Tag Archives: The Netherlands

Cinema Digitaal Selects Arts Alliance Media For Netherlands D-Cinema Rollout

Cinema Digitaal and Arts Alliance Media

Cinema Digitaal, the organization overseeing the rollout of digital cinema in the Netherlands, has selected Arts Alliance Media to as their integrator to convert more than 500 screens throughout the country to digital.

Under the exclusive arrangement AAM will install and maintain digital cinema equipment and technology in a wide range of cinemas encompassing large exhibition chains and smaller art house venues. Circuits not participating in the rollout include Pathe, Euroscoop and Utopolis, as they will be handling their own conversions.

AAM will also provide their VPF deals with five Hollywood studios and is in the process of finalizing similar deals with the 14 local distributors that make up the NVF.

Cinema Digitaal was founded by the Dutch Association of Cinema Operators (Nederlandse Vereniging van Bioscoopexploitanten, NVB), the Dutch Film Distributors’ Association (Nederlandse Vereniging van Filmdistributeurs, NVF) and the EYE Film Institute. The Dutch government is funding 14 percent of the project with additional funds coming from the Netherlands Film Fund (Nederlands Fonds voor de Film) and bank financing.

With no VPF deals of their own, Cinema Digitaal needed to partner with an entity that had such agreements covering the Netherlands. Thus, it was really a choice between AAM, XDC and Ymagis.

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Dutch Cinemas To Go Digital By 2012

CinemaDigitaal.jpgLess than a year after the formation of The Foundation for Digitizing Dutch Cinema (Stitchting Digitalisering Nederandse Cinema), the group has found some of the financing required to convert Netherlands’ cinemas to digital. The organization was formed in July of this year by the Dutch Association of Cinema Operators (Nederlandse Vereniging van Bioscoopexploitanten, NVB), the Dutch Film Distributors’ Association (Nederlandse Vereniging van Filmdistributeurs, NVF) and the EYE Film Institute, which is the Netherlands new film center.

In July the three groups announced a €38 million (USD $50.6 million or GBP £32 million) plan to rollout digital cinema in 520 of the Netherlands’ 755 screens (243 venues) by the middle of 2012. The largest Dutch theatre chain, Pathé, is not participating in the plan because their French parent company, EuroPalaces, is handling its own conversion.

The foundation has established CinemaDigitaal, a new organization to oversee and supervise the rollout. The Dutch government will fund 14 percent of the project with the remainder coming from an undisclosed contribution from the Netherlands Film Fund (Nederlands Fonds voor de Film) and bank financing which CinemaDigitaal is in the process of securing.

Though there has been some debate in the industry over whether national funding will be allowed by the European Union, the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science has had ongoing discussions with EU officials regarding the proposed model. The Dutch government’s participation falls below the de-minimus limit for state aid and is being made possible through an ongoing national information technology initiative (Programma Implementatie Agenda ICT-Beleid, PRIMA). As well, the government’s support is earmarked for non-commercial theatres.

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Screen Digest’s David Hancock Discusses Europe’s D-Cinema Funding Shortfall

Europe's Digital Shortfall (Courtesy Screen Digest)

Europe's Digital Shortfall (Courtesy Screen Digest)

On June 21st, just in time for Cinema Expo, Screen Digest published a report titled “Digital Cinema Moves Into The Mainstream“. Twelve pages in length and with 10 tables and charts, the report uncovered a significant “digital shortfall” in the amount of financing required to convert all of Europe’s screens to digital. David Hancock, a senior analyst at Screen Digest, authored the report and we asked him to shed some light on its key findings. (The interview appears after the jump).

Details From The Report
Not counting Russia there are roughly 32,600 screens throughout Europe for which a digital rollout will cost EUR €2.1 billion (or USD $2.65 billion). Of those screens 23,800 are covered for digital conversion through virtual print fees offered by Hollywood studios. Upwards of 5,000 screens will be handled directly by theatre owners themselves. Theoretically that means there is funding of EUR €1.65 billion (or USD $2.1 billion) for d-cinema conversions, leaving a gap of EUR €450 million (or USD $568.4 million) to cover all Europe’s screens.

And who is being left out of the funding equation? Well, it’s mostly art houses, seasonal theatres, repertory venues and mobile cinemas.

The United Kingdom and The Netherlands have set up special funding groups to help solve this problem. Support funds have also been established in such countries as the Czech Republic, Finalnd, France, Germany, and Sweden. On region in Poland plans to pull money out of a tourism fund and Italy is giving tax credits to any theatre which converts. The European Union is offering assistance through its MEDIA Programme.

Driven mostly by 3D content, the number of European screens equipped for d-cinema at the end of the first quarter in 2010 had risen 16% over 2009 to 5,333, or a full 15% of the region’s screens. Presently 75% of all digital screens in Europe are 3D capabe. Thanks to competition among France’s largest exhibitors, the country leads the 3D screen count with more than 700. The U.K. and Germany are second and third hovering around the 500 screen mark.

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