Chalk this one up as one of the more tone deaf ideas to come out of Hollywood in quite a while. Yes, the studios want to let movies premiere on pay-per-view (PPV) only two months after they are released in theaters, but they also want to charge $30 for this early viewing.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/...7300L920110401

For all the chatter about disc media and digital distribution, the bottom line is that movie revenue has always been driven by the release window -- demand for a new movie is greatest right when it comes out in theaters, and demand for home video is also greatest at the time of release. The studios know this, and they've had a successful formula for staggering the different release schedules based on how demand varies over time.

Well, now the studios have concluded that moviegoers are willing to pay over $10 a ticket to see a movie in theaters, and/or about $20 to purchase a DVD/Blu-ray 120 days later (the typical time between a movie's initial theatrical run and its debut on home video). Therefore, there must be a huge demand to see a movie on PPV for $30 if they move the PPV debut up to 60 days!

Movie theater owners are positively pissed about this plan. Up to this point, theaters have had an uneasy agreement with the studios to have a theatrical release window of at least 120 days for new movies. The studios have periodically pushed out some DVD/Blu-ray titles after about 90 days, but this has not taken hold as a general trend. Movies that can sustain long theatrical runs make more money for theaters. Moving the PPV debut up to 60 days encroaches on their revenues.

But, I don't think theater owners really have much to worry about. Honestly, who the hell is going to shell out $30 for a PPV rental? This costs more than a pair of movie tickets, and it's more than most DVD/Blu-ray titles. At least with the movie theater, it's an outing, a date night, etc. And with DVDs and Blu-rays, you get to keep the movie for repeat viewing.

I understand the premise of people wanting to see something first, but I think $30 goes well beyond what most consumers are willing to pay for the privilege. And it's not like you see it first, since the movie will have already been in theaters for two months.

Those consumers that currently use PPV are used to paying ~$5 for a download or cable/satellite rental. The release date for many PPV movies now match the DVD/Blu-ray release date. I understand the idea of paying $5 for a PPV rental that's available 30 days before Netflix or Redbox. But, are consumers really going to pay an extra $25 so they can watch it at home two months before everybody else?

This whole idea stinks of bean counters run amok (the idiocy ranks up there with the DIVX PPV disc format) ...