When it is first made, a full-length movie is usually shown in a movie theatre or cinema. In 1905, the first theatre built just for movies opened in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In just a few years, thousands of these kinds of theatres were built or changed from something else. In the U.S., these theatres were called nickelodeons because most people paid a nickel to get in (five cents).
Most of the time, only one film is shown (or feature film). Before the 1970s, there were things called "double features." Usually, an independent theatre would rent a "A picture" of high quality for a lump sum, and they would rent a "B picture" of lower quality for a share of the box office. Today, most of what is shown before a movie is a preview for an upcoming film or a paid advertisement (also known as trailers or "The Twenty").
In the past, all full-length movies made for a wide audience were made to be shown in movie theatres. Television has made it possible for movies to be seen by more people, usually after they have stopped being shown in theatres. Recording technology has also made it possible for people to rent or buy copies of movies on VHS or DVD (and the older formats laserdisc, VCD, and SelectaVision; see also videodisc), and Internet downloads may be available and have started to bring in money for the movie companies. Some movies are now made just for TV or the video store. These are called "made-for-TV" or "direct-to-video" movies. People often think that the production values of these films are lower than those of similar films released in theatres. In fact, some films that were rejected by their own studios after they were finished are sold in these markets.
About 50–55 percent of the money made from movie tickets goes to the movie studio as rental fees. As an incentive for theatres to keep movies in the theatre longer, the real percentage starts with a number higher than that and goes down as the length of time a film is shown. But because there are so many well-marketed movies today, most stay in first-run theatres for less than 8 weeks. Every year, there are a few movies that don't follow this rule. Usually, these are limited-release movies that start out in only a few theatres but get more theatres as word of mouth and reviews spread. According to a study done by ABN AMRO in 2000, about 26% of the worldwide income of Hollywood movie studios came from sales of movie tickets, 46% came from sales of VHS and DVDs to consumers, and 28% came from television (broadcast, cable, and pay-per-view).
