CJ 4DPlex says it finished 2017 with record gross box office and attendance for its 4DX immersive seating cinema format. Additionally, the company says, more new 4DX locations opened in 2017 than any other year, reaching 475 locations worldwide.
In response to the patent infringement lawsuit filed by RealD against it Volfoni today issued the following official statement on innovation to the cinema industry:
MoviePass announced today that it has surpassed one million paying subscribers, an increase in its subscriber base by more than 6,500 percent since the introduction of its $9.95 per month pricing model in August. The company says it has reached this milestone in less time than Spotify, Hulu, and Netflix.
RealD today filed a complaint with the District Court (Landgericht) in Düsseldorf, alleging that Volfoni SAS, Volfoni GmbH and CinemaNext Deutschland have infringed three of RealD’s European patents by the importation, sale, or offer for sale of the Volfoni SmartCrystal Diamond cinema systems in Germany. In the complaint, RealD requests an injunction banning the sale of the infringing devices and seeks financial damages.
THX has entered into a strategic partnership with China Film Giant Screen, a subsidiary of China Film Group, for both technology and business collaborations.
MoviePass and Fandor today announced that both companies are partnering with Costco to offer a one-year subscription plan for a flat fee of $89.99. The package deal for both services is available exclusively to Costco members and covers a year of membership for both MoviePass and Fandor. The offer will only be available online at Costco.com for one week, from December 12 to December 18, 2017.
AMC Entertainment Holdings today announced the signing of a non-binding memorandum of understanding with the public investment fund of Saudi Arabia. In line with the fund’s mandate to help unlock promising new sectors within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, PIF and AMC Entertainment will explore a range of commercial opportunities for collaboration that will support the growth of the Kingdom’s entertainment sector.
Belgium based Kinepolis Group has completed its acquisition of Landmark Cinemas in Canada. In mid-September, Kinepolis reached an agreement with the shareholders of Landmark Cinemas to acquire the company subject to Canadian regulatory approvals. The approval by the Minister of Canadian Heritage, The Honorable Mélanie Joly, on December 7, allowed Kinepolis to successfully complete the acquisition.
Despite the fact that industry stories continue to sound the alarm about box office woes, Studio Movie Grill, based in Dallas, says that in 2017 it has experienced major increases in off-peak attendance as well as with smaller films. The company credits MoviePass for much of that success
Cineworld, the U.K.’s largest cinema operator, has acquired Regal, one of the largest theatre circuits in the U.S., for a reported $5.9 billion. The deal would create the world’s second-largest movie theater owner and enable Cineworld to better compete with AMC Entertainment, which is owned by the Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda. The Cineworld-Regal combination would create a company with more than 9,500 screens in 10 countries.
