Disney embraces shorter theatrical windows
During the Morgan Stanley investor conference, Disney CEO Bob Chapek acknowledged the changing consumer preference for theatrical movie access. Without giving specifics, Chapek suggested that Disney may be looking to embrace shorter theatrical windows, much like other major studios have recently done. However, it is unclear what business model they will pursue. Recent releases have gone day and date theatrical and premium access to Disney+ subscribers for an additional charge.
The NPD Take:
- Most major studios have leaned into shortening the theatrical window to bolster their own direct-to-consumer businesses and recoup lost theatrical revenues this past year. Disney acknowledging the changing consumer landscape is key to making this a lasting structural trend as they are the market share leader.
- It remains to be seen which new business model will prevail as studios try out various windowing strategies such as day and date theatrical and SVOD, premium access for an additional cost, and reduced exclusive theatrical windows.
Sony PS is exiting TVOD
Sony Playstation has announced that it will be exiting the transactional video-on-demand business effective August 31, 2021. This is the latest development of the company pivoting its video distribution strategy following the announcement last year that the vMVPD Vue was being shuttered. The company cited changing consumer behavior, a preference for SVOD and AVOD content, as the reason behind the decision.
The NPD Take:
- While not mentioned, this is also being driven by more viewers accessing video content via connected TVs and streaming media players. Game consoles no longer generate the level of video activity that they did a few years ago.
- The overall impact to transactional VOD will likely be negligible as much most transactions are concentrated among major digital retailers Amazon, Apple, Google and Vudu.
Peacock might be coming to FireTV
At a recent Morgan Stanley investor conference, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, hinted that Peacock may be coming to Amazon FireTV soon. Peacock is currently available on most other major streaming devices including Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast and various connected TV platforms. The service is also coming to Samsung Tizen OS later this month. As of January, Peacock had 33 million sign-ups and Amazon Fire TV reaches 23m U.S. households.
The NPD Take:
- Among connected TVs and streaming media players, Fire TV’s reach is only trumped by Roku and Samsung. As such, Fire TV access is critical for growing Peacock’s subscriber base.
- Ubiquitous device access is table stakes, content is king and as such, the service will need to continue to broaden its programming array with exclusives like WWE to differentiate from the growing array of streaming services.