Going to the movies is expensive. Adult tickets regularly cost $15 or more, which doesn’t even include the price of popcorn and a drink. MoviePass, which is currently in beta over in the United States, wants to fix this by offering an all-you-can-watch subscription to the movies.
TechCrunch reports that for a subscription fee of $US25-$US40 per month, subscribers can watch one movie per day. You fire up the MoviePass app, pick the flick you want to watch, and the service automatically adds funds to a MoviePass debit card, which you then use to purchase tickets at the cinema. If you go (or want to go) to the movies more than three times a month, the service is a steal.
The movie theatre companies, however, are hesitant to sign up with MoviePass — that’s why MoviePass is using this debit card model that doesn’t require a particular theatre to be on board. (For about a year, MoviePass was using a print-your-tickets-at-home model, which failed to gain traction with theatres.) As TechCrunch points out, theatres don’t want to give up their power to set high prices, even if it means there are more bodies buying concessions.
In order for this to go from the current beta version to a full-fledged service, MoviePass is going to have to prove it’s worth it. What’s sure is that people are interested. There are reportedly 70,000 people on the waiting list for the beta. If this ever came to Australia, would you be interested? [MoviePass via TechCrunch]
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