You know what would be awesome? Being able to go to the cinema, see a movie you really liked and being able to purchase a copy of it on DVD or Blu-Ray as you leave the cinema, at a slightly higher price than a retail store, of course. You know what else would be awesome? Hearing that your favourite band has finished recording and mastering their new album and not having to wait 3 months for it to be released while the band and label try their very best to hype the album up as much as possible only for it to leak way before its release date.
I sort of get it. The entertainment industry believes that people will buy into the hype, they’ll get so excited that they and the thousands of other people out there will go rushing through the doors of their local Kmart or record store the day an album or movie is released. It’s this kind of thinking (amongst other thoughts) that has fundamentally killed the entertainment industry in many ways.
Why should we have to wait 3 months for an album, it’s recorded and mastered so why doesn’t the band release it for digital purchase as soon as it’s done and then make people wait for the physical release with super cool additions like a signed booklet and a sticker that says, “Fuck you!” in big bold type? Why is it a completed movie in the cinema can’t be released right away in some shape or form.
Nothing is ever released on its announced release date, leaks mean that a movie or album is bound to leak days, weeks and sometimes even months before people can legitimately buy something. If it’s going to leak regardless of what you do, why not release it early? And a download doesn’t always mean a lost sale, it’ll end up on the internet regardless of whether or not you release it early or wait for it to leak and then a subsequent HD rip when it’s officially released so what is there to lose? You’re probably saving millions in failed marketing.
