text/Ma Qingyun
On the morning of August 5th, Disney just announced that the movie "Mulan" starring Liu Yifei and others will be removed from theaters in North America and other places and will be released on Disney+ on demand. The on-demand start time is 9 On the 4th. Some countries and regions that have not opened Disney+ on-demand services will continue to strive for the possibility of simultaneous release in theaters.
For Chinese film fans, as our epidemic situation improves, mainland theaters have opened one after another, and the box office continues to pick up. Disney's "Mulan" is very likely to be screened online by then. If nothing happens, Mainland China will become the world's largest "Mulan" ticket warehouse. The movie viewing effect of the theater is not comparable to the home-on-demand mode. Chinese audiences can get a more exquisite visual experience.
is more noteworthy, is Disney’s "Mulan", paid on-demand fees on its streaming media platform. At present, our major domestic theaters have opened one after another, and the average ticket price has not yet returned to the level of a year ago. Because many theaters sell a lot of discount cards for movie theaters during the half-year shutdown period, we now have a large number of theaters whose viewing fees are around 19.9 yuan. Some studios even cost 9.9 yuan. For Disney, the paid-on-demand fee for its own streaming media is $29.99.
Even considering the difference between Chinese and American currencies, Disney’s streaming media on-demand costs are much higher than the current movie-watching costs of theaters in mainland China. At the same time, the pay-on-demand broadcast of "Mulan" also created a new high in the unit price of pay-on-demand online in North America. Of course, this new high is still within the acceptable range of the North American market.
First of all, the situation in North America has not improved, and may even worsen. Therefore, cinema viewing has become a relatively "not easy to achieve" thing. At present, several major Hollywood movie giants have a large backlog of film works. If these works cannot be exported as soon as possible, it will inevitably form a huge financial pressure on Hollywood. Therefore, the online pay-on-demand model has become inevitable. This is the only option for the North American market without any retreat.
Secondly, the cost of nearly $30 is relatively reasonable in terms of cost performance. The average ticket price of theaters in North America last year was around $10. The average ticket price of theaters in North America has been on the rise in recent years. The reason is simple. The theater equipment has been upgraded and the viewing experience has improved, and the ticket price has risen accordingly. And the 30 dollars of Disney's "Mulan" is just the price of three movie tickets.
However, the paid account of Disney's streaming media platform can be shared by six people in the whole family. That is to say, even if the whole family cannot watch the same place at the same time, the whole family can still play multiple rounds of the shared account. From the perspective of six people sharing, the average ticket price of the theater is ten dollars, and six people are sixty dollars. Disney's "Mulan" is still 50% off. Therefore, this fee is within a reasonable range of the North American market.
So, why is Disney so eager to let Mulan go to its own streaming media platform to pay for it? As mentioned earlier, Hollywood film and television giants are also beginning to face huge financial pressures, and urgently need to find an outlet for cinema movies. Switching to online payment is an inevitable trend in the future. The replacement of movie theaters by home-on-demand models is also the overall trend of the North American market. In this step, there is a difference between leaving early and leaving late.
In the past year, Netflix, HBO MAX, Apple+ and other online streaming media in the North American market have experienced fierce competition. Everyone is working hard to become the largest family pay-on-demand platform in the streaming media market. Obviously, becoming such a paid-on-demand platform may face a larger market space than theater chains. For Disney, it is inevitable under the situation to use its own "big story" to raise the flag for its own Disney+. The competition among North American video platforms is also extremely fierce.
In mainland China, major video platforms are currently exploring paid-on-demand models. Since the beginning of this year, many cinema movies have been transferred to genuine video platforms for entry.Line play. The one closest to us is the movie "Journey". This big scene and big special effects movie work is online on the genuine video platform. Non-members need to pay 24 yuan to watch it on demand. This paid figure set a new record for paid-on-demand in one fell swoop.
In the past, pay-on-demand movies are 12 yuan for non-members. "Zhengtu" pushed this figure up to 24 yuan. Although the fee is slightly higher, some fans complain. However, the paid-on-demand model has become a trend, and it is inevitable that the domestic market is actively exploring an effective model. There is nothing wrong with this.
At present, whether it is a video streaming platform in North America or a genuine video platform in our country, it should work on this family pay-on-demand model. Domestically, the data currently available shows that the performance of paid-on-demand movies is not satisfactory. On the contrary, a lot of TV series are paid in advance, and the results are very good. In the face of the new model, it is obvious that we cannot stop, but we should continue to work hard to form a market scale as soon as possible.
