Warner Bros. Snags Distribution Rights To Over 600 Paramount Movies
In a recent deal, Warner Bros. has secured distribution rights to nearly 600 films from the Paramount Pictures catalog, according to The Hollywood Reporter. In addition to releasing these titles on DVD and Blu-ray, the studio will distribute UltraViolet versions through its Flixster service. Both parties seem to view the deal as a win-win scenario.
“These Paramount catalog titles are the perfect complement to the Warner Bros. library; they will allow us to offer consumers new multifeature film packages and debut many titles on Blu-ray for the first time,” Warner Home Video president Ron Sanders explained.
Although Warner Bros. will gain access to such titles as Airplane!, Braveheart, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, high-profile, best-selling franchises such as Transformers and Indiana Jones will be excluded from the deal with Paramount.
“Flixster provides access to the leading movie discovery application that will promote digital content ownership and aid in expanding our digital business. At the same time, on the physical side, this agreement enables us to manage our profitability in a time of change in the marketplace and to focus more resources on new releases,” Paramount Home Media Distribution president Dennis Maguire said of the deal.
The Los Angeles Times reports that, while Warner Bros. will be allowed to distribute these titles on DVD and Blu-ray, Paramount will retain digital rights to all of their films. In other words, Warner Bros. won’t see a dime from VOD, digital sell-through, or on-demand subscription services.
Paramount Vice Chairman Rob Moore stated that pooling resources is the only way for studios to survive the ever-changing home video landscape. “The catalog business is the one that has been affected the most by changes in consumer spending,” he said. “Leveraging together products and leveraging efficiencies is important to our business now.”
The Warner Bros. and Paramount Pictures distribution deal will go into effect January 1, 2013.
