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DCIP posts

Movie studios & theater operators agree to expand the number of digital, 3D-ready cinemas


Digital Cinema Implementation Partners (DCIP) -- representing AMC, Cinemark and Regal Cinemas -- has worked out a deal to finance the installation of thousands of digital movie screens starting next year in the U.S. with the help of Lion's Gate, Paramount, Fox, Universal and Disney. Not participating, at least for now, are Warner Bros. and Sony Pictures, with the latter expected to announce a separate deal soon involving the installation of Sony 4K SXRD projectors around the world. Key to the deal? "Virtual print" fees, meant to help defray the expect $70,000 cost to switch to 3D-ready digital projection setups, as the studios will kick in the $800 - $1000 they would have spent on old school movie prints to finance the changeover. In the future they save by distributing only digital prints, not to mention having somewhere to show the dozen 3D flicks expected to debut next year. Both sides are betting the $1 billion package will help pull us away from the HDTVs and back into a movie theater, but until they work out a payoff with that one guy who won't stop talking, we're not sure how likely that is.

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Warner Bros., Universal, and DCIP to make digital cinema a reality


Could it be? Apparently, some major plans have been set in motion to finally go digital on the big screen. Movie industry big-guns Warner Bros., Universal, and Digital Cinema Implementation Partners have announced a joint venture to evaluate various distribution methods, such as satellite or digital terrestrial distribution, to determine the best way to deploy digital content across a whopping 14,000 Regal, AMC, and Cinemark screens. DCIP (equally owned by the 3 aforementioned theater giants) was formed earlier this year to apply the new format to cinemas during the motion picture industry's digital transition where traditional film will peace out for real. The shift, if well-orchestrated, will not only enhance the movie-going experience, but can also provide back-end benefits such as faster rollouts, more scheduling flexibility, and cutting out physical shipping costs. To fight the pirates who will no doubt be wanting a piece of this ultra-HD action, the group is plotting a digital distribution system that streamlines delivery methods and keeps the number of people involved to a minimum. There's no word yet on exactly when this much-anticipated, way-overdue implementation will begin.
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