Cinema group pushes for movies to stay in theatres longer

LAS VEGAS: Movie theatre owners are making a new push to keep films in cinemas for a longer period before they are available for audiences to watch at home.

Cinema United, a trade organisation formerly known as the National Association of Theatre Owners, called on Tuesday for a minimum 45-day window of exclusivity for all films to help boost box offices still hovering below pre-pandemic levels.

“Shorter windows reduce the number of people that head to the theatre in the opening weeks of a release,” Michael O’Leary, president and CEO of Cinema United, said at the industry’s annual CinemaCon convention in Las Vegas.

“It hits the bottom line, and in many cases, undermines the ability of medium- or smaller-budget movies to build an audience or even get off the ground,” he added.

The issue has caused friction between theatre owners and media companies in the past. It used to be standard practice that movies played in only in theatres for 90 days or more.

The rise of streaming and the pandemic led media conglomerates to reduce that period. Today, a film can become available to stream at home -- for a fee -- as soon as 17 days. The time period varies for each title.

In 2024, US and Canadian box office receipts totalled $8.6 billion, 25 per cent below the pre-pandemic heights of $11.4 billion in 2019.

Theatre operators said their business would benefit from a consistent timeline, and they want studios to stop advertising the date a movie will be accessible at home while it is on the big screen.

“One of the most important things is to not announce the streaming date while we’re still playing the movie,” said Bob Bagby, president and CEO of the B&B Theatres chain.