Saw this article in Variety and wondered how if at all it would effect us as theater owners.
AOL'S PIC PIPELINE
Direct delivery may revolutionize biz, CEO sez
By JILL GOLDSMITH
NEW YORK -- AOL Time Warner CEO Gerald Levin Wednesday affirmed the primacy of Warner Bros. content in the newly merged company and said more cost-effective marketing via AOL could help revolutionize the cost structure of the movie biz.
"Content is in a unique position," Levin said, although it's undervalued by Wall Street due partly to the steep expense of pro-moting and marketing pics. Production costs have stayed pretty flat, but marketing costs have jumped, he said. AOL, which can deliver all kinds of information directly to consumers, may change that, especially when combined more potently with Time Warner's own distribution assets.
"You can reach people in their homes with AOL and (AOL) MovieFone and on local news services like (Time Warner's) New York 1 without spending a buck on someone else's media," he said. If it costs $25 million to market a film, imagine cutting that in half, he mused at a daylong marathon of presentations to analysts, investors and reporters. Meanwhile, he said, he wants Warner Bros. to churn out as many pics as it can, since film libraries are invaluable assets.
Peak at 'Potter'
His comments came as AOL Time Warner unveiled its first combined financial results and issued a flurry of press releases -- 13 in all -- demonstrating the synergies and cross-promotional business it has found across its divisions. Levin and chairman Steve Case were on hand with co-chief operating officers Bob Pittman and Dick Parsons and an army of division heads. Warner Bros. topper Barry Meyer gave hundreds of Wall Streeters a peek at the upcoming feature "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" -- the first footage seen outside the studio.
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