Contentious VPF issue adds to woes of ailing theatrical business

livemint.com:

PVR Inox and Malayalam film industry producers has brought the long-standing issue back to the fore yet again. The issue has added to the woes of the theatrical business that has already hit rock bottom over the past few months. Last month, the multiplex chain had decided to stop screening Malayalam films after the Kerala Film Producers’ Association demanded that movies must be released at screens in malls of the state at a low VPF using content mastered at the PDC (Producers’ Digital Cinema), a facility promoted by the producers.

The conflict was later resolved with the chain screening Malayalam films as usual. However, like PVR, other theatre owners also remain firm in their stand on VPF costs being borne by producers and say the expense isn't high considering that filmmakers would pay much higher rates in the days of physical prints. In 2019, Hindi film producer Ronnie Screwvala had approached the CCI against high VPF charges by PVR.

VPF is a cost borne by producers to show their films using digital projectors and technology supplied by digital service providers (DSPs) such as UFO Moviez and Qube Cinemas that theatre chains such as PVR Inox work with. It can cost the film producer up to ₹25,000 per screen. On one hand, producers insist the cost is exorbitant and needs to be rationalized, especially since Hollywood studios work under a separate understanding with theatres where they aren’t required to pay VPF.

However, exhibitors point to the expenses of purchasing and operating projectors and the fact that local filmmakers cannot expect free lunches at a time that the theatrical business is in doldrums. “Digital projectors make for very high expenses for theatres. The entire argument by producers is based on the fact