Amazon will pull its movies from theaters to Prime faster
An Amazon prime video logo it's displayed on a Sony Xperia Z5 premium during the Mobile World Congress on the third day of the MWC in Barcelona, on March 1, 2017.
Phone makers will seek to seduce new buyers with artificial intelligence functions and other innovations at the world's biggest mobile fair starting today in Spain. / AFP / Josep Lago (Photo credit should read JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)
In an interview with Hollywood Reporter, Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke said the company is working on getting movies to its Prime subscribers "as soon as possible." Part of that means fulfilling contractual obligations around theatrical release, but it's prepared to take a hit on that if it means a later pay-off on Prime. She cites Late Night as an example, noting that while it's been used as a cross to hang Amazon -- because no-one saw it in theatres -- it's still been watched by "tens of millions" of people on the streaming service.
The upshot is that people are essentially a lot less picky about what they choose to watch on their devices, compared to what they're prepared to see at theaters. Netflix's deal with Adam Sandler is a good example of this: Murder Mystery racked up more than 30 million views during the first three days of its release -- figures that would be difficult to replicate in cinemas. As Salke says, if a theatrical release is necessary in order to get to that stage, so be it.
See the full story here: https://www.engadget.com/2019/10/31/amazon-movies-theaters-prime-faster/