Screen Digest
16th October 2007
Arts Alliance Media (AAM), the European digital film distribution company, has signed up a third Studio to enable its digital cinema deployment target of 7,000 screens. Paramount Pictures has agreed a non-exclusive long term agreement for digital cinema deployment, under which it guarantees to supply its films in the digital format. AAM is currently targeting roll-out in nine Western European nations as well as the Nordic and Benelux regions. Paramount joins other major Studios Fox and Universal, who have already signed similar agreements with the AAM d-cinema network.
Our take...
While there hasn't been direct mention of a virtual print fee (VPF) type agreement between Paramount and AAM, (like the earlier arrangements with Fox and Universal) it is however implied that Paramount is facilitating deployment, which should involve an element of financial contribution. The deal means that AAM now has three studios on board, and was reportedly in close discussions with Buena Vista earlier this year. The subsequent signing follows similar patterns of studios joining the third party facilitators in North America. Paramount was the last major Studio to supply one of its movies in the digital format in North America, namely Mission Impossible III in 2006. Paramount signed up to both rival facilitators in the US market (AccessIT and TDC), and its move to embrace digital cinema came shortly after its acquisition of Dreamworks, back in 2005. It has also been working with digital satellite provider Microspace in North America for live transmission of its feature films. There has been an element of uncertainty regarding the level of VPF contributions in Europe, due to the more heterogeneous nature of film markets there. Studio involvement has been deemed essential in order to secure an element of financial contribution (VPF) as well as content supply to networked screens. The deals would therefore only apply to those screens capable of upgrading to or meeting DCI-compliancy.