France to Shrink Theater -> VOD Window to 4 Months

It seems that the French are more readily accepting VOD, as the government and the film industry there formed an agreement to decrease the window of time between a film hitting theaters and VOD services from 7.5 months to 4. Dig it:

France on Monday narrowed the windows between a film’s release and its debut on other platforms.Titles will move to video-on-demand four months after they hit cinema screens instead of the present 7½ months under a new “media chronology” to which the industry and the government have agreed. The change puts VOD on a par with DVD release.

Pay TV webs will get titles 10 months after cinema release rather than 12 months. Free TV takes over at 22 months rather than at 24-36 months.

Gaul is unusual in having a highly regulated set of release windows overseen by the government and the industry, including exhibitors, distributors, producers, broadcast organizations and new-media companies.

Pretty nice that the whole industry has accepted the movement. Shame something like that isn’t happening in the US. Thanks Variety.