🍿 2022-05-08 04:33:00 – Paris/France.
How does Netflix plan to recover after losing subscribers? 1:03
(CNN Business) Netflix is still reeling from its stock market crash last month after losing subscribers for the first time in more than a decade.
To spin the narrative in their favor, analysts suggested adding ads and restricting password sharing. But one way Netflix can help itself is by allying with an industry it once was at odds with: movie theaters.
Although Netflix has released many films in theaters and even bought a few theaters to boot, most of its theatrical releases have been purposely limited. While the platform Streaming licks its wounds and theaters slowly recover from the pandemic, now may be the time for the two parties to finally come together.
Netflix needs franchises, theaters need movies
By releasing more movies in theaters, Netflix could generate new revenue from box office sales, expand its brand to more potential subscribers, and help make its movies more memorable, which the company has struggled to do. To do.
Although he is the head of Diffusion With 221 million subscribers worldwide, winning multiple Oscars, and working with some of Hollywood's biggest names, Netflix hasn't seen many of its films become beloved brands like some of its series, like 'Stranger'. Things,” the new season of which premieres later this month.
“Red notice”, for example. The film starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Gal Gadot was Netflix's most-watched film, according to the company, but it arguably didn't make a detour into pop culture.
"Basically, it's still impossible to build a great movie franchise without theatrical releases," Andrew Hare, senior vice president of research at Magid, told CNN Business.
Hare added that as the company expands its offerings, "a number of titles will likely require cinema."
"Not just because of awards season, but because of the hype it takes to be a major player in a hybrid age where there's still a physical foot and a digital foot," he said.
Getting along with Netflix would also be a good idea for cinemas.
"Movie theaters need content now more than ever," said Jeff Bock, principal analyst at entertainment research firm Exhibitor Relations. “A lot of Netflix releases are associated with big names, so that would definitely help them get through the turnstiles. »
Even the National Association of Theater Owners (NATO) is open to the idea.
"Our doors are open to give Netflix movies a wider game," NATO executive director John Fithian said last month. “We would like to play more of his films. »
What is the deadline?
One of the biggest hurdles for Netflix and cinemas is that both sides have argued over how long a movie should run in cinemas.
Netflix's business is subscription-based, so it doesn't want subscribers waiting for movies, while theater owners whose business is foot traffic-based want exclusivity for as long as possible.
That debate came to a head in 2019 when the two sides couldn't agree on how long Martin Scorsese's detective epic 'The Irishman' should play in theaters before heading to the United States. United. Diffusion. Theaters wanted an exclusive 70-day window, and Netflix wouldn't exceed 45 days, according to The New York Times.
But the pandemic has changed everything by shrinking the theater window industry in its entirety. Even traditional studios like Warner Bros. and Universal Pictures are now releasing movies theatrically in Diffusion after a few weeks or sometimes simultaneously.
Beyond the cinema window, there are other issues as the cinema business brings additional costs that Netflix is not used to.
"It's definitely not as simple as taking over a homepage," Hare said. “It goes from the digital world to the physical world. You need money for marketing and promotion… It's a huge series of tactical and strategic decisions that have to be made. »
And putting more movies in theaters could hurt Netflix's very model. If you can go see the Netflix movie you can't wait to see in theaters, does that make you less enticed to subscribe?
Ultimately, there are tradeoffs for Netflix when it comes to working more with theaters. However, society needs to right its ship and cinemas are constantly getting back on track, so maybe it's time for the platform to Streaming to put more of his films on a marquee.
"I think Netflix is still in experimental mode," Hare said. “You can't afford not to experiment right now. »
SOURCE: Reviews News
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