By: Tifanie Jodeh, Esq.
Kelmer Messina
Fewer industries have been more affected by the current COVID-19 pandemic than the entertainment industry. With nearly every production shut down and movie theaters closed, now can be the time to adapt and become inventive.
For that reason, we are discussing the digital distribution and streaming services and the future of content viewing in the wave of this pandemic.
While before the box office served a king and an online/streaming/on-demand exclusive release model as the last option for a lot of productions, it seems that for the immediate future, a “straight-to-stream” model will be a viable point of entry for producers and filmmakers. According to studies cited on Los Angeles Times’ recent “Coronavirus Entertainment” article, “the average person is streaming eight hours of content each day, double the number of hours from before the pandemic rapidly spread in the U.S.” and “three in four people are using more streaming services since the coronavirus came to the U.S.” [1]. Now, more than ever, is the best time to get into the streaming business.
Media giants like Disney are desperately trying to make the best out of this situation by releasing content on their streaming platforms way ahead of schedule both to evoke the attention of the quarantined public and cut the losses of unsuccessful releases.
Despite being extremely publicized, Frozen 2 and Onward, both of these animated blockbusters had to be pulled from theaters into Disney+ because of the pandemic. Nonetheless this move has brought great numbers and success to the platform. Because of COVID-19, Onward only recouped half of its $200M budget at the box office but through Disney+, Disney will likely be able to cut their losses. Currently, Disney+ has duplicated their number of subscribers in the last two months thanks to the success of these releases [2]. Currently, the upcoming Artemis Fowl will now debut as a streaming exclusive instead of as a theatrical release and heavy rumors steer in the way of the same thing happening with the live-action adaptation of Mulan.
This trend of releasing content early combined with the shut down of all productions and the upcoming release of HBO Max and NBC’s Peacock streaming services along with their strong catalogs will create an unprecedented bidding war for new content wherein all the players will compete to get each other out of business by having the most content and the most exclusives. Producers with content in development or in pre-production are well positioned to take advantage of this content demand and potentially put a huge amount of money in producer’s hands in the near future, while these streamers are preparing for the incoming production drought.
Let us deal with these media giants’ aggressive negotiation tactics. We at Entertainment Law Partners’ have extensive industry and deal making experience. Take advantage of this drought and get the deal you deserve.
If you have questions concerning this topic, or other areas of entertainment law, please email us at Asst@entlawpartners.com.
COPYRIGHT & DISCLAIMER
Tifanie Jodeh is Partner at Entertainment Law Partners dedicated to corporate, business and entertainment affairs. You may contact her at Asst@entlawpartners.com.
Tifanie Jodeh grants column recipients permission to copy and distribute this column and distribute it free of charge, provided that copies are distributed for educational and non-profit use, no changes or revisions are made, all copies clearly attribute the article to its author and include its copyright notice.
DISCLAIMER: Readers should consult with a lawyer before solely relying on any information contained herein.
[1] https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2020-04-14/coronavirus-more-people-sampling-streaming
[2] https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/8/21214236/disney-plus-50-million-subscribers-international-europe-india-netflix
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