Alternative Cinema
December 1, 2009
I had no idea what the phrase “alternative cinema” meant when I saw the headline “Alternative Cinema Content to Pass $500 Mil”. I do know what $500 million means. The article explains
The research from Screen Digest puts the global market in alternative content — think live opera screenings or traditional theater productions — to hit $526 million in five years, up from the lowly $45.7 million reached by the end of 2008. And while the U.S. market laid claim to two thirds of global revenues gathered from such content, Screen Digest says that will likely fall to under 50% as the appetite for non-movie programming across the rest of the world grows. The report entitled “Alternative Content in Cinemas: Market assessment and forecasts to 2014” says the cinema is fast becoming a “multi-arts venue” with the last two years posting a growth in alternative programming on the back of a boom in digital cinema screen technology.
I get it. As 20 somethings do other things and old geese like me stay home to watch the pips on our heart monitors, owners of motion picture complexes have to find a new draw. Vaudeville is too expensive. The occasional super church rental too dependent on one hour blocks on certain days. The birthday rentals are becoming less appealing even to the country club set. So what’s a cinema owner to do? Money give-aways are illegal.
The article makes clear that something is giving way beneath the foundation of the traditional cinema fare. The blockbusters ring the PC based cash register, but the day-to-day cash flow is less exciting. The article says:
The research from Screen Digest puts the global market in alternative content — think live opera screenings or traditional theater productions — to hit $526 million in five years, up from the lowly $45.7 million reached by the end of 2008. And while the U.S. market laid claim to two thirds of global revenues gathered from such content, Screen Digest says that will likely fall to under 50% as the appetite for non-movie programming across the rest of the world grows. The report entitled “Alternative Content in Cinemas: Market assessment and forecasts to 2014” says the cinema is fast becoming a “multi-arts venue” with the last two years posting a growth in alternative programming on the back of a boom in digital cinema screen technology.
Boy, this sounds a lot like what I can do sitting in front of my trusty iMac, my Windows 7 notebook, my Smartphone, or my flat screen TV which is hooked up to an Apple TV and a Mac Mini. With the Google offering lots of content, I wonder how the worlds of pay-per-view mixed martial arts, Googzilla, and guys hanging out around the moguls’ swimming pools in LA will intersect. Another disruption building force. Will the Google break through the crust of cluelessness? I don’t know. Maybe the answer will be on the new Google TV show.
Stephen Arnold, December 1, 2009
I officially disclose to the US Geological Survey that my seismic analogy was an uncompensated metaphor. That’s more than I can say of Bill Shakespeare, who had some patrons.
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