It looks like Amazon won’t try to give Netflix a run for its money in movie theatres.
In a new interview with Variety, Amazon Studios chief Jennifer Salke spoke about their new-found strategy:
After 12 months on the job, Salke is ready to reveal her strategy for making movies. It includes a mixture of prestige pictures she says will continue to be shepherded by motion picture production head Ted Hope and distribution chief Bob Berney, as well as more commercial projects that will be overseen by Julie Rapaport, a co-head in the film division. The are no plans to replace former film head Jason Ropell, who stepped down last year. The studio is keen to acquire finished films, but says it will also keep producing its own movies. In addition, Amazon will start making films that will debut exclusively on its Prime subscription service and will forgo theatrical release.
Amazon made some waves at last years Sun Dance Film Festival, where they scooped up distribution rights to a number of high-profile films. Now, it looks like they may be moving in the opposite direction. Netflix, on the other hand, has opted to exploring the theatrical release department with films like Manchester By The Sea & The Big Sick.
Regardless, this is one way of helping Amazon maintain their streaming platform. As of right now, Amazon is ranked third behind Netflix and Hulu for most amount of original content and ranked the same in awards.
