The entire entertainment industry, the world for that matter, is in new territory. Nobody knows what’s going to happen next. Nobody also knows what any one state or country is going to do regarding shutdowns, mandates, travel bans, etc. Things seem to be taking longer than many expected and some experts are saying this is only the beginning. As the world slowly adapts to a new normal, one can only wonder what’s going to happen with exhibition- filmed or live? What does the future of the most valuable and important window in the life-cycle of a single piece of premium ticketed content look like? In this article I will answer these two important questions to the best of my knowledge and experience.
Nothing can replace exhibition! Let’s all just agree on that. PVOD or pay-per-view cannot replace the revenue that box office, or the “gate” as some would call it, brings in. So, although the industry is currently shuttered, I predict things will come back even stronger but before the sun shines, it seems we’re all in for a severe storm. Some restructuring may occur among the big chains now that things are shutting down again. Many smaller operations will unfortunately not survive the winter. By the time we come out of this, there could be a significant decrease in the number of screens in the country- shrinking an already limited shelf space. However, the exhibition business will come back!
How they come back is a whole different story. Surely there will be some limitations and distancing incorporated in the whole experience. These seating and capacity limitations will reduce attendance even if there is demand. Most people probably won’t run back into cinemas or any other large gatherings like concerts, Broadway or a Las Vegas shows until the pandemic is under control or a reliable vaccine is readily available. Inevitably, these limitations will cave the bottom line for exhibition/box office in a significant way. The most coveted window of the industry- the window that dictates the value of content down the pipeline needs a way to survive and adjust to the changing times.
Enter VENUE, the ultimate streaming media player with the capability to sell tickets per-person and expand this coveted window into millions of home around the world. The Venue app provides artist and storytellers with a marketplace to expand their most important window- selling tickets per-person. Venue is positioned to be an expansion to physical venues and exponentially increase the audience for any specific one content. Venue is also the only digital exhibitor in the world that gives 95% or more of the ticket back to the content owner. The ultimate goal of Venue is to bring consumers a level of convenience and to the access of premium ticketed entertainment from around the world without cannibalizing the value of catching a first run movie or watching a live performance. Artist and storytellers create the fabric of society and Venue’s mission is to amplify their reach and protect the value of the art of storytelling, which is as old as humanity itself.
In addition to the ticketed entertainment, the Venue streaming media player comes pre-loaded with popular streaming app, gaming, TV, news and video conferencing capabilities fresh out the box. The XCINEX team behind Venue lives by a simple rule- if you’re going to do something, do it right. The planned launch date for Venue is December 20, 2020 and everything is currently moving forward on schedule. Visit www.XCINEX.com for more details and follow Venue by XCINEX on social media to get the latest Venue related progress updates.