While watching TV the other day I was shocked when I saw a commercial advertising the release of Atonement on DVD. My shock came from the fact it felt like I just seen the movie in theaters. Later in the day I was surprised again when I found out that I Am Legend, a film that feels like it came out last week, has also been released on DVD. It was at that moment I had an epiphany: the speed of movie home releases has greatly changed.

Back in the days of VHS, movies could take months to get released for home viewing. If you missed seeing the film in theaters, then you were in for a bit of a wait. But naturally as filmmaking technology has evolved, film distribution technology has followed suit. At the current rate of evolution, it will not be too long before DVD releases of films become availability directly after theater runs.

Yet such instantaneous releases are hindered by one practical limitation, that being the production of the discs themselves, which requires manpower and time. However I feel that before movie studios lays an avenue that has not yet been fully explored.

By means such as iTunes and Amazon.com, consumers can rent or purchase their favorite films directly to their hard drive. That is all well and good but I think that one major improvement that could come about would be adjusting the release dates for such digital releases.

Currently digital releases take place on the same day as DVD releases. It is my belief that movie studios would benefit greatly if the release dates for digital copies were pushed back to right after films leave the theater. It would be easy enough for the studios, since online downloads require no cost for mediums such a disc.

Making the films available to the public earlier would increase sales, as the films could still ride of their box office success. It would also cut down on the number of people who illegally download bootleg copies of the film. Many such people do so because they missed the film while it was in theaters and don’t have the patience to wait for it to be released on DVD.

Though in the end I guess the means by which films are released and the speed at which it occurs is not nearly as important as quality. As long as visionary people continue to produce entertaining films that is all that truly matters.