Reader Comments on Aardvark Daily 14 December 2001

Note: the comments below are the unabridged submissions of readers and do
not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publisher.
 

From: Steven
For : The Editor (for publication)
Subj: DVD and Yanks

You have a small error in your story today. You state:

"However -- one can't help but wonder how "provincial and
smaller cinemas" in the USA cope with the release of DVD
versions in direct competition with box-office releases?
What's so special about New Zealand that we are unable to
cope in the way that other countries do?"

The reason is is movies are released, normally, in a very
planned manner, North American cinemas released first (with
the boonies getting them only a few weeks or a month later
than main centres) Then Europe, etc.

Then the movie is released to pay per view (which includes
airlines which means you see movies going across the ditch
that are just released in NZ). Then it goes to premium
cable and then down the 'food chain' (DVD is sometime
sooner than premium cable and sometimes not).

Actually the order of release is the same (or similar) to
that of the DVD zones (they movies are often released in
that order).

So im summary smaller areas do not compete with DVD's as
they get it well before the DVD's come out in North America.

Aardvark Responds
Thanks for that information.  Of course a better way to help the
local small-cinema industry might therefore be to synchronise the
local release of movies to their release into the North American
market then.