Paramount Pictures International and Arts Alliance Media Enter into Agreement to Deploy Digital Cinema in Europe

"In a move that accelerates the conversion to digital cinema in Europe, Paramount Pictures International (PPI) and Arts Alliance Media (AAM), Europe’s leading provider of digital film distribution services, have reached a non-exclusive long term agreement for digital cinema deployment. Under the agreement PPI has committed to supply its films in digital format to AAM deployed DCI-compliant digital cinema screens in the UK and Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, the Nordic region and Benelux.

AAM is the only studio-backed digital cinema integrator in Europe. In June 2007, AAM signed Europe’s first long term agreements with Twentieth Century Fox and Universal Pictures International for digital cinema deployment across Europe, for close to 7000 screens over the next few years.

Andrew Cripps, PPI’s president said “PPI is delighted to have reached this agreement with Arts Alliance to roll out DCI compliant digital projection systems across Europe. This is a real step-change in the international arena which will only accelerate as 3D product becomes more commonplace and Paramount is proud to be at the forefront of this.”

Arts Alliance Media is in active negotiations with other studios for further digital deployment deals.

AAM completed the UK Film Council digital cinema rollout of 240 screens on April 30th, 2007, known as the Digital Screen Network. The company is also participating in two digital cinema trials in Europe, one in the UK at the Odeon Surrey Quays multiplex, since February 2007, and the other in Norway, in various cinemas across the country, since April 2006. To date, AAM’s in-house digital cinema lab has encoded over 200 digital cinema titles and shipped over 3489 digital prints."

Source: DCinemaToday