Dendy Cinemas will launch its Video-on-Demand service in July, initially providing about 1,000 films to rent or buy online.
Dendy Direct will also offer US and Australian TV series one day after their broadcast airing, just as iTunes does.
The movies will be a mix of titles from the US majors and independents. Kate Stapleton, Dendy’s head of digital, isn’t ready to reveal the suppliers but says, “They will be quality films that appeal to the Dendy audience. Our customers have broad tastes.”
The service, which was originally targeted to debut in April, is in the “user acceptance” testing phase. Stapleton hopes to set the launch date within a couple of weeks.
The pricing will be similar to that of iTunes, Google Play and other VoD platforms. Dendy Direct will go out before Hoyts Stream, which is in its testing phase. Hoyts CEO Damian Keogh tells IF he has not yet set a start date but it won’t be before Dendy’s.
Dendy has begun promoting the service in its cinemas and is readying a TVC which will air during the Sydney Film Festival as part of its sponsorship of the festival.
Dendy Direct will tap into the database of 65,000 paid-up members of Club Dendy and to the 100,000 people who subscribe to the exhibitor’s e-newsletter.
Stapleton quotes research which says the average household rents 20 movies and buys four movies a year, compared with five cinema visits per year person.
Confident that TV content will be a strong component of the service, she says, “We are keen to offer as many current TV dramas as we can.”