The upcoming Universal Studios comedy “Tower Heist” will not be released to Comcast Video on Demand immediately after it is released to theaters, the company announced Thursday. Universal had originally planned to release the movie to Video on Demand three weeks after its Nov. 4th theatrical release, but backed down following an onslaught of angry exhibitors who claimed that the plan would impede their ticket sales.

Multiple theater companies, including Cinemark USA and National Amusements, claimed that they would ban the movie from their screens if Universal did not change its plan, despite the relatively small scale of the release.

Universal had originally only planned to release the movie to Comcast on Demand in two markets, Portland and Atlanta, meaning that it would have only reached 500,000 consumers. That, on top of the fact that the movie would have cost $59.99 to rent, made it seem like a relatively negligible threat to the large theater chains.

Although Universal did decide to abandon this particular release, it did not count out future possibilities for similar releases. “Universal continues to believe that the theater experience and a PVOD window are business models that can coincide and thrive and we look forward to working with our partners in exhibition to find a way to experiment in this area in the future,” the company announced in a public statement today.

Universal certainly had justification for experimenting with new On Demand options. Studios have been working hard to find a feasible way to make money in a market heavily focused on online streaming. This shift has forced DVD sales and rentals to plummet, and has left studios hurting.

“Tower Heist” is directed by Brett Ratner and stars Eddie Murphy and Ben Stiller. It will be released on November 4th. 

Reach writer Henry Stroud here