Report: Cable companies and movie studios in talks to release films on DVD, cable simultaneously
NEW YORK – The latest Hollywood DVD releases may reach your living room sooner than you think, according to a report published Wednesday.
Cable companies and major film studios are discussing ways to release movies through video-on-demand the same day they are available on DVD, The Wall Street Journal reported.
A trial run could happen early this year, the newspaper said, citing sources familiar with the matter.
The Journal said the studios most aggressively pursuing the strategy are Walt Disney, General Electric’s Universal Pictures, Time Warner’s Warner Bros. and News Corp.’s Twentieth Century Fox.
Usually movies are released through video-on-demand weeks or months after having been released on DVD, the Journal said, but the move to have films hit DVD and cable simultaneously would change traditional distribution methods.
The box office slump and slowing growth of DVD sales are helping to make the case for earlier release on video-on-demand, according to the Journal.
Studios are also eager to bump up sales and meet the demands of their tech-savvy audience, it said.
Source: CNN Money
