Will Movie Theaters Cease to Exist?
In a town known for movie theaters that are both local and quirky as well as high-tech and sophisticated, here’s an important question: Are movie theaters coming to an end?
This is a big debate that has many opinions on both sides of the argument. Many people consider that movie theaters will not be around in the future, others beg to differ. So, are movie theaters coming to an end?
In our time, we watch online services like Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube for only a few dollars a month. We get to see many new movies and series streaming on these servers. Will people stop going to the movie theaters because of this? I believe people would not and in fact, the movie theater industry will continue for many years to come.
I love going to the theaters because of the ambiance, the food, and because of the experiences I have are always nice. It is a place to experience many emotions and some of us probably have many memories from middle school there. Before going out to parties in high school, my group of friends and I would hang out at the theater and we had many good memories there.
But what are some problems that people experience at the movies that keep them from attending? An article by Natasha Vaughn published on The Odyssey on Jan. 1, 2017 mentions how she does not like going out to the movies now because everything is too expensive. Vaughn does have a point, tickets and snacks seem like they are increasing in price. A general admission at Cinemark XD costs around $10 on a Monday night. Imagine trying to get yourself some snacks on top of the ticket cost. I agree with Vaughn when she says that the cost of movie tickets are too expensive, but I do not believe this will end movie theaters forever. Going out to the theaters is like enjoying a delicacy; people like it, but they do not do it all the time like enjoying birthday cake or caviar. Yes, people might prefer to stay home and save money but there will come a time where we would like to treat ourselves and have a good night at the movies.
Another reason people believe that the movie theater industry is dying is because of online entertainment like Netflix. The article by Josh Dickey published on Mashable on April 4, 2017 talks about Dickey’s reasons on why theaters will only survive “10, maybe 15 years. And I’m being generous.” Dickey wrote about Premium VODs that will deliver movies digitally to your television. He mentioned how PVOD will take away theaters’ businesses because they will finally start doing what no others could have done before, which is their “exclusive content.” Dickey also wrote that some studios will try to start renting out new releases from $30-$50. Basically, Dickey’s argument on why theaters will die is that people prefer to watch a movie in the comfort of their own homes rather than in a huge theater with a big screen and surround sound. I disagree again with Dickey because if we want to compare prices, $30-$50 for a rental on a new release is still too much for a college student like me to pay. I already mentioned how going to the movies is like a delicacy, but it could also be historic, artistic, and educational. Some movie theaters like the Cineteca Nacional Mexico, shows many classical movies, important documentaries, and some new releases that many people go and see and enjoy. They even have “expositions” on famous writers and directors’ movies like Hitchcock.
John Fithian, president of the National Association of Theatre Owners, wrote an article published on the Hollywood Reporter on Feb. 16, 2017, about his opinion as to why movie theaters are actually thriving in today’s era. Fithian starts his article with a 1955 quote from the U.S. News & World Report which said that new technology (television) was going to end movie theaters. Of course, today we still have both that we use. As the years went by, many other factors (including economic recessions), led theaters to their struggles. Despite all those struggles, they continue to thrive. Fithian’s support as to why theaters are thriving come from data collected throughout the years on admissions revenue. Fithian wrote that admissions have gone from 704 million in 2004 to 750 million in 2016 and these statistics are always going up and down. Fithian then mentioned that online servers like Netflix have been spending too much money on new series and content. He also mentioned that cheap home entertainment options are disappearing more than theaters.
Movie theaters will continue to be around no matter what new online services there are. If anything, they will not be the same as what we know of them now, but I do not believe they will completely vanish because they have become very important to us. It is like Spotify and the radio, many people still use and know what a radio is even though they use music servers like Spotify.
References:
https://www.cinetecanacional.net/
https://www.theodysseyonline.com/big-or-small-movie-theaters
https://mashable.com/2017/04/04/movies-theaters-dying-cinemacon-pvod/#O3VX8sZABPqs