Guys Upstairs - Tech

Regal Cinemas, AMC Entertainment, and Cinemark will be getting more than $1 billion to switch more than 20,000 screens in the US and Canada to digital projection over the next three years. The studios currently backing this are Universal, Paramount, Disney, Lions Gate and Fox although Warner Bros. and Sony are expected to join in as well. The studios signed a virtual print fee (VPF) agreement under which they will pay a large portion of the $100,000 cost per system. Digital distribution is expected to save the studios millions per year because they will save the cost involved with printing on traditional film. A concern is that this will cause all but the major theaters to go out of business.

[Reuters]