As seen by this weeks box office figures this weekends box office taking were down by up to 70% in some countries and the general public remain at home in self quarantine.
Now, by the request of many global governments, cinemas are closing their doors all together in order to keep the public safe and limit the spread of the virus.
If COVID-19 is controlled then we may see a reopening in the early days of April, but this will have a large impact on local and global box office.
Europe and America have a thriving cinema going population, and China which is starting to show signs of controlling the spread has one of the largest in the world.
More importantly many small independent cinemas might struggle to survive in the suggested 3 weeks of shutdown, and even with the large chains it might have a detrimental effect.
Time will tell but this could have lasting effect on movies at cinema while the home streaming benefit.
SaltyPopcorn is where a lifelong obsession with cinema meets 20 years of elite tech experience. Founded by Robert, this premier UK film blog blends sharp movie criticism with deep digital expertise.
Robert's film journey started early at the historic Palace Cinema in High Wycombe. From working at Ritz Video Film Hire (later Blockbuster Express) for 8 years to spending six years studying Film and Culture at university, his passion for the silver screen is deeply rooted.
Before launching this platform, Robert taught himself web development and spent two decades driving growth for global digital giants:
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