Cinema Trends & Insights : Installment #2

Cost of Going To The Cinema

It seems that consumers, of all ages, are now (more than ever) looking for value in entertainment and the cinema is no exception.  About one-third of all social media conversations regarding the cinema center on cost - particularly concession costs as being too high.  This trend brings to light an issue which the astute cinema operator can take advantage.  The notion of high concession pricing is a real issue but also a perceived 'value' issue and, as such, can be managed so as to get moviegoers to purchase more concession items if they believe they are receiving value for their purchase.

Of the social media chats regarding moviegoers views on concession, it seems that not only food costs (which make up 25% of all social conversations) but chats regarding discounts and promotions (29% of conversations) were very important.  By all accounts, it seems that moviegoers are losing interest in promotions and so-called 'club card' discounts and coupons.

Between 2013-15, data indicates that a full 66% of moviegoers considered cinema concession too expensive, while only 5% indicate that admission was too expensive.  Only 11% indicated that concession promotions and discounts were important.  The good news is that only 8% felt the movie would be better if watched at home (down from 22% in the 2010-12 period).

Concession Pricing

We have learned that cinemagoers, by a wide margin, believe that concession prices are high or at least perceive they are high.  Many cinemagoers fore-go purchasing snacks and from tracking social media chatter the data indicates that 88% of cinemagoers bring in their own snacks to either supplement their concession purchase or to bypass concession altogether. So, the response should be for cinemas to create their own brands of treats and base them around 'high valued' deals and affordability to win back concession purchases.

Movies & Music

The cinema and music chatter dominate the social media within every country. Music is dominated by recording artists.  For example, in country music, Taylor Swift propels the country music, and she only makes up a whopping 80% of all country music conversations.  In music, the country genre tops the social media chats and continues to appeal to a wider and wider audience.

Gaming is HOT

Gaming is huge in entertainment. 4 in 10 American adults own a game console and the ownership is growing with may households having two or more consoles.  Additionally, PCs for gaming, particularly for on-line gaming is growing at double digits.

Piracy

Piracy of all types of entertainment content is not only rising but people seem less concerned about getting caught.  Recent data suggests that your average pirate is becoming more diverse - moving from a predominately youth base to an older more diverse pirate.