After final numbers for 2005 showed the largest box-office dip in two decades, movie theaters are looking for other ways to attract an audience. Theater operators are already exploring the idea of screening live 3D sports in their theaters by 2007, and new technology is being developed so you wouldn't have to wear the 3D glasses to see in 3D (it involves filming the game with two digital cameras spaced the same width as human eyes, or something, but I won't get into that). Just as sports arenas host concerts and other events on non-game days, theaters are investigating ways to generate more revenue during the middle of the week, when there is a decline in ticket sales.
Sports have been shown in theaters before, but not on the scale that we could see in a few years. Here are two examples of screening live sports in a theater:
In 2004, during Boston Red Sox’s playoff run—the year they won the World Series for the first time since 1918—National Amusements, the controlling shareholder in Viacom, began screening high-definition broadcasts of Red Sox games in its Showcase Cinemas in several New England cities on weekday nights. The cinemas brought in vendors to stroll the aisles with hot dogs, peanuts and beer, sold team gear in the lobbies and encouraged fans to loosen up as they would in the ball park. A spokesperson for the theater said, “the experience is more important than what you’re showing.” National Amusements had no problem securing rights to screen games because the Red Sox organization controls the New England Sports Network that broadcasts the team's games in the region.
In 2006, Raleighwood, a small theater in Raleigh, screened a few of the Carolina Hurricanes’ playoff games on one of their screens. Admission was free, as long as you bought food/drinks. Fans really got into the experience, and many dressed up in jersey’s and generally acted like they would if they were at the game—screaming, cheering and cussing. The theater offered fans free cookies from a local bakery and gave all fans that were there for the final game two free movie tickets. I watched a couple games there, and and the viewing atmosphere was much better than your average sports bar.
Sports in theaters sounds like a great idea, but there are a couple challenges, the main one being that it is unclear who exactly owns the rights to broadcast sports in theaters. In the Boston Red Sox example, National Amusements had no problem securing rights to screen games because the Red Sox organization controls the New England Sports Network that broadcasts the team's games in the region.
Another challenge is that people who don't go to games live often go to sports bars. Bars have a lot more going for them--food, beer, rowdiness—than most theaters do. Personallly, I had an awesome time watching the Canes' games on the movie screen, and I think this will be an interesting development over the next few years.