Digital distribution affects the marketing and consumption of media products in the film industry nowadays because more people tend to watch films in the comfort of their own homes, rather than taking trips to the cinema, and have become more dependent on the internet.
This means that the film industry have to take this into consideration before promoting or distributing a film, and so many online or televised methods are now used during the marketing and consumption of said media products.
For example, an extensive viral marketing campaign was created in order to promote Ridley Scott's Prometheus, and the film became a massive success due to this contributing factor. Any major film studio is going to have a marketing campaign which includes some kind of online element, perhaps a trailer and a few film clips, but only few reach a major, viral victory, and Prometheus was amongst those that had, due to very generous investment from 20th Century Fox.
First came a video which showed Guy Pierce as character Peter Weyland of 'Weyland Industries', giving a TED talk in 2023, which was first screened at the real TED conference in February 2012, attracting a lot of viewers. Second was a piece given by Michael Fassbender who plays David, a robot with very human characteristics - this allowed the public to explore David's world and created a lot of hype surrounding the film itself. Two other short movies were also produced, one involving one of the main characters Elizabeth Shaw played by Naomi Rapace, and the other involving the ship's captain; the latter of the two being kept the shortest so as to add a sense of mystery and excitement before the film's release, after the former had provided a little bit of background into the crew's mission.
As well as all of this, a website for 'Weyland Industries' was created, which, as a movie promo site, could easily be mistaken for an actual corporate website, making the film's plot seem all the more real. Several trailers were also released.
Everything was distributed digitally to the public via the internet - on the 'Prometheus' website and the 'Prometheus' channel on YouTube - or through television (trailers shown during advert breaks), which allowed for a good number of people to become aware of the film and created a lot of hype surrounding it. The film had a budget of $130 million, and so to make a profit, a big audience was needed.
In terms of consumption, Prometheus was released in over 15 markets during cinema exhibition, both in 2D and 3D, which was an experience that could not be topped by digital distribution, but was then sold to online distributors such as LOVEFiLM and Netflix, having been released on DVD and Blu-ray in over 50 countries prior to this, so as to reach an extremely wide audience.
This arrangement would have ensured that those who did not want to pay a fairly weighty price for a cinema ticket - although this would have provided the best kind of viewing, having allowed the public to experience a 3D showing had they wished, along with limited showings in IMAX theatres - could wait to either buy the disc version for a lower price and keep the film as a permanent investment, or to watch the film over the internet, also for a less amount of money, or rent the film and have it sent to their door.
Digital distribution would have affected the consumption of Prometheus massively, as people that were perhaps sceptical about a 'prequel to Alien' could view the film for less money and as part of a package deal with an online distributor, rather than being put off by cinema prices or investing in something which they may not have enjoyed. Although this is true for most films nowadays, this way Prometheus would have made a considerable amount more than if it had not been made viewable in more ways than cinema exhibition alone.
However, the film industry may not always look upon digital distribution as such a good thing, as many websites can allow the public to view films illegally and for free, which means that the film will not be making its money back and the companies who have spent time working on the film may lose money rather than gaining a profit, and although this was not a huge problem for a massive film like Prometheus, for smaller, low budget films such as Joe Cornish's Attack The Block, it can be.
With a budget of only £8 million, Optimum Releasing (now StudioCanal UK), owned by StudioCanal, could not afford to create a viral marketing campaign on the same level as Prometheus', yet online methods still seemed to be the way forward. And so, due to lack of funding, StudioCanal chose to promote Attack The Block through social networking sites such as Facebook, which would cost nothing but still get people talking.
It wasn't crucial that Attack The Block reach a wide audience, as it did not have to make as much money back as Prometheus did, although the film's rating during cinema exhibition, which was a certified 15, may have been a slight issue, as the film grossed little over £3.6 million at the box office, subconsciously enlisting itself as a 'cult film in the making'. However, this did not necessarily mean that the production stages of the film did not reach certain standards, as the film currently holds a 90% 'Certified Fresh' rating on the critical responsive site Rotten Tomatoes, and generally had favourable reviews from those who did see the film upon its release, and so digital distribution would have helped Attack The Block to gain a higher profit, as people of a younger age could now watch the film thanks to online distributors. As Film4 Productions had also contributed to the production of Attack The Block, the film also aired on Channel 4 and Film4 without any added cost, which would have resulted in an increasing awareness of the film and gaining extra profit, as well as an option for the public to rent the film on Film4oD. The issue of illegally viewing the film online was much more prominent in the downfall of Attack The Block when compared to Prometheus, however, as most people would have probably waited until the film had been leaked online before viewing because of its rating or lack of awareness, which would have made earning its money back an even harder job, and so this was problem which could not be resolved and could have serious consequences.
Consequently, Attack The Block was not considered a flop, despite its lack of success at the box office, as only a small audience was targeted in the first place, and DVD sales will eventually boost its overall income where cinema exhibition failed to do so.
Therefore, digital distribution will become significant in the consumption of Attack The Block, as it will allow for enough money to be made back if it hasn't already done so, and was also important during the marketing stages of the film, as although little money could be spent on an extravagant promotion campaign, the use of online methods meant that information could be spread quickly.
Another film which relied heavily on digital distribution during the marketing stages was The Inbetweeners Movie, although this was not quite the case during the consumption of the film.
Because The Inbetweeners Movie had sprouted from the TV series, The Inbetweeners, a lot of air time was given on Channel 4 between shows in anticipation of the film's release, as this would be the perfect place to gain potential viewers. As well as this, the four main cast members, Simon Bird, Joe Thomas, James Buckley and Blake Harrison took over Film4's Twitter account up until the release of the film, which was a great piece of low budget marketing which would have proven significantly effective. The audience which had been targeted for the movie were between the ages of 15 and 25, generally, and so these marketing methods were sure to attract the most attention.
The Inbetweeners Movie did amazingly well at the box office, having made just over £13 million in its opening weekend, setting a new record for the most successful opening weekend ever achieved by a comedy film in the UK. The film grossed just over a staggering £56 million during cinema exhibition, which was 'staggering' since its budget had been only £3.5 million. The reason for this success may have been down to the fact that the film had been released during the summer, just after all of the teenagers in the UK had broken up for the school holidays, but I believe that The Inbetweeners Movie would not have been as successful had it been released straight to DVD.
The film became the third fastest-selling British home media release of 2011 after the two final Harry Potter instalments, after selling approximately 575,000 copies on the first day of its release, however, I scarcely believe that this would have been the case had the film not have been such a phenomenon during cinema exhibition, as this brought a kind of higher status to the franchise which had not been done with any other British TV series. Also, those which had never seen The Inbetweeners may have gone to the cinema to watch the film, just because it had reached cinema potential despite its extremely low budget, but may not have considered buying the film on DVD straight away if they had never seen the TV series.
Nonetheless, digital distribution of the film itself was not poorly received, as DVD sales confirm the exact opposite, but it was not as important in the consumption of the film due to its content and target audience as it had been during the marketing stages.
Overall, digital distribution affects the marketing and consumption of films quite significantly, as the internet is becoming increasingly popular as the years go on and a cinema experience is becoming less of a must due to the continuing development of technology.
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