Streaming media is so blessed that the movie theater is crying for the corner
Movie robbery in the shadow of "Black Swan"
A sudden new epidemic has hit the global economy, and the entertainment industry is naturally not spared, especially the movies that are regarded as "non-necessary" are the first to be abandoned and finally restored-if you want to watch movies, watch them at home , The day dedicated to streaming media suddenly came.
Streaming media
Looking at countries, theaters around the world are basically closed. Even if you want to open the door, there is no source. A large number of new films, including Hollywood, are either withdrawn, postponed, or changed to on-demand online, according to the prediction of "The Hollywood Reporter" This year's summer vacation is definitely "obsolete", with losses exceeding US $ 20 billion.
This outbreak of the global epidemic, in addition to the physical theater line, as well as the traditional terminal business of the "Big Six" such as Disney, Warner, Universal, etc., that is, the box office is cleared, no one can account for it. "Mulan", "Black Widow", "Speed and Passion 9" and other blockbusters are withdrawn, and all the works of Marvel Universe are collectively postponed. The "Invisible Man" and "1/2 Magic" that have just been released soon break the window period and come online in advance, even For example, "Troll 2" and "Scooby" simply went live on demand, skipped the theater box office, and used a new method to evaluate investment and income, trying to recover losses, but so far no real profit value has been disclosed.
Instead, the streaming media represented by Netflix ushered in rare development opportunities and became one of the few entertainment companies that "blessed by disaster" during the epidemic. According to the latest statistics, Netflix global subscribers soared 15.77 million in the first quarter of this year, and the cumulative number of global subscribers reached 183 million, a 22% increase from last year. Netflix's stock price continued to rise in April, closing at 454.8 dollars, which makes Netflix's current total market value exceed Disney. The trade-offs, Disney, which was once the leader of the Hollywood industry, not only fell 2.5% in share price, but also stopped paying 100,000 employees. Former CEO Bob Iger, who had already retired to the second line, had to go out again. ".
Of course, Disney did not ignore the rise of Netflix and waited for death. The group's long-time streaming platform Disney + was officially launched on November 12 last year. This is regarded as the "most valuable" strategic layout left by Iger. It seems to be true now. Very forward-looking. After going online for five months, it has absorbed 50 million users worldwide. Disney + relies on preferential monthly fee packages and more exclusive resources to participate in the fiercely competitive "streaming war". It successfully harvested a large number of users, but the growth is not as amazing as Netflix. That's it.
Currently, Disney + 's online services include content from Disney, Fox, Marvel, Pixar, and ABC channels, and also bundle sports platforms ESPN and streaming media Hulu, two platforms that Disney also owns equity, which undoubtedly adds new streaming media. Business competitiveness. Disney's strength lies in the richness of its resources. In addition to the big IPs of movies such as Marvel and Star Wars, it also has many years of accumulation in animation, children's and youth programs, such as the "Toy Story" series, "New Growth Troubles." And the "High School Musical" series, many of them have grown up with the audience on the traditional "Disney Channel", and they can easily become streaming users.
Originally, Disney ’s layout has been smooth and smooth over the years, especially the stage of the fourth stage of Marvel has been scheduled for 3 years, but the outbreak of the epidemic disrupted the elaborate schedule, and the schedule in the theater and streaming media had to be adjusted. . After all, the launch of "Black Widow", "Eternal Race" and the first Chinese super hero "Shangqi", the inheritance of "Dr. Strange 2" and "Thunder God 4", and the "Falcon and Winter Soldier" "Wang" "Dark Vision" and "Rocky" are interspersed with streaming episodes on streaming media to form a linked network. This eye-catching "universe" once made Disney earn a lot of money, but when encountering the "black swan" such as an epidemic situation, there will also be the trouble of "pulling the whole body" and the crew can't work temporarily. It is difficult to coordinate the progress later. If new resources are not available, it may affect the attractiveness of their own streaming media platform. According to the analysis of "Variety", the increase in Disney + 's weakness during this period is largely due to the fact that the Star Wars "Mandalorian" has a broken file after the end. The second season will not be available until October, and the Marvel Department Several of the episodes are likely to face the fate of extension and split, which are not conducive to Disney ’s streaming business and several other competitions.
The pioneer's "attack" and competition
"In the next few years, more and more consumers will buy streaming services." Forbes once predicted the prospect of online user competition: Netflix still maintains growth momentum under the pressure of rivals; Apple also Introduced low-cost packages and a large amount of original content on their own streaming media platforms, and can be bundled with their mobile phones and other hardware sales, such as free one-year subscription service, this user stickiness is not available to other opponents ; Youtube video network already has a paid package; Hulu and Amazon's Prime membership system can also enjoy streaming resources; on the 27th of this month, Warner's streaming business HBO Max will be heavily launched, followed by Comcast The NBC's streaming platform Peaccok has great prospects, and even the search engine giant Google is eager to try in this field.
According to statistics from Van Haus, a professional digital research agency, at the end of last year, 74% of US Internet users have subscribed to online streaming services. In the future, on average, they will each expect to add another 1.6 platforms, which leaves no room for new entrants. Small business opportunities. According to the survey statistics of the new users, 23% will prefer the Disney / Fox streaming platform, and 11% will choose the streaming media of Warner Bros. or Apple.
According to digital TV research company predictions, by 2025, the total number of users of the five streaming platforms (Netflix, Amazon, Apple +, Disney +, HBO Max) will reach 529 million, of which Disney + global users will exceed 100 million. However, judging from the development of this epidemic, there are still variables in how to eat this cake. Instead, it is an industry pioneer who completely relies on the streaming media business. Netflix's current advantages are more consolidated, and there is a unique trend.
For those who are at home, the price of the package is similar. Pure online brands such as Netflix and Hulu that have developed on streaming platforms for many years are the first choice in terms of business model and technical guidance. As for resources, they can be added later. Well. Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos said in an interview with CNN that Netfilx is ahead of the reserve for new shows and will complete all episodes at once, even if the epidemic will continue for a few months in the future. It's out of stock. Unless the crew can't start work in the second half of the year, it's estimated that we have to count on the animation.
Netflix is currently well funded and its benefits are naturally good. For example, it has set up a fund of 150 million US dollars to help those in the film and television industry who are unable to start work due to the outbreak of the outbreak. Work from home to maintain productivity. More importantly, after this outbreak, Netflix's production method may completely change people's entertainment habits. Streaming media may really replace traditional theater lines and TV stations and become the first choice for users' entertainment consumption.
Of course, the scars of competitors such as Disney and Warner "out of stock" are still there. Netflix's top priority is still to save resources, regardless of whether it is original or cooperative. The "appetite" is very large, and it has always been looking for partners around the world. . In Europe, Netflix has just signed a cooperation agreement with the well-known art film and cinema brand MK2, and has a large number of online copyrights for French author movies. On April 24, the first batch of 12 works of French classics and new wave master Trufffer came online, including epoch-making films such as "400 Strike" and "The Last Subway", as well as Claude Chabrol , Jacques Demi, Krishtov Kieslovsky and many other European directors ’works will be on the streaming media one after another by the end of the year, even early Charlie Chaplin and The popular Canadian golden boy Xavier Dolan, because MK2 owns the copyright, has also become a "high-quality sharp goods" in the Netflix online film library. This step also made the streaming media chanting "big data" before. The platform gradually got rid of the commercial positioning that was too catering to the public, and began to enter the higher-end art field.
The original footsteps are Netflix's strategy of "discharging the bottom of the box" of Disney +, or the established policy after the launch of "House of Cards" in the past, so that it will not be pinched again like the loss of the copyright of Marvel Universe and Friends. ". In this epidemic, Netflix ’s original solo documentary film "Tiger Raises the Suffering" has received 65 million views and a good reputation. The action film "Spencer Secrets" has reached 85 million views, like "Shocking Rescue" "There are also big names such as" Hammer Brother "Chris Hemsworth, who said that the scene design does not lose the traditional cinema line.
Netflix ’s ambitions are even more of a global attack. There are cooperative original projects in Europe, Latin America, East Asia, India and other regions. The addition of local production centers, like "Crown", "British dramas that are not British dramas" have broken the regional cultural restrictions. And creative habits, even Madrid's new Netflix branch, is still planning a "Nostalgic" adaptation of Nobel-level masterpieces, without concealing the "temptation" of audiences of various languages and touching the art field.
Of course, Netflix is not a peace of mind. In addition to catching up with new forces such as Disney +, HBO Max, Peacock, and episodes of the media empire, there are some more novel Silicon Valley + Hollywood "hybrid products" challenging. For example, the Quibi short video website that just launched on April 6th, the resource is no longer a funny video uploaded by the grassroots and Internet celebrities like Douyin, but a "micro movie platform" created by a professional Hollywood team. Its founder is deep Disney ’s former chairman of Disney ’s Jeremy Kreiber, who knows the business of Hollywood, has recruited many IT elites and film marketing talents. With Kreiber's connections and optimism about mobile streaming, Spielberg, Tom Cruise, and "Boulder" Johnson's new films are expected to be launched on this new platform, investing in expensive original resources, in addition to technology Inheriting the professional standards of the US film and television industry, according to the habits of modern audiences, it is divided into 10 minutes of "Quick Viewing" to provide a new experience of horizontal and vertical screens. If the concept of Quibi, a more radical streaming media platform, can Success is not only another breakthrough in the film production mode, but also a slice of the battle from the streaming battlefield of the crowd.