Have a news tip for us?
Just email . Ideas for stories, links to interesting articles, and press releases are welcome.
Industry
-
December 28, 2010
New Fandango iPad app
After coming slow onto the scene, Fandango has introduced an app for the iPad with some brand new features.
Fandango, a unit of Comcast Interactive Media, developed the app in-house, as it has all its mobile initiatives. Highlights of the app include a feature called The Pulse that shows the top-selling events and movie tickets purchased through Fandango, movie reviews from professional critics and film fans, and movie-related tweets.
The app also includes mapping technology that detects a user’s location and offers her nearby event and movie titles, theaters and showtimes as well as enabling her to purchase tickets. That feature helps consumers away from home find movies playing in the area—even if they don’t know their current ZIP code.
Read more at Internet Retailer.
1 comment -
December 27, 2010
Marcus returns to profitablility
After a rocky start to the year, Marcus Corp., which in addition to its theater assets also owns hotels, was back to making profits in the second quarter.
The lodging and movie theater operator reported that its net income was $2.1 million, or 7 cents per share, in the quarter thatended Nov. 25. That compares with a loss of $323,000, or a penny per share, a year earlier.
Read more in the Green Bay Gazette.
-
December 21, 2010
The Brooklyn Theatre Index
Good news for theatre lovers (especially those in the New York area). Recently published in 2010 is the definitive appraisal of all movie theatres to have operated in Brooklyn, a borough known to have had the most theatres operating out of the five NYC Boroughs.
-
December 13, 2010
Prima Cinema brings new releases straight to your home…for a minor fee
A California company, Prima Cinema, is rolling out brand new releases directly to your home for the cost of $500 in addition to a one time setup fee of $20,000.
Actually, as crazy as the price tag sounds, Prima Cinema, which has backing from Universal Pictures, as well as Best Buy, is probably the future. For a decade now, Hollywood has been inching closer and closer to simultaneous release of movies in theaters and home video, what’s called day-and-date. Some cable on-demand providers already offer limited day-and-date movies: Time Warner Cable charges about $7 to see indie flicks like I’m Still Here while they’re still playing at your local art house theater. Even for bigger pictures, the window between theatrical release and DVD release has been shrinking, and looks like it’ll be shrinking even more next year, when the major studios will supposedly be unveiling a new VOD window, between theatrical and DVD release, with a premium charge of around $20 to $30.
Read more in Entertainment Weekly.
-
December 10, 2010
Changing Ways of Seeing Movies
An article in The Star looks at not only how we go to the movies these days, but how different generations receive media in general.
Digital media have not only created a world starkly different from the world of a mere 15 years ago, they have changed the way people who live in the world think, behave, create and consume.
They have facilitated a generation gap that makes the divide between Boomers and their parents narrow by comparison, and they have accelerated the pace of cultural and political change to something like warp speed. In this world, The Social Network, set in 2004, can seem like the Dark Ages.
-
December 2, 2010
Sherman Theater book
STROUDSBURG, PA — “A History of the Movie Theaters in Monroe County, PA” by Roy E. Pipher, published on July 9, 2010, details the history of the Sherman Theatre as well as other Monroe County, PA theaters—the Grand, Plaza, Stroud, Casino, and others; four drive-ins; early nickelodeons; resort (Buck Hill, Skytop, etc.) and camp theaters.
The book also details the coming of Sunday movies to the County, the coming of sound films, 3-D films, Cinemascope, and more. The books is available for $25 by mail, which covers the cost of the book ($20), packaging, and media mail postage. Book has 296 pages, 8.5 x 11, fully illustrated. Trade paperback. To order book, and specify Book Order in Subject line.
-
November 24, 2010
Popcorn Extortion in UK
An article in Money Market takes a look at how the price of moviegoing has changed over the years in different areas.
What we found was that London was the city with the single most expensive ticket price, both on weekdays and holidays, but with a wide variety of prices according to the time of day or day of the week. The individual price for an adult is $19 (14 pounds), Monday through Thursday after five in the afternoon and before 5pm on a Friday.
-
Harry Potter 7 Part 1 biggest IMAX release of all time
According to MarketWatch , the first part of the final Harry Potter movie saga, The Deathly Hallows, was released in a record 356 IMAX theaters, in addition to the 4100+ standard and digital theaters showing the film, which opened at midnight last Friday with sellout performances across America. Part 2 will be released in digital 3D and in IMAX 3D next summer.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1: The IMAX Experience has been digitally re-mastered into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience® through proprietary IMAX DMR® technology. With crystal clear images, laser-aligned digital sound and theatre geometry that maximizes field of view, IMAX provides the world’s most immersive movie experience.
-
November 18, 2010
RetroRoadmap
NORTHAMPTON, PA — I would like to bring to everyones attention a website called RetroRoadMaps that I think most of those who visit here would enjoy exploring. It lists wonderful nostalgic places including historic theatres.
I was recently visited by Beth Lennon who hosts the site, and she did a fabulous write up and picture presentation about our theatre, the Roxy.
While the many photos posted here over the years by others have done a great job of showing the theatre as it is, nothing truly exhibits the splendor of the marquee until you see it lit up with its flashers and chashers operating, showing off its true theatrical character. A video is posted along with the article about the theatre on RetroRoadmap. If you wish to see it I would suggest that you go there, and while there check out all the other wonderful places as well.
-
November 10, 2010
New technology enables the movie screen to watch you
HORSHAM, WEST SUSSEX, ENGLAND — A technology company here has received a grant to further develop an infra-red system behind movie screens to record audience facial expressions and other behavior in 3-D in reaction to films and ads. Supposedly being developed in the name of market research, concerns are already being raised about privacy concerns and the impact it could have on what films get made and distributed.
We’re not talking about a dumb clapometer-style system, either. The intention is to produce rich data that can measure the details of an individual’s face. Aralia will leverage 3-D face recognition technology that the university is already developing. When you sit in the audience of a theater with their system, you’ll be illuminated with an infra-red beam, and three or more cameras will continually monitor the crowd to create stereoscopic images—just like the 3-D digital cameras that are now launching on the consumer markets.
The full story is at Fast Company.