Disney says movie theaters to survive tech attack

By Gina Keating

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Theatrical releases of movies will withstand the onslaught of new formats for watching film, from computer downloads to high-definition discs, Walt Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook said on Thursday.

Cook expected to see studios experiment with making hit movies available for Web download earlier, but he believed the "window" between theatrical and DVD releases would not change much anytime soon.

"The theatrical experience is still the most important experience in the pipeline," Cook told the Reuters Media Summit in New York. "I don't see much shrinking (of windows) in the foreseeable future. We are comfortable where it is now."

Walt Disney Co. (DIS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Chief Executive Bob Iger set off a storm of protests from movie theater owners last year when he suggested that the window could one day collapse, making movies available simultaneously in theaters and on DVD.

Cook's comments that he saw no significant change to the window -- already down to about 4-1/2 months from 6 months -- echoed other speakers at the summit, including Blockbuster Inc. (BBI.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) CEO John Antioco, Netflix Inc. (NFLX.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) CEO Neil Hunt and Regal Entertainment Group (RGC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) CEO Michael Campbell.

A host of technologies are expected to improve movie watching outside theaters, but one of the most anticipated, high-definition DVDs, is having trouble as all the competing technologies tend to confuse consumers, Cook said.

"It seems like so much of this is going to be happening at the same time," Cook said. "The confusion factor is, I think, something that we are going to be living with for a long time. The marketplace will decide, but you hope it's sooner rather than later."

Earlier this year, Disney laid off about 20 percent of its studio workforce and said it would make fewer movies but more Disney-branded films in an effort to turn the division around. Before that, it had not marked a profit rise in four quarters.  Continued...