India’s biggest multiplex chain is proposing a significant reset in how film producers pay to release movies in its theatres. PVR INOX has offered to discontinue virtual print fee, or VPF, and remove upfront payment obligations altogether, as the Competition Commission of India has opened the plan for public comments.
The move comes in a long-running competition matter around VPF, a charge that has weighed heavily on producers, especially smaller players trying to secure wide theatrical releases. PVR INOX’s latest proposal marks a notable shift because it replaces the old upfront model with two alternative frameworks tied either to per-show charges or adjusted revenue sharing.
Cci Opens The Process To Stakeholders
The Competition Commission of India has invited comments, objections and suggestions from stakeholders on PVR INOX’s commitment proposal. The consultation follows the commission’s September 30, 2025 order directing an investigation into the alleged abuse of dominant position linked to VPF charges.
That case arose from information filed by the Film and Television Producers’ Guild of India Limited. The regulator’s scrutiny centered on the allegedly discriminatory levy of VPF, its impact on smaller producers, and whether the fee had any direct connection to a specific service.
Stakeholders have been asked to submit their comments by October 1, 2026, making the next few weeks critical for producers, distributors and exhibition players tracking the future of theatrical release economics in India.
What Pvr Inox Is Proposing
Under the commitment proposal, PVR INOX has said producers would no longer be required to make any upfront payment. In a statement included in the filing, the company said, “PVR Inox is entirely doing away with the requirement of any upfront payment by film producers, thereby fully eliminating the cash flow burden associated with pre-release payment obligations.”
Instead, producers would be able to choose between two models. One is an exhibition service charge structure, with a per-show levy on standard and premium screens that reduces after a certain number of shows. The second is a revised revenue-sharing arrangement under which the producer’s share of weekly net box office collections would be reduced by no more than 7.5 per cent from the existing rate.
PVR INOX has also said its “proposed commitments offer a fair, non-discriminatory and transparent choice to producers that maps cleanly onto producers’ differing commercial preferences and risk profiles while fully addressing the Commission’s prima facie concerns.”
Why The Vpf Debate Has Lasted So Long
VPF originally emerged during the shift from analogue projection to digital cinema, when producers effectively subsidised theatres’ transition to digital equipment. In India, the model took hold around 2007, with producers paying roughly Rs 500 to Rs 600 per film per screen per show, subject to caps for multiple shows.
The dispute has persisted because many producers have argued that the digitisation phase ended years ago, while the fee continued. CCI’s public version of the case record notes that Hollywood studios stopped paying VPF in India after their earlier agreements lapsed in 2018, sharpening the debate over parity for domestic producers.
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