You might think that an industry whose selling point is having people watch a live performance would crash and burn due to the Coronavirus. However, there are many backup plans to keep them afloat. Already, there is a streaming service called BroadwayHD, which allows users to stream past showings of films. BroadwayHD provides compensation to the unions, guilds and associations behind Broadway. By having some older films available, they can still earn some cash through this form of entertainment. That being said, newer films set to premiere later this year have been put in danger, as they might not earn any profits.
To fix this, Broadway announced that they would create another streaming service called Broadway on Demand. This newer service is set to allow live streamed videos and pay per view models for consumers at home who still wish to see Broadways plays. This new service is supposed to premiere sometime in May. Hopefully with this additional service, Broadway will still be able to earn money and stay alive during this crisis.
Sources:
https://nypost.com/2020/04/17/another-broadway-streaming-service-will-debut-next-month/
https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/04/08/830290047/broadway-to-remain-closed-until-june
https://www.playbill.com/article/new-streaming-service-broadway-on-demand-to-offer-live-benefit-concerts-more
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/311450
This is really interesting! It's cool to see how different industries are digitalizing in order to cope with COVID-19. I wonder if there will be more people streaming Broadway since there's easier access or whether the experience of being physically there will pose as a problem.
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