MoviePass Announces Deal With Landmark Theaters
While some movie theaters have taken an antagonistic approach to MoviePass, the monthly subscription service that lets you see a movie a day, every single day, for just $7 a month, Landmark is going a different route. The arthouse chain, which boasts 53 theaters around the country in 27 markets, announced today it was partnering with MoviePass. The release, via Deadline:
Through this agreement, MoviePass will be integrated into Landmark Theatres’ ticketing system. MoviePass members who use the service at Landmark Theatres will be able to take advantage of added benefits and features including e-ticketing, advanced screening reservations, and in-app seat selection. That latter option is a new one for MoviePass as the service initially didn’t work with RSVP seat venues, however, they’ve been aiming to provide better accommodations for their members.
“Our relationship with Landmark represents another milestone achievement in our journey to enhancing the current movie theater ecosystem,” said Bernadette McCabe, Senior Vice President of Exhibitor Relations & Business Strategy at MoviePass. “It’s another step towards educating exhibitors on how we can work together in a mutually beneficial way to create a valuable and cost-effective experience for moviegoers.”
I can see how this is a win for Landmark; if MoviePass customers (and there are now 2 million of them in the U.S.) are encouraged to go to Landmark, and they fill empty seats that would otherwise go unused, they could increase Landmark’s sales of drinks and snacks. (They might also drag along friends, who might not necessarily have MoviePass.) You’re sort of banking on your theaters not being full in this scenario, though, and if a movie would have sold out at full ticket price, then that seems like a loss of revenue to me. Unless you’re really overcharging for that large tub of popcorn.
Is this the first of many chains aligning with MoviePass? That’s clearly what the company wants. Whether they get it or not remains to be seen.