here may not remember this) I'm sure it happens today but there was a time maybe around 2003 where it was unbearable how bad it was since texting wasn't a mainstream way of communicating so everyone would call each other. My friends and I would set a cell phone ring count at a Friday night movie at over/under of 10.
 
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One more step to pay-per-view/subcription based movies and shows...

Start charging astronomical prices to own one...

I wanted to buy some Stargate seasons on HD as a download since they'll no longer be available on physical media.

iTunes no longer gives "deals" on seasons of those shows. It is $3/HD episode so a season is around $70... :eek:
 
I hate to say this, but this is good news for piracy lol, instead of waiting months for a good release, it will just be a matter of weeks
 
wigby said:
The only difference between what you do now and what you can get at home is a waiter/waitress interrupting the movie (that you cannot pause btw) to bring you your food and wine. If you have a 60"+ 4k screen at home with a decent sound system cranked up and sit less than 6 feet away from it, you have just bested the movie going experience by every measure.
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I will admit that we don't do the movies out anymore. It's more fun in the winter when there isn't much to do outside. The fundamental problem I see is that when we're home, there are many more options to watch aside from the $50 movie. It's somehow easier to justify spending that kind of money because you're "going out." You know? It's an activity.

Sure, we order food delivered, pop open a bottle and enjoy a movie at home. But there is something different about going to iPic and enjoying the food, wine and the movie over there. No dishes to clean. No interruptions.

Again, to each his own. Some people will love this and others will say "meh."
 
tazhombre said:
$50? Nah, I'll wait.
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So for my wife and I to go to the movies its about $30. But you're not even counting time and comfort.

I can watch it in my house. I can pause to go to the bathroom. No one is looking at their phone and causing a disturbance. Additionally, I don't have to be beholden to the theaters schedule. I can watch it when I want to and that's not even counting the time to drive.

$50 is on the high end. I hope most are $40 and the huge blockbuster movies are $50. Like I might not pay a $20 convenience fee to watch Baby Driver. For $10 I would. But for SpiderMan I'd probably have forked out the extra $20.
 
Of course the movie studios like this idea. When you look at the economics of running a theatre, the studios take almost 100% of the ticket sales for the first several weeks, after which the cinema's take starts to increase. This is just a way of making sure this continues and then taking a slice of what the theatres could have made near the end of a film's release. Sneaky.
 
What 'evs. DVD rentals down. Online rentals up. No physical product to produce, ship, place in retail location means WAY more profits for distributors.
 
serrharry said:
I hate to say this, but this is good news for piracy lol, instead of waiting months for a good release, it will just be a matter of weeks
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Yep. I have a feeling this experiment, if it happens at all, will be very short-lived as the studios quickly find out they are just making it easier to pirate new movies.
 
tazhombre said:
$50? Nah, I'll wait.
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Yeah I'm with you. Will wait for Redbox for $2 :D I will go to the theater on movies worth watching, but only Saturday martinee :D

Patience is a virtue. Hollywood loves to take advantage of the impatient type, such as digital only releases a week or two prior to the Bluray release for the same price, and now $50 rentals :rolleyes:
 
I already pay for $30 per ticket for those premium recliners seats plus more for cloncessions, so if I can pay the same for a newly released movie at home I would probably go for something like this.
 
It already costs me $30 to go to movies, plus the wife $60, plus $50 for the nanny to watch the toddler at home, plus $15 for parking, plus $50 for sodas and popcorn plus gas. $50 is for a new release movie a steal! We already have a theater setup with 150” 4k projector and reclining seats at home so this is no brainer. Nah lol I’m kidding. Movie ticket costs around 5-10 bucks and parking maybe 3-5. Oh and I got a 55” tv and a sofa at home. You know, like the majority of middle class population outside US. $50 for renting a movie is beyond ridiculous!
 
napabar said:
Bad idea. Will destroy theaters.
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Oh, you mean like the Internet has destroyed libraries? (You know, those places were those heavy things called "books" were available for rent...)

Movie theaters will eventually die out. They had a good run for the last 100 years, but now technology has made them obsolete.
 
well, at least it you wait a few weeks u can get it for $30 .. Still to much, and a few weeks, is just not really good anyway...

Make it the same day..

Winni said:
Oh, you mean like the Internet has destroyed libraries? (You know, those places were those heavy things called "books" were available for rent...)

Movie theaters will eventually die out. They had a good run for the last 100 years, but now technology has made them obsolete.
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Probably, but there's still good money when not everyone have good audio system at home or can afford big screens. That has to happen first, then let theaters die out.

And if no one can do it same day at home delivered as releases, then all of us we'll be waiting longer then normal.
 
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