Paramount Pictures Shutters NYC Distribution (Exclusive)

With distribution contracts with Marvel and DreamWorks Animation ending, film studio liquidates New York distribution office

EXCLUSIVE

Paramount Pictures is closing its New York-based film distribution office, according to a studio insider.

The studio will lose a total of five executive positions; three jobs are being moved to Los Angeles. The move follows the merging of Paramount's home video, licensing and digital divisions last week.

A rival studio executive said Paramount employees began putting out job feelers to his company over the weekend.

The shuttering of the film studio's New York operation follows the end of several output deals for the studio, with Marvel and DreamWorks Animation films no longer in the Paramount pipeline.

Also read: Paramount Restructures Home Entertainment, Licensing Divisions

It also follows a major restructuring of Paramount's home entertainment and licensing operations, which was announced last week.

With the closure, Paramount is the only major studio without a New York-based film distribution operation.

The studio is in the process of ramping up its own production engine, notably establishing its own animation production arm. 

In the meantime, the release calendar remains uncrowded. Only 11 films are on the studio's 2012 release grid, and two of the are under the expiring DreamWorks Animation distribution contract.

Paramount currently ranks second among the majors for market share of the 2011 domestic box office — its $1.43 billion grossed so far represents about 18.3 percent of the total market, putting the studio just behind leader Warner Bros.

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