The Met’s movie theater program began in 2006 and before the pandemic generated about $18 million in net profit for the Met each year. The San Francisco Opera last year began broadcasting some performances live for $27.50.

The Met is one of many cultural institutions experimenting with livestreaming, which became a popular way of staying connected with audiences during the pandemic when in-person performances were curtailed. Depending on the location, each opera will cost $10 or $20 to stream viewers can watch the operas an unlimited number of times during a seven-day window. It will also be accessible nationwide in another 170 countries and territories where the Met does not offer live transmissions. The service will be available in the United States and Canada to customers who live at a distance from movie theaters that broadcast the Met’s “Live in HD” series of operas each season the exact distance will vary depending on the market. Peter Gelb, the Met’s general manager, said in a statement, “We wanted to make our live performances available to people who don’t have ready access to the movie theaters that carry the Met, whether you reside in the mountains of Montana or on assignment in Antarctica.” The service, called “The Met: Live at Home,” is part of the company’s efforts to expand the audience for opera at a time when it is grappling with financial challenges brought on by the coronavirus pandemic as well as long-standing box-office declines.

Now the New York-based company is hoping to build on that success: The Met announced Monday that it would begin livestreaming some operas directly into living rooms for customers who live far from cinemas that broadcast its productions. The Metropolitan Opera has over the past 16 years built a lucrative business around broadcasting operas live into movie theaters around the world, attracting an audience of millions for classics like “The Magic Flute” and “Madama Butterfly.”

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