MAY 2008 W4 ALERTSony Launches The Hot Ticket...Will It Be?
New business unit will stage live events at local movie theaters
<Dow Jones-TOKYO><May 22, 2008>Sony Corp. announced today it is launching a new business unit called “The Hot Ticket” that will distribute live events to local movie theater houses equipped with digital projection technology. Through their Sony Pictures Entertainment division, certain one time events like closing Broadway shows, sporting events, music concerts will draw in customers who have no other means to attend these events.
Although the unit may utilize certain events recorded live, the plan is to make each event limited run. This contrasts with the typical movie house fare in which movies are run on regular schedules for weeks on end. The typical “The Hot Ticket” event will feature strictly limited runs lasting no more than one week.
Rory Bruer, president of Sony Pictures Releasing, said, “This is somewhat of a new frontier for movie theaters, but I think the best way to see entertainment is in a theater. And with all the possibilities that come with the digital cinema rollout, you’re going to see a lot of new things like this.”
Starting this summer, the first production will be “Delirium,” a Cirque du Soleil music compilation tour that closed last month in London. Following that will be “Rent” a Broadway show scheduled to close on September 7th.
So will it be the hot ticket? Movie theater owners hope so, as they have experienced declining movie attendance for quite some time now…perhaps “live” or “recorded live” events will pull in new audiences.