Recent poor decisions not withstanding, the Netflix model of video rentals seems to work pretty well for people (and for them.) Netflix was very profitable thanks to that innovative subscription-based system. And now, MoviePass wants to introduce a similar subscription method to the movie theater biz. But not everything has gone as smoothly for them as they had originally hoped it would.
MoviePass started gaining press around the summer. The functionality is reality simple. Search for a film, select a time, go to the theater. They tried partnering with select theaters in the San Francisco area for a beta testing on the site over the summer and then their plans were unexpectedly interrupted. Apparently, the movie theaters weren't too keen on their plans and outright said they would not accept their tickets.
MoviePass then decided to restructure their approach. They came back from a temporary hiatus partnered with the Hollywood Movie Money. Over 36,000 theaters nationwide were included in the deal and they would receive payment for the full ticket price directly from Hollywood Movie Money. And they're beginning to roll out the service on an invite only basis.
The original cost was a staggering $50 a month, working out to $600 a year. Based on a $10 ticket price, that is a lot of movies per month that you would need to see to even break even. There were talks of introducing a limited $30 subscription plan as well. There were other restrictions that were first introduced during the initial run from MoviePass and might be revised by now. But 3D and Imax films were an additional charge. And you can only watch the same film once under the plan. Additional viewings would be the normal ticket price.
So is it worth it? With limited theater availability and a prohibitively expensive monthly charge, it seems as only cinephiles would be interested. We think if they were to knock the price down to $25 or so, a ton of people would jump on board. Because really, don't the theaters already make a ton of money from the food and drinks they sell at the theater?
(Image: Flickr member Smaku licensed for use under Creative Commons.)
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Comments (5)
we've had this in ireland for a long time, but just for one chain, and it's much cheaper, 20 euro (about $26) a month
http://www.cineworld.ie/unlimited/intro?locale=IE&secure=false&embedded=false&fallback=false&gbLocale=false&isMobileAgent=false
It's something to consider if it was say $20-25 per month and there were actually films worth watching. But then no one can have their pie and it eat too....
I would use it if I could say, prepay for a year and get a rate like 15 a month, but I find the value dubious. I am lucky to see a movie a month. I used to see 4-5, but the cost just kept jumping, the matinee period got smaller, and it just got to be to much. I don't care about blockbusters, I am happy watching older movies and lower budget indie films. There just isn't a lot of value for me at that price point.
Like a lot of people, I'm married. Also, lots of people have kids. I can't see this being able to scale like netflix, where I can stream movies to me and whoever else is in the room and get bluray in the mail to watch as well.
This would get scary expensive with just my wife and I on it. We see maybe one movie a month, not because we wouldn't go to the theater every week if we wanted, but because there is just so much complete crap out there so we don't want to go.
I don't really have a desire to see the big blockbuster movies, but I'd love to do something like this for a local independent theatre.