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CLOSER TO REALITY
Just a few months ago - cornered by a reporter at the back of a ShowEast shuttle bus carrying exhibition industry professionals to an early screening of Buena Vista's animated feature "Brother Bear" - National Assn. of Theatre Owners President John Fithian admitted that his outlook for a digital cinema business plan had become less-than-optimistic.
After a loud fanfare at last year's ShoWest, the future of d-cinema had become bogged down amid debate over whether the major studios would opt to go forward with existing technology or hold off until more advanced 4K technology became available for digital projectors.
Given that distributors saw the risk of rolling out a system that needed further upgrades as their ultimate nightmare, most reluctantly favored a wait-and-see approach.
Before boarding the bus with his son to check out "Bear," Fithian addressed a packed ballroom in Orlando urging the major studios to begin hammering out a business plan for digital projection by March, the original winddown date for Digital Cinema Initiatives - the seven-studio coalition headed by DCI Chief Executive Chuck Goldwater and created to explore the advancement of digital cinema into U.S. theaters.
His plea echoed a similar call across Europe last summer during Amsterdam's Cine Expo conference where European exhibitors and distributors joined the bandwagon for a common technological platform before any progress or rollout could occur.
What a difference a few months can make. Now it appears as though Fithian's prayers have been answered - at least in part. Exhibitors and distributors are...