The internet has made the distribution of films a lot easier and cheaper, as people could upload films to websites, such as Megaupload, for free, which allows anyone in the world to see the film. This could be a short film that someone has made on their phone, to a Hollywood blockbuster. When people upload Hollywood blockbusters online for people to watch for free to sites like Megaupload, the studio behind the film looses money as people aren't paying to watch the film in the cinema or buy the film on DVD. To try and stop internet piracy, the Hollywood film industry re-introduced 3D, which is a trick that has worked before to increase ticket sales in the cinema. The resurgence of 3D started when James Cameron released Avatar in 2009, and some directors, such as James Cameron believe that 3D is good and can benefit the film, whereas other directors believe that 3D takes away from the narrative of the film as scenes need to be filmed at certain angles to fully capture the 3D. An example of this is Pacific Rim, which was directed by Guillermo del Toro. He didn't want to make the film in 3D, however the studio behind the film felt that the film would make more money if it was made in 3D.
Although internet piracy can cause Hollywood studios to loose money, it can also be argued that it makes money for independent studios. People have access to a wider range of independent films, which are, arguably, better and less formulaic than Hollywood films. This means that independent films are getting more publicity for free, which makes them money. Whereas Hollywood films have a high budget that they have to make back, independent films have a relatively smaller budget, which means that they aren't as affected by profits as Hollywood studios. Because audiences have started to watch films online, people have used that idea to make streaming sites, such as Netflix, which allows people to legally watch films, both Hollywood and independent, wherever they are, which means that independent films can now get almost as much publicity as Hollywood films.
As people are starting to watch films online for free, cinema attendance and ticket sales have decreased, which means that, in order to keep making money, the price of cinema tickets has increased. It can be argued that the increasing price of cinema tickets is also driving people to watch films online, which creates a loop. As it has worked twice before, to get people into the cinema, Hollywood film industries have re-introduced 3D films, which cost a lot of money to make, which means that the price of 3D film tickets are higher than other film tickets. As people respond well to the use of 3D in Hollywood blockbusters, the Hollywood film industry continues to make formulaic blockbusters, at it knows that they make money which means that there is less risk taking and more prequels and sequels, which can be seen in the three new Star Wars films.
