It is an undeniable trend in Hollywood these days. This would be the obsession with putting the digital window before the physical media streets and thereby serving up a pristine master to the “helper” community. They immediately release Blu-ray and/or DVD copies of their own … thereby cutting into legitimate sales (the consumer is unlikely to know the difference).
The business decision has to be along these lines … the immediate cash flow and revenue from the digital sales far outweigh whatever is being pirated. And, it is not worth the effort (time, money, staffing, etc.) to play whack-a-mole with the “helpers.” In other words, potential piracy loses are factored in as part of the business decision.
The latest example is director Ben Wheatley’s Meg 2: The Trench, which is heading home on Oct. 24 from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment as a full-spread of home entertainment packaged media product offerings.
The ARR is a current industry average of 81 days, so
the physical media window relative to the theatrical release is spot-on. Domestic box office receipts currently stand
at $66.6 million.
Planned for release are stand-alone 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD SKUs (no Combo Packs).
However, on Aug. 25, a full 60 days before the physical media street date, the studio has set up a multi-platform digital window … that’s just 21 days into the theatrical release. Again, it is a business decision, so why fight it?
Bonus goodies for Meg 2: The Trench, which are limited to the 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray SKUs, are two featurettes — “The Making of Meg 2: The Trench” and “Up from the Depths: Even More Beasts.”
