We all know the Netflix platform, offering a panel of movies and series in front of which we languish, a slice of pizza in hand. Netflix has also entered production with films like David Ayer's Bright , Alex Garland's Annihilation etc.
But do we know Amazon Prime Video?
We know of course Amazon, a merchant site, where we can buy a lot of things at a lower price. A company with annual sales of $177.9 billion. In the absence of any desire for power and, to remain in the nerve of the war of the web, this giant of the net has decided to compete with Netflix on the cinema distribution. Since April 2017, Amazon Prime Video is an accessible space with wifi where movies and series scroll before our eyes. In a few clicks, we access moving images placed on a narrative. Unlike its rival, it first embarked on production, in 2014. Amazon studios dedicated to audiovisual and cinema have seen series (Mozart in the Jungle among others) and films (including Café Society, Woody Allen).Unbeatable prices targeted the major public between 18-24 years old. 24€ per year for youth and for others, an annual subscription of 49€.
With these two big companies invading the small screen market, what happens to Cinema?
The ownership of only two major poles of industry (production and distribution) leads to a significant problem. How to bring out a cinema different from that of money? Blockbusters are more likely to make a profit than an independent film. Added to this are the marketing campaigns for "home cinema". How to revalue the room, the cinematographic spectacle? Faced with a place at 8 € on average, how not to fall into a passive viewing with this myriad of works that induces a default choice?
Don't be surprised to see more and more "movies" in SVOD (Streaming Video On Demand). Hollywood and the world of cinema seem to appreciate this new market, enormously profitable, where the risks inherent in large productions are limited. Although they easily meet their audience, these TV movies will fight for recognition at festivals and ceremonies. Pedro Almodóvar, president of the last Cannes Film Festival, had stated loud and clear that he did not want to reward films that were not released in cinemas. Recently, the master Spielberg has also spoken out against these productions, not without foreshadowing a rather sinister future for dark rooms. The fight starts today!
