Another digital cinema delivery-by-internet outfit in Canada

[William Kucharski]

Is IMAX still sending drives due to the way they handle DMR or have they finally gone with Internet delivery?

[Leo Enticknap]

A distributor could setup a FTP server and dump an encrypted DCP on it and simply give out the login.

Several arthouse and other specialist distributors (e.g. archives) do precisely that, especially in Europe. I have installed download solutions for arthouse and cinematheque type venues that consist of an off-the-shelf PC with a large additional hard drive added (typically 2TB), onto which the end user downloads their DCP, usually via a regular web browser or FTP client (e.g. Filezilla). A few use Aspera, so I install that client. From there, the built-in Windows FTP server is used to transfer the DCP files into the screen server. No dedicated hardware or Internet connection needed.

[Carsten Kurz]

I don't see exhibitor staff dealing with FTP clients as a viable way to distribute DCPs. The various dedicated software transfer clients available are much more userfriendly and take care of proper package selection, connection interruption, DCP transfer checks, etc.

[Harold Hallikainen]

But, the FTP (or whatever) transfer software could be included in the TMS software. You should be able to just specify a URL (including the transfer type prefix such as sftp, ftp, http, https, or whatever). The URL could be on a booking web page. It just seems like there is a lot of duplicate hardware out there.

[Carsten Kurz]

It's true there is a lot of duplicate hardware out there. Not every cinema uses a TMS. The other aspect is liability - Cinemas have a contract with the distributor, and the distributor has the obligation to deliver working content in time. They do not want to rely on general 'open' methods, as they don't control them. So, they mandate distribution companies to make sure the right content get's to the cinema in working order and in time. They also want secure transfer methods so no one can tap the transfer. And some of them still don't trust DCP encryption. On the other side, quite a few studios still distribute unencrypted content, so they want at least to make sure the transfer uses encryption methods. Many cinema operators do not know how to set up classic transfer protocols, configure port forwarding, check a transfer, issue retransmission, etc.
It looked as if for a while, FASP would become the norm for this application. But even if FASP is used by a service, it doesn't mean you can use the same client to connect to another service. For a while, we used two software transfer clients on a single computer. We now have given up the second, as it offered no benefit. For a while here, certain studios were tied to certain services/clients. That is no longer the case now. I think we will soon see the number of transfer methods/clients to decrease again. This is just a development in certain markets where no saturation has occurred yet.

[James Gardiner]

I don't see exhibitor staff dealing with FTP clients as a viable way to distribute DCPs. The various dedicated software transfer clients available are much more userfriendly and take care of proper package selection, connection interruption, DCP transfer checks, etc.

So, its better for a cinema to pay $25 more for a process that will take a staff member a few minutes to deal with (ftp client). OR. as mentioned, AEC-TMS implements auto download and check of the DCP as well?

Why don't all TMS include this as part of the solution? (Most do)

The big distributors may want to go the extra mile and control this more, but realistically, these extra features your mentioning, are not needed or are covered by software they already have. Non-major distributors don't really need it.

Before digital delivery, all cinema typically took care of getting film from dispatch points to the cinemas. Cinemas would pay for companies to do this for them. (TNT, local courier, etc) But now, for reasons not explained, a handful of companies representing the studios says they should control it all.

Exactly what has changed here? Apart from the opportunity to build gatekeepers and restrictive practices?
Why cannot a cinema simply download it over a high-speed link it pays for to do alls its internet needs. Like the company it pays for to do all its freight needs.
Why are cinemas not given the option of doing that way? It would be trivial for these companies to offer it. Would be cheaper for all involved. But no. its intentionally not offered. why?

Or is this a typical market play. Artificial scarcity. A cinema owner very much understands how artificial scarcity works.

[Marcel Birgelen]

The big distributors will try to control the market of big cinema releases and they DO want end-to-end control of the delivery. Then again, there is nobody stopping anybody from doing it differently, other than just doing it...

Like I've indicated here, on this very forum, before, the switch to digital projection has opened a possibility to open Pandora's Box: Opening access to the BIG SCREEN for anyone. But nobody really seems to dare to open that box...

I know a few cinema owners, and most of then are pretty stubborn folk. Maybe you need to be, to be in the business the first place: Essentially, anything new you're trying to push on them is somewhat of an uphill battle. But cinemas have been complaining about Hollywood taking them down for years and in the recent few years it really looks like Hollywood is letting them down. So, the mood may be ripe now for some "winds of change". Although, the release of Oppenheimer is just around the corner and if that movie blows the lid off a bunch of records, everybody will be happy again and the native stubbornness will probably set in again, at least for a while...

While it's not difficult for an independent content producer to create a DCP (dangerous statement, I know...), it's pretty difficult to get your content in front of an audience. It's even more difficult to get paid for anything you've created, but many creators are already happy with just being picked up by some independent distributors with some reach.

So, what I'm proposing here is something I'd call the "YouTube for Cinemas". Yeah, I know, it sounds terrible, but I could've called the TikTok for Cinemas. (In that case, every participant would need to rotate their screen and projector 90 degrees and you couldn't play any movie or clip longer than 5 seconds that doesn't repeat itself. Also, anything that makes sense would be forbidden.)

What's the idea? Well.. a more or less open content platform, where creators can share content with participating cinemas. Not only can they share their content here, cinemas can also easily book content here and content creators can get paid for those bookings, directly, without the interference of a studio or distribution company, you only pay a fair share of it to the platform, so it can be reasonably sustained.

Why is it "more or less" open? Because it's open for essentially all creators, but only for cinemas or similar venues.

How to deliver content and KDMs? Simple: Via the open Internet. FTP, HTTP or similar transfers can be provided, integrations with existing TMSes and/or servers/IMSes would be great, but maybe more of a phase two.

This is my shot across the bow, it's now your time to shoot, or not... because that's what many cinema owners do, they just sit and wait.

[Carsten Kurz]

Getting something from A to B costs money. Be it a proprietary transfer protocol, a HD shipment, or an FTP transfer. Studios outsource this to service companies. They can charge 25US$ for an ASPERA transfer or a plain SFTP transfer. Who cares? The benefit for the cinemas is that the service company can be held responsible for a successful transfer, and (depending on the market), the service company pays for establishing and maintaining a suitable internet connection. I don't see a difference here between broadband and HD shipments - I can not control the specific courier a distribution company chooses to use for the shipment. But I can deny payment to the studio if they or the courier didn't ship the DCP to me in time. That's in the contract - it's THEIR responsibility, not mine.

I don't get it. I hear no complaints about this from german cinema operators. On the contrary, everyone is very happy with broadband distribution. We would probably be pissed if every studio would want to install their own box in our premises. But that's not the case.

This will all settle, as the market will not be able to sustain too many distribution companies. Just as the DCI market can not sustain many manufacturers.

[Leslie Hartmier]

A distributor could setup a FTP server and dump an encrypted DCP on it and simply give out the login. There is a question of bandwidth capabilities, but for smaller distributors, its not a problem. And in general, it would be more like $5-7 per delivery compared to $50-70 for the distributor, and $0 for the cinema utilising the already installed front of house high speed internet link.

As an interesting side note, my opinion is that at least from the perspective of GDC SX-3000, SX-4000, and SR-1000, it is better to have the in-house transfer servers. Why, you might ask? I am currently enjoying some serious frustration with those machines, since they have no ability to access external servers (i.e. over the internet), and every couple weeks, I am talking to GDC who keeps saying that, "Yeah, we're still working on that." Everything GDC prior to the SX-3000 has no problem, but everything from the SX-3000 and newer simply cannot.

We use the CDM TMS software, and we can transfer to our Content Libraries and anything else, then to the SX-3000/etc/etc, but there always needs to be an intermediary device, or the TMS will come back with a failure to transfer. (It does it regardless of the TMS, if you attempt to transfer straight to the IMSes from the internet servers, so it's not a CDM problem.)

Additionally, and this might answer some location's confusion, but I meant ALL internet servers...including NTP. So, unless you set up an NTP server internal to your network, you will get time drift on GDC IMSes. Again, older servers? No problem.

Yes, it is a pretty foolish reason to be positive about internet transfer servers, but it is a reason.

[Leslie Hartmier]

Possibly the MovieTransit server will fill up and cause the same scan problem - they are still quite new in use here.

Not as likely, although not for the reason one might think.

The CineSend CSX has a fair amount of storage (and uses a RAID), but the Unique X MT Server (well, every one WE have) has one (quite large size, to be fair) hard drive in it, and it doesn't have as much space on it.

As well, we have been told that the content is only on there for a set period of time, then is deleted, which is exactly what we have observed.

As an example, for some inexplicable reason,
- some of our locations received 'Sound of Freedom' using CSX,
- one location received it via CRU drive AND CSX,
- other locations downloaded it from our central FTP server thanks to their whacked out DCU Connect software that they made us use to get it for certain locations, and
- two locations received the feature via the MT Server.
'Sound of Freedom' remains on all the CSXs it was sent to, but were gone from the MT Servers BEFORE its run ended (thank goodness we didn't need to reingest it from there).
(No, I do not want to talk about the various ways that 'Sound of Freedom' ended up running for us. It's still a sore spot in my heart, and had me considering returning to demon booze for comfort.)

Anyway, it does seem that the MT Servers are immune to such a scan problem, if only because of the unfortunate policies they have in place regarding keeping content on it for any length of time.

[James Gardiner]

The delivery boxes are just that delivery boxes. They are not RAID, they are typically inexpensive, and not rated for 10 years of operation. Having it on the box for only a short time makes sense for them considering its purpose.
The cinema owner should not depend on the delivery boxes as free small LMS systems, as they don't control them.
It's one of the main reasons why the cinema-catcher-app free solution I created can operate very well with delivery boxes, allowing a cinema to have a more robust system that works in with the delivery boxes. Allowing the owner to set the size of the storage, how to age/delete storage. And be a central location of all incoming content from delivery boxes. Still all completely automatic.
Plus add all the other tools it has, Player log Analisis, AutoKDM, KDM-Alert tools, projection device and version detection, local checksum and certification of the DCP based on clairmeta QC systems. And it's all controllable via the cinema owner, and not a, may have it may not, depending on the delivery box (or boxes, up to 4 in some locations) you are using.

Recently I also saw indicated to me that MPA content security restrictions which are used if you are involved in the production of films are being thrown around as a reason to force cinemas to not move content around on their own infrastructure and have to rely on the content delivery agency. Talk about opening Pandora's box. I don't think that will fly. We are talking about encrypted DCPs with FIPs-certified security based on internal media blocks. It's ridiculous to suggest we have to implement MPA-level security as well, it would cost cinemas a fortune and ongoing to keep certified. (Everything under a security camera, coded/tracked access to any equipment or room the equipment is in. Restricted access to projection control surfaces unless in a secure area)

From my perspective, just going to digital delivery and no longer having hard drives that can be walked out of a cinema, has improved security significantly. But really, DCI players are not designed to enforce such security on top of encrypted content. The complexity and human error resulting in dark screens would be significant.

[Chris Emery]

Hi everybody! I saw this post thought it would be helpful to step in to respond. I represent Unique X for Canada, we are continuing to roll out Movie Transit in this territory and other. I would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have about Movie Transit.