Sony says ‘The Interview’ was rented or purchased more than 2M times, generated over $15M in online sales; Apple starts offering the movie on iTunes
‘The Interview’ Generated Over $15 Million In Online Sales — Sony announced Sunday night that “The Interview” …
Context & Ripple Effects
Four days after Sony put 'The Interview' up to rent for $5.99 or buy for $14.99 on YouTube, Google Play, Xbox Video, and SeeTheInterview.com — alongside a limited Christmas-day theatrical run — the studio is quantifying the experiment: over 2 million transactions and more than $15 million in online sales. Apple adding the film to iTunes turns a four-platform emergency release into standard storefront distribution.
First-order effects
- Sony converts an unplanned release into a revenue line it can report publicly — $15M-plus from 2M+ transactions — while Apple gains a high-demand title that draws traffic to iTunes during the holiday window.
Second-order effects
- Apple's entry pressures any remaining major platforms still absent from the film to sign on or lose rental/purchase volume to iTunes, and the 1.5M torrent downloads in the first two days give studios a direct piracy-versus-paid benchmark for pricing day-and-date releases.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds — the film went on to become Sony's top online title as streaming revenues reached $31M — simultaneous theatrical-and-digital debits stop being crisis measures and become a standing distribution option for mid-budget films that would otherwise sit unreleased.
The trend: Major studios are learning that wide same-day digital availability across competing storefronts — not exclusive windows — is how controversial or orphaned films monetize.