Fandango creating own shared universe, acquiring Rotten Tomatoes & Flixster

This might be a bit inside baseball for some, but Fandango is making big moves to make their massive digital platform even larger, today agreeing to acquire both Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes from Warner Bros. Entertainment. The deal enables Fandango to get into the business of serving an entire film’s lifecycle, from its ticketing to its release and ultimately now through its VOD unveiling later down the line, with Fandango launching a new service later this year that would replace Flixster Video.

Warner Bros. will be taking an equity position in Fandango as a minority owner, as the entire enterprise continues to operate as a part of NBC Universal. In short, the conglomeration is out there conglomerating even more.

Fandango’s announcement also makes mention of “super tickets,” which could potentially keep you in-house for everything related to a particular movie. The set-up could allow you to buy your tickets and then come back for a digital copy of the film once it hits home release.

It’s synergy at its best and worst and just creates another monster in the online movie landscape to pay attention to… and also be wary of.