News Analysis
Is DIRECTV Losing Interest In $30 VOD?
By Swanni

Washington, D.C. (June 9, 2011) -- In April, DIRECTV launched a VOD service that charges $29.95 per viewing of movies made available 60 days after their theatrical release -- and one month prior to their Blu-ray/DVD debut.

The satcaster and its Hollywood studio partners hinted the service, called Home Premiere, could one day revolutionize the industry with consumers eventually getting the option to watch a new movie release at home or in the theater.

However, two months later, there are signs that DIRECTV's infatuation with Home Premiere is waning. On the company's 'Home Cinema' page on its on-screen guide, the home page for its VOD lineup, DIRECTV for the last week has not even promoted a Home Premiere release. Instead, the satcaster is highlighting four films that are available in its traditional $3.99/$4.99 PPV lineup. (DIRECTV's Home Cinema web page also now does not mention any Home Premiere movies.)

This is in sharp contrast to how DIRECTV marketed its Home Premiere films during the first two months of the service. From the Home Premiere debut of Just Go For It to films such as The Adjustment Bureau and Battle of Los Angeles, DIRECTV prominently featured a picture of each movie with an 'Order Now' button on the Home Cinema Page.


Ordering the $29.95 Sucker Punch is not easy on DIRECTV.

But now the only mention of Home Premiere is a menu header at the bottom of the left hand corner of the page. When you click on that header, you see that Home Premiere has just two titles available -- Sucker Punch and Your Highness.

If the Home Premiere films were generating strong interest, it's hard to see DIRECTV essentially burying the $29.95 releases. The fact that DIRECTV is not promoting a Home Premiere release on the VOD Home Page could suggest the company is coming to the conclusion that its $3.99/$4.99 menu will make more money. In fact, it should be no surprise that consumers are reluctant to pay $30 to watch a single movie.

But it's still early to say that for sure. DIRECTV and the studios may be under pressure by movie theater owners to drop the $30 VOD service. But it's not likely they will give up yet. After all, it's only been two months.

But if the Home Premiere movies don't make money, they won't last long.

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