Coming to a theater near you… Easycinema?

posted by Patrick Crowley on May 23, 2003 at 10:03 am

LONDON, UK — According to Yahoo News, EasyInternetCafe and Easyjet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou has opened Easycinema, a new low-cost, no-frills movie theater.

How low-cost, you ask? Well, since Easycinema uses the same pricing technique first pioneered by its intercafe sibiling, EasyInternetCafe, ticket prices will be based on demand.

So, if you buy early, tickets will be as cheap as 33 cents. But as demand fluctuates, the price will be raised or lowered, depending on availability. If a movie becomes very popular, patrons will be charged a full-ticket price (approximately $8 in the UK).

In addition to the cheap tickets, Easycinema will do away with both box offices and concession stands…

“We’re keeping it as simple as possible,” said James Rothnie, an easyGroup spokesman, adding he believed it was the first such scheme in the world. “There’ll be no rip-off popcorn, no catering of any sort. If you want to eat and drink, bring your own.”

So far, not surprisingly, response from film distributors has been less than supportive, with some refusing to book blockbusters with Easycinema. But, regardless, the new company will certainly prove to be an interesting experiment for the exhibition industry.

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