With the evolution of technology came the concept of streaming platforms. Once upon a time, when a new movie was released, it had to go through stages before you could enjoy it in the comfort of your home. Now, many ways allow people to get the movie on their tv and avoid the theater altogether, without a waiting period. In fact, not all movies make it to the big screen anymore. Instead, they are released specifically to a streaming platform. These progressions have caused a multitude of changes in the film industry, especially from the public relations side.
Now that people do not have to go to a theater to see a new movie, the theater business is decreasing. A result of this, for starters, is some theaters are simply unable to survive this advancement. As said by Hollywood Insider, “moving theaters around the country are closing their doors at an alarming rate.” The window of time where a movie is theater-exclusive, meaning it cannot be seen in any other format, is rapidly closing. Therefore, the need is lessening to frequent movie theaters for those who aren’t as interested in having the theater experience. Unfortunately, the impact of theaters closing has ripple effects.
What is one thing that every movie theater plays before the movie you paid to see begins? Trailers. Trailers are one of PR’s roles in a film, which gives a target audience a taste for the film and entices them to come back for more. When a person presses play on a movie on Netflix, that is it — that is the start of the movie they intended to watch. This characteristic of streaming platforms makes it so trailers are not getting as much traffic and are reaching smaller target audiences. I can speak from personal experience that there have been multiple times where the driving force of me seeing a movie is the trailer I unintentionally watched while sitting in a movie theater auditorium.
Similar to exposure to trailers, movie theaters create a space to expose the public to posters of new films. These posters hung up along the walls are vessels for key information: What is the movie called, who does it star, who directed and produced it, and when is out. With fewer movie theaters remaining and fewer people entering the theaters still standing, the PR opportunities that these establishments create are jeopardized.
One benefit of streaming platforms is their accessibility. Movie theaters are not accessible to everyone. For one reason, not everyone has a movie theater convenient to where they live. Also, not everyone has a mode of transportation to get to a theater. Lastly, movie theaters are not always accommodating to all people, whether it be for disability-related reasons or otherwise. Streaming platform movie releases allow those who would have restrictions in some way from getting to a theater to see a new film.
On the other hand, streaming platforms are exclusive to only those who pay for them. Not everyone can afford monthly payments for streaming platform subscriptions, whereas seeing a movie at a theater is a one-time cost. If a movie is exclusive to a platform, it excludes a population of its target audience who would have otherwise seen it if it played in the theater.
These are only a few ways streaming industries are altering the world of film. The way I see it, they have hurt the business of movie theaters and as a result, have decreased some of the films’ greatest PR tactics. But for better or for worse, streaming platforms are here to stay.