Do you think cinemas will become obsolete one day (like drive-ins) as home entertainment becomes more popular due to streaming and other forms of watching films in the comfort of your own home?

I hope not but it depends on how they adapt to the future of movie distribution and how they price their service. Something special about going to a cinema that you just don't get streaming at home.

Yes, and I think the ones in Japan are going to be the first to go as they are obscenely expensive, compared with the rest of the world.

It is expensive but OBSCENELY?

Here compare how it is around the world.

http://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/stats/Cost-of-living/Cinema-ticket-price/International-release

I only go for the late night movies which are 1400 yen per seat.

I doubt it. People enjoy the communal experience, that hasn't changed since the days of the Lumiere brothers. Cinema fills the participants with a sense of awe and wonder - from the big budget popcorn crowd pleasers to the obscure, the art house and so on.

Home entertainment; whilst useful cannot hope to replace the community of the picture house. IMHO.

I like Japanese cinemas; they are comfortable and not crowded with chattering folk, using their phones for a chat. And relatively cheap.

While cinema theaters have their little issues, the feeling of being a part of a bigger entity while witnessing different stories, different films outweighs them every time. Home sessions are great for some films, but the other make people feel... "more" when seen in a room full of other people with their feelings and emotions. They might be obsolete in terms of instution, with all the internet cinema platforms, but they will never lose their symbolic and spiritual standing.

The sound equipments that are used at major theaters cannot be duplicated at home unless you pour in serious amounts of money and create a dedicated room for video watching. That should be a reason to go to the theaters.

I sure hope not. And I don't think so. It's true that I do watch a lot of movies at home, but I still make it out to the cinema pretty regularly as well. Going to the movies is one activity that has never stopped feeling like a special event for me.

Now that you mention it yes.

TVs are gunna get better and it will be more affordable to have an awesome home theater.

That being said I'm sure Cinemas will pick up their game technology wise too.

I've already got a really nice home theater, but I still go to the cinema to see movies I like. It's nice as an excuse for an outing, and seeing it on the big screen with a group of people is not the same as watching at home. I think cinemas will have a place for a long time to come.

@Triring, I have one of those home theatres you mention, due in no small part to my love for writing movies (and watching far too many of them). Most of my friends - admittedly not all, but most - prefer coming to my home to see the latest releases.

And one other thing that no one here has commented upon is the sticky floors and tacky dreadfully-in-need-of-repair upholstery in most commercial theatres, not to mention the sickly smell of over-buttered popcorn.

Do you think cinemas will become obsolete one day (like drive-ins)

Were drive-in theatres 'that' popular, I mean outside the us and perhaps Canada? 

I actually think going to the movies has lost its charm and will one day be partially replaced by ppv. Most ppl with enough money to go to the movies also have a decent size tv these days and I think a family of 4 would rather spend a tenner or 2 on a ppv than cough up hundred bucks at the movies ( 4 tix, parking and whatever junk food kids want).

Unlike sports, theatre, concerts etc there is no 'live experience' as such at the movies, technology is and will always be between you and the movie (same as home).

Not so sure, but it could happen, people are already cutting their cable because it's too expensive, too political and not worth the time and money. I think TV of the future will be packaged more like Apple TV, you choose what you want to watch, whenever you want to watch and that would put the control back into the hands of the consumer.

zichi May 13 02:16 pm JST I have only been the cinema once in 30 years, already obsolete

Whut? You, or the cinema? ;-)

Is this decline permanent - I'm not sure; the decline in, say, e book buying seems to have slown and the physical format has risen

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/mar/14/ebook-sales-continue-to-fall-nielsen-survey-uk-book-sales

Viny sales are looking respectable, too

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/jan/03/record-sales-vinyl-hits-25-year-high-and-outstrips-streaming

I believe cinema has its peaks and troughs (like the above forms of entertainment) and I can't see people abandoning the communal experience. Cinema, theatre, live music, stand up comedy, sport... it's something that cannot be replicated on the telly or pc. IMHO, natch.

Japan theaters so quiet - it's like your own private home theater.............. which most people don't have

I used to go to the movies 10-12 times a year before I moved to Japan in 2004. The cost was about $5 in the US. I lived in Japan for about 7 years and went to maybe 5 movies because I thought they were overpriced.

i have returned to the US and now only go to the movies 2-4 times a year. The cost has doubled to about $10, but mainly we watch at home because we invested in a home theater with a 70 inch (175cm) screen and surround sound system. I pay for about 40 movie channels and have Netflix and Amazon Prime, so I really have no desire to spend $59 taking the fam to the movies when we can have an exceptional experience at home (with beer/wine/cocktails) and wearing bed clothes. It takes an exceptional movie to drag me to the theaters and more often than not it is a family movie.

Great place for an early date, out and away from the parents.

VR can almost simulate being in a movie theater already so that could be (if more advanced in a near future) a serious competitor to the real theaters.

It is expensive but OBSCENELY?

I only go for the late night movies which are 1400 yen per seat.

You just answered your own question.