For decades, On-demand content distributors have been seeking to get theatrical films distributed to homes close to day and date with their theatrical premieres. With the coronavirus outbreak forcing the shutdown of most major cinema chains, the industry is moving closer to that reality.

Studios are now testing earlier on-demand windows to supplement what quickly is becoming a nonexistent box-office business. From Sony’s sci-fi thriller Bloodshot, which will be available for digital purchase on March 24 — a little more than a week after debuting in theaters — to NBCUniversal’s decision to offer first-run films The Hunt, The Invisible Man and Emma for digital VOD release while the movies are still within their typical 90-day theatrical window, the devastating coronavirus outbreak has altered the dynamics of the on-demand movie category.

“Since going to movie theaters isn’t an option right now, we are not surprised that some studios have elected to quickly make their titles available to us in the on-demand window,” said Emilio Nunez, senior VP of content acquisition for In Demand. “We’ll continue to quickly respond to our partners and make PPV/VOD an option they can count on in a very fluid marketplace.”

Much like every segment of the U.S. economy, the coronavirus has effectively changed how the theatrical movie industry conducts business. With such movie chains as Regal, AMC, and Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas announcing a temporary shut down to help slow the spread of the coronavirus disease, movie studios were forced to shelve existing theatrical releases, while postponing the spring launch of high-profile films like Disney’s Marvel Studios film Black Widow and MGM’s latest James Bond entry, No Time To Die, to late summer or fall.

Looking to to reach audiences, studios have turned to the on-demand platform in an effort to entice viewers who are homebound in response to the government efforts to quell the virus.

NBCUniversal on March 13 said it will offer three movies, The Hunt, The Invisible Man and Emma, for rental at $19.99 — about $10 more than a movie within the VOD window — beginning March 20, well within the movies’ traditional three-month theatrical window.

In addition, NBCU’s animated title Trolls World Tour will now stream day and date with the movie’s April 10 theatrical release.

“Rather than delaying these films or releasing them into a challenged distribution landscape, we wanted to provide an option for people to view these titles in the home that is both accessible and affordable,” said NBCU CEO Jeff Shell, in a statement.

Warner Bros. moved up VOD windows for its D.C. Comics-based theatrical film Birds of Prey, which will be available for digital purchase on March 24 — about 45 days after its Feb. 7 theatrical release — as well as for its Jamie Foxx-starrer Just Mercy, which moved up its digital release date to March 19 from March 24.

Studios have traditionally been apprehensive about moving to day-and-date distribution for fear it would harm the box-office take. But with no box office to speak of in this era of coronavirus fears, the shortening of theatrical windows comes as more of a necessity than a choice.

“We hope and believe that people will still go to the movies in theaters where available, but we understand that for people in different areas of the world that is increasingly becoming less possible,” Shell said.

In Demand’s Nunez added that the VOD distributor is prepared to work with studios regarding the distribution of films during this unprecedented situation.

“We’re talking with our owners and our studio partners every day during this evolving situation,” Nunez said. “We’re here to help them provide consumers with options that will benefit everyone during an unprecedented time when so many people are spending the majority of their time at home.”

Discovery Communications has unveiled the first installment of its multipronged direct-to-consumer strategy, partnering with motorsports publisher TEN: The Enthusiast Network, home of Motor Trend magazine, with auto-focused Velocity in a deal that will bring exclusive on-demand content to subscribers.

Discovery first talked about the strategy last November, shortly after the launch of its Discovery Go app. Along with that authenticated online version of its linear content (which is also tied to an existing multichannel video programming distributor subscription), Discovery also hatched the direct-to-consumer plan. Velocity is the first network to try the model.

Discovery is essentially forming a new venture with TEN — TEN: A Discovery Communications Company — led by Discovery chief content officer Paul Guyardo. Velocity executive vice president and general manager Bob Scanlon will become president of Velocity and TEN video content after the deal closes later this year.

“The overall strategy is to raise the awareness of some of the content that TEN is currently creating on different platforms,” Scanlon said in an interview. “On the Velocity side, the intent is to leverage our talent — the face of Velocity — [and their] popularity, that trust and expertise to create what I call content from the cutting-room floor.” Scanlon added that content would be more process-oriented, offering deeper dives into aspects of certain shows on-demand for a price. For example, on Velocity’s popular Bitchin’ Rides, an episode where the crew installs an engine into a vehicle could be shown in greater detail on-demand.

Scanlon added that the move is about tapping the rapport and trust the talent has built with the audience, “to convince them this content is legit, it’s OK and it’s stuff that you’re not going to get on Velocity. It’s really in the weeds for true enthusiasts.”

Scanlon said it is essential that the content provides something to viewers they can’t get anywhere else. But the segment seems ripe for the kind of detailed content Velocity wants to provide.

Packaging and pricing for the offerings haven’t been decided yet, but Scanlon said he has other ideas for the service as well, including taking a page from the traditional TV playbook.

“I’ve got some other ideas about creating the idea of appointment viewing behind the paywall, a show that would really require viewers to tune in at a certain day and time in order to see something time-sensitive,” Scanlon said. “That increases the value.”

More than half of all global video-on-demand starts take place on mobile devices, according to a new report from Ooyala.

In its Q4 Global Video Index report, Ooyala said mobile viewing now makes up 54% of global video plays, up from 46% a year ago. The company expects video plays to account for 60% in the near future.

In terms of ad-supported video on demand, 56% take place on mobile devices. Mobile has its lowest share in North America, where it represents less than 50% of video starts, more than 10% lower than the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.

The largest share of global on-demand viewing, 45%, takes place on smartphones, with desktops representing 44% and tablets 11%. In North America, viewers watch more long-form video than either short-form or mid-form.

Ooyala also found that more than 47% of the time spent watching videos on smart phones was spent watching long-form content. Snackable, short-form content represented just 40% of time spent watching on mobile devices.

Read more at broadcastingcable.com.

Stephen Meyer, VP of video strategy and analysis for Comcast, said in-season stacking rights and the tech innovations of the X1 system are pushing the top cable operator to new heights.

Netflix “seemed to come in with a little more elegant product,” Meyer conceded during a keynote conversation at the eighth annual On Demand conference, presented by B&C and Multichannel News.

As Netflix grew and “created this consumer appetite” for on-demand streaming, “in some ways we were following to catch up," Meyer said. "But in other ways we’ve been prepared.”

The main fruit of that preparation: the X1 system, which is now in 40% of Comcast homes and gaining steadily. The company handles some 40,000 installations a day, Meyer told moderator Mark Robichaux, editorial director of B&C and Multichannel News.

“X1 was the culmination of getting the tech, content and user experience right," Meyer said, adding that 85% of X1 users are using video on demand monthly, racking up an average of 24 hours per month. Cox Cable in the U.S. and Shaw in Canada are among the operators that have licensed X1 technology for their own offerings.

The volume of content made available is enticing customers, Meyer said. For example, X1 features the entire 600-episode library of TheSimpsons.

Another major draw: in-season stacking rights, which have been gaining currency as media companies air more shows that their studio arms have produced and success stories like Fox’s Empire attest to the upside.

“When you look at the shift toward on-demand viewing, TV series are becoming more like novels,” Meyer said. “When you’re thinking of reading a book, no one is going to start on Chapter 3 or 4. … Customers are increasingly turning toward things that are complete.”

In just the last two years alone, stacking has exploded. The Big Four broadcast networks, Meyer said, will offer in-season stacking on roughly 58% of their 2016-17 programming, up from 23% in 2014-15. Major cable networks will hit 78%, also up sharply from 53% in 2014-15.

“It used to be that when you said you watched a lot of TV, it wasn’t a good thing," Meyer said. "Now, you actually sound smart if you say you watch a lot of TV shows.”

Multiscreen video specialist Vubiquity has teamed with TV2U Worldwide Pty Ltd to roll out transactional VOD (TVOD) services to under-penetrated markets in Asia and the Middle East.

Under the deal, TV2U will act as Vubiquity’s affiliate in up to seven high-growth markets, including Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait.  Other countries covered by the deal include Australia and the United Kingdom, and others may be added to the list at a later date, the companies said.

Vubiquity will also provide  international programming for these new VOD services along with content processing and ongoing promotional support.

In turn, TV2U will provide its video-distributor clients with a TVOD platform that includes single login for access to films and TV series on devices such as smartphones, tablets, PCs, connected TVs and set-top boxes. 

NEW YORK — Can video-on-demand score with consumers while keeping pace with the momentum generated by streaming rivals Netflix, Hulu and other over-the-top services?

Recent announcements — including Showtime’s summer launch of an OTT subscription service — reflect the shift in consumer viewing of quality TV content to the Web in general and mobile devices in particular.

As a result, TV everywhere, video-on-demand, digital ad insertion, electronic sell-through and over-the-top streaming are now mission-critical goals for distributors. Meanwhile, advertisers are experimenting with new platforms that are easier for consumers to access — and more difficult for distributors and advertisers to measure and monetize.

Some of the television industry’s brightest leaders deconstructed the VOD business at the OnDemand Summit, staged here last week by Multichannel News and Broadcasting & Cable. The conversation revealed major trends in the VOD portion of the TV ecosystem.

TVE: PROGRESSING, BUT CHALLENGED

The cable industry’s TV everywhere effort — granting pay TV customers online access to cable fare once their payment status has been verified — continues to bulk up on programming even as competing OTT services continue to establish a bigger footprint in U.S. homes.

Nearly 10% of U.S. homes subscribe to broadband and an over-the-top video service, but don’t subscribe to a traditional cable bundle, per a recent Parks Associates study, TV Everywhere and the New World of OTT.

The firm also forecasted that OTT video-service subscription revenue will climb from nearly $9 billion in 2014 to more than $19 billion in 2019. “While operator attempts at TV everywhere have made little impact, OTT video services are experiencing a boom,” Brett Sappington, director of research at Parks Associates, said.

While some industry observers may argue about the significance of the inroads that TV everywhere has made over the past year — the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing reports that more than 55% of consumers recognize and use TVE services from cable networks — it is clear that the category still has an uphill climb to slow down or stop the momentum garnered by the likes of Netflix, Hulu and Amazon.

More than 90 networks are offering TV everywhere services on a subscriber-authenticated basis — with MLB Network last week becoming the first sports league-owned network to offer a TVE extension — but CTAM CEO John Lansing said creating a cohesive, TV everywhere message remains a challenge. A simpler subscriber-authentication process is also a factor that has hampered TVE’s development.

“The biggest limitation is that TV everywhere is not a consumer-facing brand,” Lansing said. “To communicate the value of the product without a single handle to the consumer is the biggest challenge.”

Developing a strong marketing message that spells out to consumers the virtues of TV everywhere offerings will also go a long way toward establishing a richer, deeper relationship with viewers.

Sean Riley, president and founder of Sean Riley Consulting, said the industry should use its promotional time to market the various TV Everywhere offerings that exist online and through other platforms.

“Once you hook your fans on your great content via digital platforms and VOD, you’ll deepen the relationship with those viewers, and they will come back to your linear channel on Thursday night to watch that big series premiere,” he said.

One of the advantages that MVPDs have over OTT services is the ability to offer recent episodes of cable network series almost immediately after they’ve aired on the linear channel, and distributors are beginning to exploit that advantage.

‘STACKING UP’ VOD USAGE

VOD is allowing viewers who normally wouldn’t have watched a particular show to “catch up” with it — especially if a program has generated buzz on social media or elsewhere — weeks after it premieres.

“This is how VOD is changing the economics,” Rentrak vice chairman and CEO Bill Livek Livek said. “After the third day, the majority of viewership is happening; in primetime, content with the Big Five [broadcast networks], in five or seven days, almost half of viewership is cumed up.”

The amount of programming available on VOD has helped drive its popularity, especially as full current seasons become more available. Called stacking, the practice of letting current-season eposides pile up so viewers can catch up has been a major initiative for Comcast, which has more than 550 series stacked on its VOD platform.

Stacking is particularly effective with serial dramas, where missing one week can discourage a viewer from going back to a linear program.

Comcast vice president of video strategy and analysis Steve Meyer added that stacking can make a big difference for some shows. On average, he said, if a distributor has four episodes of a primetime series on VOD, that leads to a 20% lift in the ratings. When that same program is stacked, ratings rise about 40%.

Turner Content Distribution executive vice president of brand distribution Jennifer Mirgorod is a strong believer in stacking: Turner this month agreed to stack 15 series from TNT and TBS — basically its entire summer primetime original drama lineup — on Comcast systems.

Turner began stacking last year, with shows such as The Last Ship, Murder in the First and Falling Skies, and saw a sharp spike in ratings. Stacked episodes of The Last Ship attracted 30% higher ratings in the 18-49 live-plus-three-day demo on average in Comcast households. For Murder in the First, 18-49 L3 ratings averaged 40% higher through the season in Comcast households.

Other networks are also joining the fold. Meyer said that FX has stacked almost its entire lineup with Comcast, and the Fox broadcast network has stacked a double- digit number of shows, as have NBC, CBS and ABC. On cable, AMC has had success stacking shows such as Halt & Catch Fire. Of the top 50 shows on TV, Meyer estimates that 30% are stacked on Comcast systems.

“And you’re going to see more,” Meyer said.

Mirgorod said that despite earlier concerns, full-season VOD stacking helps drive viewers to the linear show after they’ve caught up. But once they have, they don’t abandon VOD all together; many hop back and forth between real-time showings and on-demand episodes throughout the season.

“It’s better to start promoting after a couple of weeks,” Mirgorod said. “It’s that Netflix behavior — people expect a lot of shows to be available at one time.”

SUCCESS THROUGH MEASUREMENT

New developments in measurement have also boosted the stature of VOD. Rentrak’s Livek said recently that VOD is taking the place of the digital video recorder, which — with the hectic lifestyles of today’s consumers — is even becoming too burdensome to program specific shows. With VOD, customers must merely click a button to watch their favorite shows when and where they want to.

And in what should be good news for advertisers and programmers alike, consumers are willing to make a tradeoff , watching advertising embedded in VOD shows (and with fast-forwarding disabled) in exchange for convenience.

In Demand CEO Bob Benya, in an interview related to the cable operator-owned content distributor’s 30th anniversary, noted free VOD offerings are growing because of better audience measurement efforts from Nielsen, which is now measuring content with C3 (live programming, plus total DVR playback three days after airing) and C7 ad loads.

“Cable operators and others have disabled fast-forwarding, benefitting advertisers,” Benya said. “The networks are getting [monetization] credit for it, and that’s unlocked the rights. Now, you’re seeing a massive catalog available to viewers. The good news is that VOD keeps growing like crazy in terms of users as well as hours of usage.”

Along with inroads in advertising and measurement, electronic sell-through of content is a product industry executives are hoping will boost the usage and revenue for the category.

While EST, which is the digital sale of movies and TV shows, is still in its infancy, revenue from fi lm and TV titles is expected to reach $2 billion this year, up nearly 30% from 2014, Warner Bros. president of worldwide home entertainment Ron Sanders said at an On- Demand Summit panel session.

“It’s a way to keep your consumers inside the cable infrastructure, instead of letting them stream a movie on Netflix or order a movie on iTunes,” Sanders said.

Comcast, which launched its EST service in 2013, said the category generated $100 million in revenue during its first year, with 99% of those transactions coming via the remote control, according to Comcast Cable executive vice president and general manager of video services Matt Strauss.

One of the things that could entice operators to consider offering EST to its consumers is the continued shrinking of the window between theatrical and EST availability, which is currently around 90 days — well before OTT services such as Netflix and Hulu gain access to films, according to Sanders.

Following its debut on the iPad, Motive Television said it has launched a TabletTV app for the Android platform, starting with Samsung devices with 10- and 7-inch screens, for use in the U.S. and the U.K.

The TabletTV  app operates in conjunction with a $89.95 “T-Pod” device (pictured) that performs the function of an antenna tuner, able to capture free, over-the-air TV signals for display on tablets. The T-Pod also allows users to record programming via an integrated DVR.

TabletTV is supporting over-the-air TV in the U.K. with Freeview. TabletTV, a joint venture of Motive Television and Granite Broadcasting, has also been testing its service in the Bay Area with Granite-owned station KOFY-TV as it works toward a more aggressive commercial launch (subscription required). Depending on signal availability, TabletTV estimates that its U.S. customers can get access to as many as 50 digital TV stations, including local ABC, CBS, Fox and PBS affiliates.

“The addition of Android devices to the TabletTV family is a major step forward due to the growing popularity of Android devices,” Motive CEO Leonard Fertig said, in a statement. “The global potential market for TabletTV numbers is in the hundreds of millions - by the end of 2013 it is estimated that 6% of the global population used a tablet and 22% a smartphone.”

TabletTV has also announced plans to extend support to the Google Chromecast adapter.

TabletTV is also developing a video-on-demand service that will deliver content via an unused portion of the broadcast spectrum using Motive’s datacasting technology. It’s also working on a version of the product that will support broadband connectivity for over-the-top video from sources such as Netflix.

Looking to unify advertising across screens and devices, FreeWheel, the online ad tech firm acquired by Comcast last year, said it has kicked off a video-on-demand pilot that enables programmers to manage ads delivered via IP/digital and set-top boxes via the same platform.

The initiative, delivered within FreeWheel’s FourFronts Premium Marketplace, is being conducted with Comcast; programmers such as ABC and A+E Networks; and Canoe, the MSO-backed advanced joint ad venture. FreeWheel said other MVPDs will be joining the pilot. In addition to Comcast, Canoe’s other MSO partners include Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks and Cox Communications.

FreeWheel said the pilot marks a “critical step” toward the unification of digital, VOD and linear.

In addition to managing their own direct sold unified campaigns on digital and cable VOD ad impressions, FreeWheel said pilot participants will also have the ability to grant sales rights on unified digital and cable VOD ad impressions via the FourFronts Premium Marketplace.

"Since we launched ABC Unified three years ago, our goal has been to make it easy for advertisers to engage with ABC audiences across screens," Geri Wang, president of ABC Sales, said in a statement. "VOD viewers are a highly valuable audience and core part of that initiative, and our ability to include VOD inventory as part of ABC Unified via Freewheel’s solution is a great next step."

“As television viewing fragments, it is increasingly important for publishers to be able to deliver ads across multiple screens and devices using a single strategy and platform,” added Jon Heller, co-founder and co-CEO, FreeWheel. “The VOD pilot fully unifies VOD ad inventory with digital, including OTT, avails into a single fully dynamic audience while also bringing inventory unification within the FourFronts Premium Marketplace.”

“This partnership is a great step forward for our programmers and MSOs as VOD becomes an increasingly significant component of a marketer’s media mix,” said Joel Hassell, CEO of Canoe. “Canoe is committed to making it easier to include VOD in media plans looking to get premium video content at scale.”

Comcast and PBS announced a new distribution deal this week that enables the cable operator to more than double the amount of PBS programming that will be available on its set-top box video-on-demand platform, as well as via Comcast’s authenticated Xfinity TV Go  apps and Web site.

The deal, which covers “recently-aired episodes” from more than 50 PBS series, will include primetime shows such as American Experience, American Masters, Antiques Roadshow, Call The Midwife, Frontline, Nova, and Masterpiece titles that include Downton Abbey (pictured), Wolf Hall, Mr. Selfridge, Grantchester and Poldark.

The agreement also calls for Comcast to provide local PBS member stations with “enhanced branding” on the Xfinity On Demand menu.

“We are pleased that this new agreement recognizes public television’s unique structure and gives prominent branding to local member stations as the source of PBS content in their respective markets,” said Ira Rubenstein, SVP and GM for PBS Digital, in a statement.

 “Comcast and PBS have a longstanding relationship built around a commitment to providing the viewers we both serve with access to the content they want across devices,” added Franz Kurath, vice president, content acquisition, Comcast Cable. “Xfinity On Demand and Xfinity TV Go are go-to sources for customers who want to catch up and stay current on their favorite TV shows, and the addition of PBS’ original programming brings even more high-quality, award-winning programming to the platforms.”

Elsewhere in VOD-land, Comcast this week kicked off its sponsorship of Taylor Swift’s The 1989 Tour, noting that it will offer a series of behind-the-scenes videos and other content via Xfinity on Demand.  Comcast said that content can be found under the “Music” category in its VOD menu or by saying “Taylor Swift” in to its new voice-enabled remote for the X1 platform. Content that’s part of the sponsorship will also be featured on Xfinity TV Go.

For those who aren’t making the trek to Tinseltown for the TCM Classic Film Festival, the network is providing vintage film fans with ways to be part of the fun via a multiplatform on-demand promotion.

Staring March 25 and running through the end of April, TCM is making a host of films and related content available via TV Everywhere platforms, the Watch TCM app and through set-top boxes. The robust content promotion offering is available to all of TCM's TV Everywhere distribution partners.

The 2015 festival, TCM's sixth annual, is set to take place Thursday, March 26 through Sunday, March 29 in Hollywood.

In addition to running banner ads touting the promotion on TVE sites, TCM has also created a social media toolkit for affiliate partners to help trumpet the on-demand offering, with copy for Facebook and Twitter, plus artwork from select films.

“While we celebrate classic film, we achieve that mission though using the newest platforms and technology,” said TCM general manager Jennifer Dorian. “Our very popular TV Everywhere app Watch TCM and VOD are leading examples of how a media brand can forge deeper engagement with passionate fans and grow reach via new platforms.”

Authenticated TCM viewers will be able to check out “Live From the TCM Film Festival” specials, featuring tributes to Alan Arkin, Eva Marie Saint and Luise Rainer, as well as Robert Osborne’s 20th Anniversary Tribute that was filmed during last year’s festival.

Among the films screening at the 2015 event that will be available on demand: The Apartment, Lawrence of Arabia, Marriage Italian Style and The Miracle Worker. 

Other classics that have run at festivals past and will be available include Le Mans and A Hard Day’s Night.

Those traipsing in Tinseltown and new to the Watch TCM app can find out how to utilize it at the Chinese Multiplex, where on-site ambassadors will demonstrate its viewing features, video and image galleries and flanking editorial content.

After exhibiting the app,  the ambassadors will distribute collectible cards featuring special key art on the front and useful data and user tips for the WatchTCM app on the back