Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: UK's easyCinema to test low-cost cinema concept from MAY

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Posted by David Woodrow (Member # 1571) on 04-07-2003, 07:25 AM:

from Screendaily:
UK's easyCinema to test low-cost cinema concept

Ending months of speculation, the UK's easyCinema has leased the first site in the roll-out of its innovative low cost cinema concept: UCI's 10-screen multiplex, The Point in Milton Keynes.

EasyCinema, part of Greek entrepreneur Stelios Haji-Ioannou's no-frills empire easyGroup, will sell tickets for as low as 20p if booked a month in advance, applying the company's yield management pricing structure used in businesses ranging from car rentals to plane tickets. Prices will rise nearer showtime.

The Point, which will start showing films at the end of May this year, will have no box office: tickets will be sold online at www.easycinema.com, and there will be a computer to purchase tickets in the lobby. Savings will be made by reduced staff numbers.

In a statement, the venture is described by easyCinema as a controlled experiment: "The lessons learned in Milton Keynes will prepare easyCinema for further expansion in the UK and Europe."

Although an historic cinema in the exhibition industry - The Point was the first UK multiplex to open in 1985 - at 18 years old the site is showing its age and faces competition from a 16-screen CineWorld multiplex nearby. EasyCinema has a five year lease on the site, and a marketing budget of £300,000 for the first three months.

"I've made many mistakes in other industries by rolling things out too fast," Stelios Haji-Ioannou told the Financial Times, "so I'm going to sit on my hands for six months to a year before I try another cinema."

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 04-07-2003, 07:48 AM:

I can't see the very cheap tickets element of this having any impact whatsoever: presumably the 20p tickets will be for the weekday matinee shows, which are normally attended mainly by older people, unemployeds and tourists (all of whom are unlikely to have access to the Internet in order to book these tickets in the first place).

Assuming that peak Friday and Saturday evening seats are going to go for around the same price as in any other multiplex in that area, he might be able to slice a bit off his overheads by having fewer staff, though. There again, that kind of operation usually makes a lot of its profit through concession sales. If his bare minimum staffing model means less kiosks and the like, it seems to me as if he's shooting himself in the foot.

Posted by Michael Harlow (Member # 1353) on 04-07-2003, 10:00 AM:

I can just imagine Warner Bros or Entertainment letting him have films for 20p a ticket. The distributors have always given me the impression that they want as much as they can out of my box office - some films charged @ 65%. 65% of 20p = 0.13p. Like i say, i'm sure the distributors will be stacking up to put their films in there!

Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 04-07-2003, 11:33 AM:

Here's an interesting idea:

Open a theater with only internet ticketing like this guy = no box office staff. Have all the popcorn, candy and drinks sold from vending machines = no concession staff. Have automatic timers on all of the projectors = no projection staff. Cleaning auditoriums, threading, building prints, and general maintenance could be done by one or two people -- the management -- since there are no drawers to count or deposits to make. BRILLIANT! [Big Grin]

=TMP=

Posted by Darren Briggs (Member # 1071) on 04-07-2003, 03:45 PM:

Hope it does well. NOT!

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 04-08-2003, 07:03 AM:

quote:
I can just imagine Warner Bros or Entertainment letting him have films for 20p a ticket.

I'd guess that one of two things is happening here: either he's paying full whack for the print rentals but running 20p weekday matinees as a loss leader, or he's done a deal whereby they're letting him have the booking on preferential terms for the matinee shows only. I, too, can't imagine Warners letting him show films for 20p a ticket in the evenings and weekends, but for the dead weekday shows that are doing well to attract 5-10 customers, they've got nothing to lose.

Posted by Michael Harlow (Member # 1353) on 04-08-2003, 10:17 AM:

Leo,

agreed, I can see where you are coming from on this..

I will be interesting to watch and see what happens

Posted by Bernard Tonks (Member # 809) on 05-01-2003, 05:43 PM:

The end of rip-off cinema is nigh!!

A message from Stelios [Smile]

Dear friends,

I have chosen Milton Keynes to launch my latest venture, easyCinema.com.

You will find all the values you would expect from the easy brand applied to the business of movie theatres in order to make going to the pictures as affordable as possible.
Here are the rules to get the best value for money:

1. Book early to pay less. Buy online using your credit card at easyCinema.com. There is NO box office at easyCinema.

2. Be flexible. Off peak shows (e.g. Monday afternoon) will be cheaper than peak time shows (e.g. Saturday night).

3. I have removed unnecessary frills like popcorn which is a huge rip-off at other cinemas. That way it is cheaper for you and it costs us less to keep the place clean. [Razz]

Stelios
Founder and Chairman of easyCinema.com

www.easycinema.com

Full story: BBC News

Milton Keynes also has a Cineworld 16 screens multiplex.

[ 05-23-2003, 06:48 PM: Message edited by: Bernard Tonks ]

Posted by Bill Gabel (Member # 1105) on 05-01-2003, 06:15 PM:

The idea of cutting labor at theatres goes back to the 30's.
In Hollywood famed theatre architect S. Charles Lee designed
a prototype theatre for a former president of Fox West Coast
Theatres and was going to be bankrolled by Howard Hughes.
The Studio Theatre was a prototype of what they called the automatic theatre. It was to be manned by a cashier and a
projectionist and a manager. The Studio Theatre opened July 31, 1931, at a cost of $12,000 dollars. S. Charles Lee had a store
remodeled into a 303 seat Art-Deco Theatre. This theatre operated till around 1981/2 as the SRO Holly. Yes, It was only 303 seats but if the plan worked they could build a whole chain of these theatres. The theatre worked but the chain never happened.

Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 05-01-2003, 08:22 PM:

Heck, I always have Mondays off. I'd just buy a ticket for every Monday whether I went to the movies our not.

But I'm not going there, because they don't have popcorn! [Mad]

Posted by Jack Ondracek (Member # 1466) on 05-01-2003, 10:21 PM:

I would be interested to know what differences (if any) exist between European and American master licenses.

According to my read, we can charge what we want, as long as we meet the studios' per-capita requirements. Heck, I guess we could charge less, if we wanted to make up the difference out of our wallets [thumbsdown]

What seems fishy to me is that the studios want to know what your established admission prices are for a given time-of-day. As far as I know, there's no provision for lowering the price the farther out from the purchase you get. At showtime, you'd have a group of customers, each of whom could have paid a different admission price.

If I guess the studios corrrectly, they'd be inclined to take the highest admission paid, and apply it to everyone attending that showtime. I think it may even be written that way... which would make the "rent-a-car" version of ticket purchasing a bit out of sorts with the powers-that-be.

On a slightly related subject... what ever happened to that program one of the chains came up with that would allow you to pay a monthly fee for unlimited attendance? I never heard how that worked out.

Posted by Bernard Tonks (Member # 809) on 05-02-2003, 03:45 AM:

Jack, In answer to your question.

U G C Cinemas (UK)

We are delighted to be the only cinema company in the
UK that offers you Unlimited Cinema!

A unique cinema subscription card allows you to take
advantage of the massive choice of films on offer -
from as little as £9.99 per month!
(minimum subscription 12 months)

The UGC Unlimited card enables you to see as many films as
you like each month on any day and at any time and it's valid at
all UGC Cinemas across the UK and Ireland so even if you're
away from home, you can catch all the latest films as well as
seeing them at your local UGC.

Not only is the card fantastic value for money but it also means that you will get a range of additional benefits like invitations to special UGC screenings and offers for your friends to enjoy!

So what are you waiting for?

If you're not already a card holder,
get down to your local UGC cinema and sign up now!

www.ugccinemas.co.uk

Posted by Dave Hall (Member # 1589) on 05-02-2003, 08:18 PM:

Does this mean all the auditoriums will be bright orange? [puke]

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 05-12-2003, 07:15 AM:

From ScreenDaily:

http://www.screendaily.com/story.asp?storyid=12266

quote:
The UK's controversial easyCinema venture - which will sell tickets for as low as £0.20 and have no concessions stand or box office - has secured four titles from Pathe for the opening of its first cinema in Milton Keynes on May 23.

But the company is now planning to meet with the UK's anti-competition body the Office of Fair Trading to discuss the difficulties it has experienced in securing films from the major studio distributors in the UK.

"They won't talk business," James Rothnie, easyGroup's director of corporate affairs told Screendaily. "All of the major distributors are refusing to talk money. It's just stonewalling. They won't make us an offer: we keep contacting them to specify films and to make offers of cash in advance...(see link for complete article).

Posted by Michael Harlow (Member # 1353) on 05-12-2003, 11:52 AM:

Oh dear! Stelios wotsaname has just found out what the UK distributors are like !

Posted by Mike Rendall (Member # 1499) on 05-13-2003, 03:24 AM:

I must say that I am glad that the UCI Milton Keynes is going to be taken over. It was great when it first opened but recently it must be the only multiplex that has turned into a flea-pit. Since the opening of the Cineworld across the road with its raked seats, Digital sound, bigger screens, better projection (still using Cinemeccanica V5's though) the old UCI has been losing money hand over fist.

I think I would like to visit it if they do manage to make a deal with the distributors just to try this pioneering concept. Not sure if they will fill 10 screens with 4 films though. Maybe they should run older films, to become a second-run house or possibly even feed the minds of the local inhabitants with some classic or foreign movies that don't get enough screen-time.

Posted by David Woodrow (Member # 1571) on 05-19-2003, 08:35 AM:

A list of the first weeks films (Hardly first Run but not bad for 20p!) https://www.easycinema.com/general/WhatsOn.aspx
Half Past Dead 98 mins 15 Columbia
Darkness Falls 85 mins 15 Columbia
L'homme du train 90 mins 12A Pathe
The Heart Of Me 96 mins 12A Pathe
Evelyn 94 mins PG Pathe
Bulletproof Monk 103 mins 12A Pathe
Blue Crush 104 mins 12A Momentum Pictures
Two Weeks Notice 101 mins 12A Warner Bros
Cradle 2 The Grave 100 mins 15 Warner Bros
The Little Polar Bear 100 mins U Warner Bros

Posted by Thomas Procyk (Member # 1170) on 05-19-2003, 12:32 PM:

Hmmm. I can't get the search to ever display any movies! [Confused]

even if I leave everything as "ANY"

=TMP=

Posted by Michael Harlow (Member # 1353) on 05-19-2003, 05:44 PM:

Thomas, I had the same problem. I cannot see this working very well. I actually searched for about 20mins before i found a film that i could book for. [Confused]

Posted by Andy Muirhead (Member # 712) on 05-19-2003, 06:07 PM:

Yeah, the website is tricky. We tried to 'book' last night just to try out the booking system and had no joy until we realised that the cinema isn't open until the 23rd (I think), so try 'booking' on or after that date!

I think Stelios should be congratulated on opening the first 2nd/sub run multiplex in the UK! [Wink]

Posted by Pete Naples (Member # 761) on 05-20-2003, 03:43 AM:

Good luck to him I say! It's about time someone took the London mafia, sorry the distrubtors, to task.

Posted by Howard Johnson (Member # 62) on 05-20-2003, 04:34 AM:

I tried the site this morning and it was offering me Darkness Falls, Blue Crush, or Bulletproof Monk all for 20p this friday evening. It would be nice to see the renters cut down to size, but I don't know if that will happen. This is a crazy business, where else does the seller tell you if you can have his product, how much he will charge for it and if you dont have film x you can't have blockbuster y ?

Posted by David Rigby (Member # 1301) on 05-20-2003, 05:48 AM:

Interesting news snippet here EasyCinema asks for donations

David

Posted by Paul Howard (Member # 1706) on 05-20-2003, 08:28 AM:

I am Finding this concept very strange, maybe I am closed minded. 20p + a donation admission, no popcorn, does that mean there'll be none of those delicious cinema hot dogs aswell. [Wink]

The worlds first non charity run charity cinema. Staff standing outside each screen shaking buckets full of £1 coins waiting for donors. Campaigners outside chanting "WE WANT POPCORN!" It will be very strange.

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 05-23-2003, 10:18 AM:

BBC coverage of the easyFleapit...

Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 06-26-2003, 06:42 AM:

Distributor resistance could force easyCinema out of business (Screen Daily, June 26):

http://www.screendaily.com/story.asp?storyid=12988

Posted by Jack Ondracek (Member # 1466) on 06-26-2003, 12:45 PM:

It never ceases to amaze me that someone will open a business before securing reasonably assured product from it's vendors. [Roll Eyes]

Coming soon... "PricelineFirstRunMovies.com"

Posted by Andy Muirhead (Member # 712) on 06-26-2003, 06:57 PM:

There is a thread over on Film-Handling regarding EasyCinema. Bernard Tonks provided a link to an article printed in the financial section of a UK Sunday newspaper which reported EasyCinema is to placed into administration, and is to close in 6 months, however as Screen Daily has not mentioned this in their article, I'm not sure if this information is entirely accurate!

Posted by Dick Vaughan (Member # 540) on 02-12-2004, 02:28 AM:

Screening on BBC2 TV tonight is a documentary about Stelios' battle with distributors. Should prove interesting viewing/

quote:
9:50 pm
Trouble At The Top
Stelios Goes To Hollywood: Easyjet founder Stelios Haji-Iaonnou is trying to break into cinema. He wants to open a multiplex in Milton Keynes and sell tickets for 20p. Will Hollywood stand for it?

Posted by Mark Hajducki (Member # 1732) on 02-15-2004, 04:46 PM:

Saw the documentary and found it interesting despite it not being very objective and not going far past opening day.

From the footage the audiotia seem to be very 'shoe box' shaped (although in the archive footage they seemed to have full curtains {of course not present in the current footage}). Also they made no mention of any upgrades made to the site (apart from painting the outside orange) so I can assume that no upgrades have been made. The fetured auditoria had small surround speakers (not the type you would expect with upgraded sound).

Looking at the Easycinema Website I found that the film times would allow for only 5 screens to be used (out of a total of 10) for 10 showings in the day. Either they can't get the content, or half their screens are buggered.
The prices range from £0.75 to £1.55 for tomorrows showings. I personally can't see how that is viable (unless they sell out) especially since they are ignoring two revenue streams (advertising and concessions).

Finally if anybody wants to continue (or end) in sunny Milton Keynes then they are looking for a CEO (at $200,000) or a Cinema Safety and Technical Officer (at £14,000 a year) AS Cinema Safety and Technical Officer you would have the following responsibilities:

quote:

* Emergency evacuation warden, able to demonstrate knowledge of and carry out the Company’s emergency evacuation procedures.
* Maintain and operate projection and sound equipment.
* Make up/break down films. Display "show" reels in accordance with procedure scheduling plans.
* Install, upgrade, repair, swap-out and troubleshoot PC's.
* Maintain and troubleshoot vending machines, including testing, resetting and swapping-out of internal components, changing print heads and rolls.
* Configure, manage and troubleshoot Access Control System software.
* Manage, maintain and troubleshoot turnstile barriers, door keypad and local area network.
* Monitor and troubleshoot ISP connection and UPS devices.
* Manage all warranty, returns and local third party support issues and source and maintain stock of IT consumables and spares.
* To act as Safety Supervisor in charge of carrying out a possible evacuation as required when not rostered on other duties.
* To ensure compliance with the Conditions of the cinema licence (attached).
* Monitor day-to-day operation of cinema (staff, cleaning, turnaround time, premises and call centre) and reports to head office as appropriate.

A shift pattern will be in operation of “4 days on, 4 days off” which ultimately equates to a 40 hour week.

Posted by Andy Muirhead (Member # 712) on 02-15-2004, 07:12 PM:

I also saw the documentary. I didn't learn anything new, like many people involved in the exhibition industry in the UK, I have been keeping an eye on Stelios and his 'experiment' since the outset.

The CEO job as posted on the easycinema site is interesting though;

quote:
The main challenge for the new CEO would be to solve the distribution problem that the company is facing and to overcome the apparent reluctance of the distributors to license more first run films.

And good luck to the new CEO, I may add!

Posted by Dick Vaughan (Member # 540) on 02-16-2004, 02:38 AM:

I too found the documentary disappointing. I was hoping for some more up to date footage .

The shoe box auditoria I believe are/were that way as The Point at Milton Keynes was the first UK multiplex and there was some concern as to whether it would work or not.

If it hadn't been successful AMC could just pull out the cinema equipment and each auditorium becomes a shoe shop/fashion store or whatever

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 02-16-2004, 05:29 AM:

quote:
The main challenge for the new CEO would be to solve the distribution problem that the company is facing and to overcome the apparent reluctance of the distributors to license more first run films.

I could do that within minutes, simply by sticking the ticket prices up to a fiver a pop! Is Stelios really willing to pay someone $200 grand just to do that? [Roll Eyes]

Posted by Howard Johnson (Member # 62) on 02-16-2004, 06:02 AM:

I love the job description for the tech!! I thought computer engineers got loadsamoney! They must be joking paying £14k for all that work, mind you if they creamed off a bit of the CEO 's pay then the tech could get a reasonable wage. A job with Stelios anyone?

Posted by David Woodrow (Member # 1571) on 02-16-2004, 07:52 AM:

This cinema first Multiplex in the UK it was originaly opened by AMC and was then sold to UCI at a later date when AMC pulled out of the UK,All screens had Dolby Stereo and some screens were upgraded to DTS/Dolby digital no curtains were ever present on the ocassions
I visited it I have visited all 10 screens

Posted by Adam Fuller (Member # 2070) on 03-18-2004, 12:35 AM:

Anyone have any up-to-date info on this experiment? My understanding was that it was supposed to have closed by now, but the website still seems to be accepting bookings to 15th April.

Posted by Bernard Tonks (Member # 809) on 03-18-2004, 03:55 AM:

I read on another website that Stelios was showing some interest in taking over the Coronet (ex Gaumont) Notting Hill Gate London, as a footing to have a site near the West End. The Coronet opened originally as a variety theatre, was featured in the Hugh Grant film "Notting Hill", and now has a 2nd screen behind the stage area, therefore not spoiling the historic and listed auditorium.

Also that EasyCinema was seeking a 2nd multiplex site within the M25 area.