Activison Considering Selling Cut-Scene Movies

IGN reports on some comments made by Activision CEO Bobby Kotick to attendees of a Bank of America Merrill Lynch Media, Communications & Entertainment Conference about the idea that they could remove the cut-scenes from a game like StarCraft II and market them as a commercial movie. If that's not startling enough, then wait for the price point he mentioned, as he envisions selling such a "movie" for $20.00-$30.00. He says: "If we were to take that hour, or hour an a half, and take it out of the game and we were to go to our audiences, who we have their credit card information a direct relationship, and say to them 'Would you like to have the StarCraft movie?" Here's more:
My guess is unlike film studios that are really stuck with a model that goes through theatrical distribution and takes a signification amount of the profit away, if we were to go to an audience and say 'We have this great hour and a half of linear video that we'd like to make available to you at a $20 or $30 price point,' you'd have the biggest opening weekend of any film ever.

Within the next five years, you are likely to see us do that. It might be in a partnership with somebody or alone, but there will be a time where we'll capitalize on the relationship we have with our audience; deliver them something that is really extraordinary and let them consume it directly through us instead of theatrical distribution.

If we were to deliver a film digitally this way, I'd say an extremely high percentage would then go to the theater and watch it again.
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20.
 
Re: Activison Considering Selling Cut-Scene Movies
Sep 16, 2010, 22:33
20.
Re: Activison Considering Selling Cut-Scene Movies Sep 16, 2010, 22:33
Sep 16, 2010, 22:33
 
My guess is unlike film studios that are really stuck with a model that goes through theatrical distribution and takes a signification amount of the profit away

You guess? You guess wrong. The vast majority of box office ticket sales goes to the film studios, not the theaters. You ever wonder why popcorn and hot dogs are so damn expensive...that's the theater's bread and butter.

Secondly, in what shape or form are the movies for Starcraft II a linear narrative that would make any sense outside of the context of the game.

Raynor: (slurring with tumbler of wiskey in hand) Let's gear up to go fight this major battle!
*end scene*
Raynor: (grimy and slightly beat up) Well, that battle sure was epic!

Yeah, sounds fucking phenomenal.

Thirdly, hour or hour and a half of cinematics in Starcraft II? More like 30 or 40 minutes. For that you think you can justify a $20-$30 price point compared to a 90 minute film? I didn't pay that much to go see Avatar, on the IMax, in 3D.

Holy fuck, my douchebag meter just broke. Fucking delusional. Please, do go forward with this plan so that it can fail dismally and perhaps Activision will replace you with a human being who has a soul and half a brain.
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