Future of Sky Cinema linear channels?

As everything is going On Demand is there any really need for the Sky linear movie channels? Having a specific schedule to watch movies seems outdated now when you can pick when and what you want to watch. I know the same can be said for TV shows but watching movies on a schedule is a bit different?

There's still a significant number of people that on demand TV is not a viable/pleasant option.

I think the end probably began with the removal of the Box Office channels (at one time I think there were more than 70 of them).

There can't be many Sky subscribers who don't have internet access if they can afford the Cinema subscription, so the linear channels seem rather pointless when you can download the film and watch it within moments of choosing it.

Having the cinema linear channels on Now TV does seem quite baffling. Who is getting Now TV and waiting untill 4:25pm on Thursday to watch Home Alone 2 on the Christmas liner channel?

While its true that for Sky Cinema most if not all of the films on the linear channels are available on demand, this is not the case for all the other film services out there, none of which are are on demand.

It surprises me that outside of Sky Cinema (and occasionally the BBC if it's something they've had a hand in making) and on the odd occasion also at ITV nobody else puts films on demand. I thought Film4 might have done it, but no, though since that doesn't appear on All4 in any way shape or form, I suspect Channel 4 don't have any web rights to anything they show on Film4 - whether its down to budget or not I'm not sure, though its fair to say Sky Cinema probably has deeper pockets than Film4.

I notice if you use Plex (the media server software) they have now opened up a movie streaming portal absolutely free but with adverts. You don't need to be using Plex as a media server, you can just open up an account and install the App on Firestick or whatever:
https://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2019/12/plex-now-offering-over-a-thousand-movies-on-demand-and-for-free/

Of course whether of this stuff on offer is any good is another matter, since its most probably going to be full of B movies and stuff that was made on the cheap to fulfill a contract deal. Basically stuff that broadcasters can probably pick up for peanuts or get it thrown in with something more mainstream..

Film4 OD did exist as a pay per view type service many years ago and they have recently begun adding Film4 content to All4 after many years with limited content.

In a way though I think for Sky Cinema the linear channels act as a loss leader - guarantees listings in every guide for pretty much all their channels highlighting the premieres and flagship movies they do have. If they close them they'd probably only get a summary of their premieres (so 7 or so films a week) at most in listings guides.

The themed channels seem to work well too considering they still do them and now do a couple simultaneously (would be interesting to know how many variations there have been, and do they all get their own ident?) Where a linear channel works and on demand doesn't is that people can stumble on something they wouldn't ordinarily choose to watch, and frankly it's easier for viewers to choose from 10 or so films screening at a certain point than a library of 100s or 1000s of titles.

I've been to a few hotels which have offered some/all of the Sky Cinema channels in room. Even when a 'proper' Sky box is provided, there has been no way of accessing anything On Demand (other than the hotel's own PPV service, but even these are becoming rare now).

For a lot of audience members - having a curated, scheduled movie service still has a value, particularly now the 'watch from beginning' option is available. I suspect even when things move to entirely IP delivery, having some suggestions of what to watch at a particular time of day on that day of the year will still have value as a 'linear offer', even if there is no longer a linear delivery option.

Sky's NOW TV is aiding the removal of linear channels by insisting on the Parental Pin on Linear Services whereas the exact same content can be watched on demand without it.

https://www.channel4.com/channel/film4
Added in October.

Is that Now TV's doing or a result of Ofcom allowing channels to show post-watershed programming before 9pm if they're PIN protected?

Now TV's implementation is a PIN regardless of what you're watching, even if its an attempt to watch Moana on Sky Cinema Disney. Which seems to suggest they have no way to PIN particular "programmes" like the Sky boxes can, so the compromise seems to be to PIN the lot.