Universal is formally leaving behind the pandemic-era release experiment that allowed films to reach premium video-on-demand 17 days after their theatrical debut. At Bloomberg Screentime, NBCUniversal chairman Donna Langley said the studio is now trying to re-establish the moviegoing habit it spent years weakening.
From 17 days to 45 days
Universal earlier this year committed to a slate-wide 45-day minimum theatrical window before films move to premium on-demand. Langley framed that shift as a correction to audience conditioning rather than a simple scheduling change.
“It was really about signaling to the audience and trying to undo some of the training that we’ve done to tell them to kind of wait and watch it on their couch,” she said.
The move marks the end of a widely copied model. During the early pandemic, Universal’s 17-day agreement with AMC Theaters triggered industry-wide experimentation with shorter windowing. Now the industry is converging on a longer standard.
Why streaming is the window to watch
Langley said the 45-day premium on-demand hold matters less than the streaming debut, which studios are keeping closer to 90 days after theatrical. She described the streaming window as “an all you can eat buffet” that could most directly undermine the cinemagoing habit.
- Old PVOD window: 17 days after theatrical
- New premium on-demand window: 45 days minimum
- New streaming window: roughly 90 days
For media planners, that sequencing changes the demand curve. A short streaming delay makes patience feel free to subscribers; a longer one restores some urgency to the big screen.
What The Wild Robot proved
Universal has evidence that 17-day PVOD was not automatically destructive. The studio’s 2024 animated release The Wild Robot legged out to $334 million at the global box office even after becoming available on premium on-demand 17 days into its theatrical run.
But Langley’s argument is about habit over individual titles. Other studios, including the soon-to-be-merged Paramount-Warner, are moving toward a similar 45-day theatrical standard and a longer streaming delay.
What this means for release planning
Entertainment marketers should now treat the streaming debut as the habit-critical milestone. It is the date that tells audiences whether waiting is expensive or free. Premium on-demand can still generate transaction revenue, but it should sit inside a longer theatrical hold rather than replace it.
The practical reset is to lock the theatrical window first, then place PVOD and streaming dates around it. Teams that optimise for early PVOD cash risk undermining the window that drives the rest of the value chain.
Source: TheWrap
