<< MVD Gives Stooges Fans a Chance at Directing | Blog Home | Target’s Blu-ray ‘Cop Out’ >>

 

‘Inception’ of a New Dialog With Home Entertainment Consumers?

20 Jul, 2010 By: Stephanie Prange

---

This last weekend I went to the movies for the first time in a while to see director Christopher Nolan’s Inception, a Warner Bros. sci-fi juggernaut that topped the box office for the weekend and created a lot of buzz despite being shown in good old 2D.

After the movie, ushers handed out questionnaires ostensibly from the studio asking viewers how they liked the movie, among other things.

At the end of the survey was the following question: How interested would you be in buying or renting Inception on DVD or Blu-ray Disc or ordering it on demand? Answers ranged from “Definitely” to “Definitely not,” on a scale of 1-5.

If industry participants don’t think the studios are seriously reevaluating the home entertainment market, then this survey should give them ample proof. Of the three choices, buying or renting on disc or ordering via on demand, the studios have definite favorites based on the amount of revenue coming back to them. Buying the disc or on demand pay-per-view would be the most profitable consumer actions to the studios. Renting the disc is not.

I’m not sure exactly for what purpose the studio will use this data. Were I conducting the survey, I might gauge the purchase intent for each movie and window each movie to create the maximum revenue for the studio. If consumers aren’t particularly interested in purchasing a film, I might offer it first via VOD and then on disc. If they show a strong interest in purchasing a movie, I would offer it before or at the same time as it appears on VOD.

I have no doubt studios are looking at every aspect of the home entertainment business to maximize their revenue — and consumers answering surveys like this are going to point the way.

Bookmark it: