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Earlier this month, MoviePass announced that its customers, previously allowed to see one movie per day, would be limited to just three per month. At the time, the company said that the change wouldn't affect annual subscribers until their plan renewed. But it looks like MoviePass has changed its mind yet again, and probably to nobody's surprise. The company began circulating an email today notifying annual plan subscribers that they too will be limited to just three film showings per month.
"As of today, aligned with Section 2.4 of our Terms of Use, your annual subscription plan will now allow you to see three movies a month instead of the previous unlimited offering, and you'll receive up to a $5 discount on any additional movie tickets purchased," the email said. "This is the current standard plan now in effect for all current and new subscribers." And because the move is retroactive for the current monthly period, which varies by customer, some users will find that they've already seen their three movies once they receive the notification email. The company claims it "intends" to expand its offering of blockbuster and independent films in light of the plan adjustments.
Source: https://www.engadget.com/2018/08/24/moviepass-annual-subscribers-three-movie-plan/
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Monday August 27 2018, @06:10PM (6 children)
Moviepass is an online service piggybacking on an outdated model for content consumption. Cinemas need to change up their business model if they want to stay in business. They've tried to put in barka-loungers with reserved seating, but, honestly, I have that same chair at home minus the irritation of seat reservations and people who reserve the best seats and then don't show up, or waltz in 40 minutes after the movie has started. Also, at home I can pause the movie for a bathroom break or when an important email or phone call comes through, or I just want to get up and refill my soda.
In other words, cinemas and movie studios want me to keep consuming their content as a captive audience, in an age when universal choice and consumer discretion is the norm. Every such move they make such as this pushes me harder in the direction of using torrents.
Cinemas and movie studios really must evolve. Movie studios should come up with different narrative structures and/or dimensions to the story telling, such as 4D theaters do at some zoos now. Cinemas should adopt a different format like dinner & movie, where they serve you dinner and a pitcher you consume while you watch the film, or add some other dimension like they used to do at those that showed the Rocky Horror Picture show.
They have to come up with new reasons for people to come to their venues that are not easily replicated in a home environment.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by nobu_the_bard on Monday August 27 2018, @06:30PM (3 children)
They should find a way to play up the social element more. That's something they don't have on you on your couch at home - like 50 or so people enjoying a common experience.
I have no idea how they would do this, and accept it probably wouldn't appeal to everyone, particularly those with particularly comfy chairs at home.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Monday August 27 2018, @07:50PM (1 child)
I thought they could use a branching narrative and have the audience signal which character they want to follow out of the room when a subtle chiron appears in the lower right corner. Or they could have viewers vote for one or other party to prevail in a struggle, to give alternate histories a chance to play out. They could milk a well-structured and designed central narrative for a long time that way; the story would have many more dimensions and depth that way.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 27 2018, @08:19PM
That would be fairly simple. Since you're in a theatre with who knows else, and collusion is disallowed (its on the back of the ticket) and there's no electronic paper trail to prove how anyone voted, they could simply pause the action, show the prompt, and continue as if the audience had voted however the director wanted.
Wait, this feels like something someone's done before...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 27 2018, @08:51PM
Why would I pay to go to the movies, if I had to deal with that? The business model is fine, what's not fine is the cost and the generally low quality of movies that we're being expected to pay ever increasing amounts for.
If they want to change their model, probably the thing that might help is providing child care on site for a fee. There's a lot of parents out there that don't go to movies that might go if they didn't have to worry about childcare.
(Score: 3, Touché) by requerdanos on Monday August 27 2018, @06:56PM (1 child)
I can't fault your analysis of what the theaters are doing wrong, but based on the above, I suspect that you yourself are doing it wrong.
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Monday August 27 2018, @07:51PM
Could be. How so?
Washington DC delenda est.