Amazon.com, Inc.(NASDAQ:AMZN) will foray into full-fledged film production business, aiming to release up to 12 feature-length movies in theaters annually, before making such films available on Amazon Prime Instant Video service four to eight weeks after theatrical release. “Not only will we bring Prime Instant Video customers exciting, unique, and exclusive films soon after a movie’s theatrical run, but we hope this program will also benefit filmmakers, who too often struggle to mount fresh and daring stories that deserve an audience,” said Amazon Studios Vice President Roy Price in a press release.
Just last week, Amazon.com, Inc.(NASDAQ:AMZN) got two major awards for “Transparent”, its comedy TV series shown via Amazon Prime Instant Video. The Golden Globe Awards is the very first for the company, and confirms a trend wherein streaming services such as Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) and Amazon Prime Instant Video are increasingly becoming a venue for award-quality shows apart from the traditional television networks. According to BTIG analyst Rich Greenfield, both Amazon and Netflix “are forever changing viewing behavior,” as quoted by CNN.
Amazon Prime rival Netflix have announced intentions to venture into movie making as early as September last year, saying it will create a sequel to ““Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” For its part, Amazon.com, Inc.(NASDAQ:AMZN) has tapped film producer Ted Hope to head the creative development unit of Amazon Original Movies, the e-commerce giant’s newly created film producing outfit. Hope previously worked on the original version of “Crouching Tiger”, and is also known for his independent films “Safe” and “The Brothers McMullen”.
Amazon.com, Inc.(NASDAQ:AMZN) will allot a budget of $5 million to $25 million per film, and will mainly head towards producing “indie movies”, spokeswoman Sally Foust said as quoted by CNN. The company is known for its interest in feature-length movies, even offering an upfront payment of $10,000 for scripts in the past.
This article has been written by Nonito Guntan.
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