A trip to the movies may feel very different in the coming years. AMC finally pulled the trigger and started pricing movie tickets based on where you sit.
The program is called Sightline, and it’s already been rolled out in select markets, but AMC plans to have it implemented at all US cinemas by the end of 2023. Fundamentally, it’s a system that allows the company to charge customers more for sitting in seats with the best view of the screen.
The timing of this decision seems a bit peculiar. On one hand, the box office took a hard hit from the pandemic. On the other, we are seeing successful movies get released, some bringing in billion-dollar hauls.
So, movie tickets are about to get more expensive and the customer experience is about to get more complicated. But, for moviegoers, the question may not be why AMC is making this decision. Rather, they’ll ask when the movie will be available to stream.
Why change things now?
The past three years haven’t been kind to movies. According to Comscore, domestic box office sales in the US were $11.88 billion in 2018 and $11.4 billion in 2019. Flash forward to 2020, and that number was $2.2 billion. It climbed to $4.5 billion in 2021, then $7.5 billion in 2022. Clearly, the movie industry is rebounding, but the decline in sales will undoubtedly have an impact on business.
It may seem that the pandemic forced cinemas to change, but we saw the tides begin to turn prior to 2020. Likely, it accelerated theaters toward an inevitable shift. Even before cinemas were being forced to shut down, streaming services were paying big bucks to get exclusive rights to movies — like the multiple nine-digit deals Netflix made with Adam Sandler to acquire original content.
Films with smaller budgets can go straight to streaming services and earn a profit without the gamble of ticket sales. For other movies —the blockbusters like Avatar 2 or Top Gun: Maverick — a straight-to-streaming release would only put a ceiling on massive potential. So these movies need to rely on theatrical releases to maximize profits.
By pricing movie tickets based on seat selection, theaters are starting to align ticket prices with the production value of movies. So, if you want to see a high-budget film, you’ll have to prepare for premium prices because studios have to earn their money back somehow. With older films, or less popular one, the same treatment might not apply. But two things are certain here: an enjoyable movie experience will get more expensive and pricing is going to get really complicated.
What does Sightline look like?
It’s hard to summarize the Sightline program in a few words because it’s intentionally complex. Fundamentally, it’s the ticketing system and the way moviegoers will reserve their seats at any of the three tiers.
- Standard Sightline — Baseline pricing. Apparently, these are the “most common” seats, but really, they’re kind of close to the front or toward the right or left side of the theater.
- Value Sightline — $2 cheaper than baseline. These are the seats closest to the front, and let’s be honest, it’s nice to save $2 if you’re forced to sit in the front because it can make the experience less enjoyable. Most ADA seats also fall into this tier.
- Preferred Sightline — $2 more than baseline. These are the center seats with the best views of the screen. Before the Sightline system’s influence, these seats would fill up first.
But it’s not that simple. The system will continue to kill physical tickets and box offices, and customers will need to use the app (ironically named Stubs), or they won’t have access to the Value Sightline tickets. But, by using the system, customers are also subjected to reservation fees. Don’t want to pay those fees? Then you can become a paid Stubs member.
For longtime viewers, this is an unwelcome change, but let’s not act like this is a tremendous breakthrough. Other entertainment venues and airplanes have been doing this for years, and AMC’s press release acknowledges this. So, anyone who’s ever been to a baseball game or concert knew the theater experience could get worse, and AMC decided this was the time to make the change.
Why this could leave seats empty
While box office revenue is rebounding, ticket sales are still slumping behind their pre-pandemic numbers. Sales seem to be going up, but they’re still far behind 2019 numbers.
Given the struggle, theaters should have viewed this as a recovery and rebuilding period. Instead, AMC saw this as a reinventing period. The chain is operating in a world where the customer experience has been compromised. Moviegoers are looking for a level of consistency, not a new ticketing system with an inflated price tag.
Of course, there is the opposite perspective. AMC could try to make changes while their audiences are smaller — because ticket sales were still deflated in 2022, and fewer people would be impacted.
But at some point, the movie industry has to accept it’s not just battling the effects of the pandemic. Look at the air travel industry — one that’s arguably more essential, but one also wrecked by COVID regulations. TSA screened 755 milliontravelers in 2022, about 90% of the travelers they saw in 2019. Meanwhile, North American movie ticket sales in 2022 (812.79 million) amounted to 66% of the sales in 2019 (1,228.76 million).
AMC needs to get people away from streaming and get them back into theaters, or it may face a fate similar to Regal Cinemas. This year, the competing chain had to close 39 cinemas after filing for bankruptcy. Fundamentally, they’re both companies in the movie business. If one chain can’t get people back in seats, the other is going to struggle. And increasing prices and limiting seat availability won’t be enticing.
Who are the real losers?
Sightline’s tiered system could go one of two ways: It could fail or it could be successful. But let’s be clear, no moviegoer has anything to gain if the system is a success. So, if it works out, it’s because AMC is able to convince customers that its experience is worth the additional cost. If it doesn’t, it means movie theaters are in trouble.
While ticket sales and box office revenue are rebounding, the number of movies released to theaters was cut in half from 2019 to 2020, and the number has only slightly increased as of 2022. If streaming continues to look like a safe bet, production companies aren’t going to push their films into cinemas.
If Sightline doesn’t catch on, AMC will revert to its old format. But, my gut is telling me it will be a “success” and roll out to all AMC locations in the US, as intended. People want to see blockbuster films, and they’ll pay a premium for the enhanced experience. Major production companies like Marvel or 20th Century Fox will make movies optimized for the cinematic experience.
Viewers will pay for comfortable seats, 3D (when it’s an option), Preferred Sightline seats, and reserve them in advance. It’s easy to see tickets hitting $30 a piece, and this makes a trip to the movies a luxury for most viewers.
As movie theaters continue to change, customers are going to feel the impacts and react accordingly. They’re not the only ones impacted; lower-budget and independent filmmakers won’t be able to justify screen space in cinemas. Ultimately, viewing these movies in theaters won’t be enhanced in the same way as an Avatar or Jurassic Park installment, so viewers won’t want to pay the premium.
If you have money to spend on entertainment, you might want to save those dollars for a nice home theater and streaming services. This way, you can sit wherever you’d like for a clear price. If you have to see a movie in the theater, enjoy consistent prices while they last. When Sightline takes off, other theaters will notice, and their ticket prices will fluctuate as well.
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