A new company has proposed the idea of releasing new movies to you at home within a few weeks of there theatrical release. I am a little torn on this one. For one, I like the night out  And, two, it is a great excuse to eat junk I don't allow myself at home. The company is called Screening Room and they are proposing the idea of watching new movies that are  still in theaters in your home.  According to Wired,  this is only in the research and development stages but rumor has it the some Hollywood studios are considering the idea. Studios have proposed a model that charges consumers a $30 rental fee to view a film 30-to-45 days after it has been released. Apparently some of the biggest Hollywood studios that have looked into it have responded in this way:

  • Warner Bros suggested releasing new movies 17 days after they opened on-demand for a $50 rental.
  • Fox felt a $30 rental fee to view the film between 30 to 45 days after its release may be seen as reasonable among consumers.
  • Universal is looking to take it a step further and bring the range down to 20 days.
  • Disney is not interested in the deal.

Looking further into the story, I see that many of the producers of movies are very against the idea. I also would hate to see theaters like Bangor Mall Cinemas and Spotlight go under from it.  And I have to add that some films, i.e. Star Wars and Jurassic Park are really enhanced by the size of a commercial movie screen.

Guess we'll just have to wait and see on this one but if it does go through I will need to get a bigger TV.

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