Monkeying Around With Distribution
February 2006 By Denny Hatch
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Think Before You Act
Feb. 2, 2006: Vol. 2, Issue No. 9
IN THE NEWS
In the film world, the time-honored sequence for release of a new movie is theater distribution first, followed by DVDs for purchase and rental, and finally presentation on cable or network TV.
"Bubble" is a low-budget thriller directed by Steven Soderbergh ("Traffic," "Erin Brockovich," and "Ocean's 11"). According to The Wall Street Journal, it cost $1.6 million to make, which seems unbelievable, but two sources confirm it.
It was decided to release "Bubble" in all three media a few days apart.
This raises a serious question for everyone in business who sells a product:
It Happened on Fifth Avenue
Let me share with you an extraordinary story of my childhood—one that has colored and shaped my view of the modern world.
My father, historian Alden Hatch, wrote the first biography of Dwight D. Eisenhower. During World War II, my father interviewed Mamie Eisenhower on several occasions at the Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., where she was living while the general was overseas. My parents and Mrs. Eisenhower became friends.
Fast forward five years. My father was signed by the old Liberty magazine (now defunct) to do a series of articles on the 1948 presidential candidates—President Truman, Robert Taft, Thomas E. Dewey, Harold Stassen and Arthur Vandenberg. At that time, Eisenhower was Army Chief of Staff. My father called Mamie Eisenhower to say that he and my mother were coming to Washington to do research and asked if she and the general had some time to get together. To his astonishment, he and my mother were invited to stay with the Eisenhowers at Quarters One, their official residence at Fort Myer, Va.
To my astonishment, I was invited along. I was twelve.
Many scenes are etched in my memory: breakfast alone with the general every morning for five days, being left alone to entertain General Walter Bedell ("Beetle") Smith while the Eisenhowers dressed for dinner, and a private tour of the Pentagon with the general's driver, Sgt. Leonard Dry, as my guide.
Feb. 2, 2006: Vol. 2, Issue No. 9
IN THE NEWS
Multimedia Launch of 'Bubble' Gets Mixed Response
An experiment in launching a movie almost simultaneously in the cinema, on cable television and on DVD attracted few theater-goers, although the film has done well in DVD orders, according to its makers.
—Sarah McBride, The Wall Street Journal, Jan. 30, 2006
In the film world, the time-honored sequence for release of a new movie is theater distribution first, followed by DVDs for purchase and rental, and finally presentation on cable or network TV.
"Bubble" is a low-budget thriller directed by Steven Soderbergh ("Traffic," "Erin Brockovich," and "Ocean's 11"). According to The Wall Street Journal, it cost $1.6 million to make, which seems unbelievable, but two sources confirm it.
It was decided to release "Bubble" in all three media a few days apart.
This raises a serious question for everyone in business who sells a product:
Is it smart to grab as much money as quickly as you can, even if it means short-circuiting—and possibly hurting—your normal distribution network?
It Happened on Fifth Avenue
Let me share with you an extraordinary story of my childhood—one that has colored and shaped my view of the modern world.
My father, historian Alden Hatch, wrote the first biography of Dwight D. Eisenhower. During World War II, my father interviewed Mamie Eisenhower on several occasions at the Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., where she was living while the general was overseas. My parents and Mrs. Eisenhower became friends.
Fast forward five years. My father was signed by the old Liberty magazine (now defunct) to do a series of articles on the 1948 presidential candidates—President Truman, Robert Taft, Thomas E. Dewey, Harold Stassen and Arthur Vandenberg. At that time, Eisenhower was Army Chief of Staff. My father called Mamie Eisenhower to say that he and my mother were coming to Washington to do research and asked if she and the general had some time to get together. To his astonishment, he and my mother were invited to stay with the Eisenhowers at Quarters One, their official residence at Fort Myer, Va.
To my astonishment, I was invited along. I was twelve.
Many scenes are etched in my memory: breakfast alone with the general every morning for five days, being left alone to entertain General Walter Bedell ("Beetle") Smith while the Eisenhowers dressed for dinner, and a private tour of the Pentagon with the general's driver, Sgt. Leonard Dry, as my guide.
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