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MoviePass limits customers to just six movie options per day
MoviePass is changing its service yet again and for the foreseeable future, it will significantly limit which films its customers can see on any given day, Business Insider reports. In a letter to its users, which the company began sending out today, it said that as it transitions to the new subscription plan it began imposing yesterday -- limiting monthly subscribers to just three films per month -- it will offer a limited selection of movies and showtimes each day. "During this transition period, MoviePass will offer up to six films to choose from daily, including a selection of major studio first-run films and independent releases," said the letter. "In addition, showtime availability may be limited depending on the popularity of those films on the app that particular day."
MoviePass owner posts huge loss as investors launch lawsuits
Back when MoviePass first announced its $10-a-month subscription for one movie a day, AMC said the scheme was like "turning lead into gold." Since no alchemist stepped forward to do that for MoviePass, the movie ticketing service's parent company, Helios and Matheson Analytics, has posted a massive operating loss that reached $126.6 million (overall net loss of $84 million) for the quarter ending on June 30th. That's a humongous jump from the $2.7 million loss it posted for the same quarter last year, prompting shareholders to file a lawsuit against Helios and Matheson.
MoviePass slashes plan to three movies per month
After borrowing emergency funds to keep the lights on and toying with a price increase, MoviePass is trying to stave off the Grim Reaper by limiting how many movies you can see each month. You won't be able to see a movie every day with your plan after August 15th. Instead, you can only grab tickets for three flicks a month, and get up to $5 off tickets beyond that. MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe told the Wall Street Journal that the move will slash the company's cash burn rate by over 60 percent.
MoviePass stops offering tickets for big movies amid outages
MoviePass' financial and technical problems keep getting worse. According to a Business Insider source, company chief Mitch Lowe not only told staffers that the service wouldn't offer tickets for the next two major movie releases this summer (Christopher Robin and The Meg), but hinted that this would be the policy for other movies in the near future. Some viewers couldn't order tickets for Mission: Impossible - Fallout this past weekend, for that matter. A spokesperson wouldn't directly comment on the report, but did point to an open letter from Lowe that said "certain movies may not always be available in every theater."
MoviePass’ surge pricing starts today
Last month, MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe announced that surge pricing would soon go into effect, charging customers a little extra for movies and showtimes that are especially popular. That added fee, which MoviePass is calling Peak Pricing, starts rolling out today to customers with a monthly plan as well as any new annual subscribers. When a film or a particular showtime is in high demand and subject to an additional fee, you'll see a little red lightning icon over the showtime. Any showtimes that are gaining in popularity and could have an added Peak Pricing fee soon will have a grey lightning icon above them.
MoviePass brings back its movie-per-day plan
Last month, MoviePass began offering a $30, three-month plan that came with an iHeartRadio premium subscription trial but limited users to just four movies per month. And when asked if the popular movie-per-day plan would be returning, MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe told The Hollywood Reporter last week that he didn't know. But the movie-per-day plan is back and Lowe says he just didn't want people to ignore the iHeartRadio promotion. "It's marketing 101," he told Variety. "We wanted to focus everybody on this partnership promotion. If people knew the [movie-a-day] plan was coming back, they might not be interested in the iHeartRadio deal." He added that the company never planned to abandon "the flagship product that everybody loves."
MoviePass no longer lets you see the same movie more than once
MoviePass just instituted a new change to its terms of service and the company will now prevent subscribers from seeing the same movie more than once. iMore spotted the update and reports that the new limitation will apply to all subscribers, new and existing. MoviePass' website says, "We recently updated our Terms of Service to reflect that MoviePass subscribers are only permitted to see a select movie in theaters once with your MoviePass. We hope this will encourage you to see new movies and enjoy something different!"
MoviePass adds 500,000 subscribers within a month
MoviePass' $10-per-month subscription service was a hit from the start, enough to crash the company's website when it was first announced. It looks like demand isn't slowing down anytime soon either: it has gained 500,000 more subscribers merely a month after it reached 1.5 million users. The fact that MoviePass cut off members' access to some popular AMC theaters had little effect, if any. It's easy to see why 2 million would sign up: for 10 bucks a month -- an ongoing promo even cuts the price down to $7.95 -- they're entitled to see one 2D film a day, every day, without paying extra.
MoviePass offers an even bigger discount if you pay for a year upfront
MoviePass is dropping its price point yet again. In August, the company reduced its subscription cost to just $10 per month -- down from $15 to $21 depending on where you lived -- and upped the amount of movies its subscribers could see from two per month to one per day. Now, if you're willing to pay for the whole year up front, you can snag the no contract, subscription for $7 per month.
MoviePass is struggling to keep up with all its new members
Despite the sluggish summer box office, it seems plenty of people are still interested in going to the movies. As long as it comes cheap, that is. Last month, MoviePass launched a $9.95 no contract, unlimited subscription that allows customers access to a standard film (no 3D or IMAX) per day in theaters, without blackouts. The offer was bound to attract a lot of attention. But, no one was prepared for the resulting frenzy (especially not MoviePass). The subscription service claims its website was overwhelmed by the ensuing volume of traffic from interested patrons. And, it's still struggling with the load. Although its site looks like it's running smoothly, it's the card logistics that are causing issues now. That's a big problem. You see, in the absence of a card, you'll have to rely on e-tickets, which are only available at select locations.
MoviePass' new subscription lets you watch any flick in any format
MoviePass' usual watch-every-day subscription is tempting, but it's limited to standard presentations. What if you want to see that shiny new blockbuster in an advanced format? That's where the company's new, experimental MoviePass Premium comes into play. Paying up to $45 per month lets you see a movie each day at an AMC theater regardless of the technology involved -- 3D, IMAX and AMC's own ETX are fair game. The main catch, aside from finding time to visit the theater that often, is the availability. Premium is currently in a trial phase in Boston and Denver, and it'll only be available elsewhere in the US if and when the test run proves successful. [Image credit: Jeff, Flickr]
MoviePass wants to be Netflix, but for theaters
Here's a scenario: you'd love to see the latest blockbuster, but aren't willing to fork out a month's wages to do so. Cue MoviePass, a startup seeking to make life cheaper (fiscally, not emotionally) for repeat cinema moviegoers. The $50 subscription allows for "unlimited" cinema screenings, provided you're okay with a few caveats: 3D or IMAX screenings incur a $3 surcharge, and you'll be limited to one flick per day. Tickets must also be purchased on a partner website, netting you a coupon code that's exchanged for stubs in-theater. Not the most elegant solution, but the reliance on paper prevents folks from re-watching or double-dipping while inside. If that sounds just a bit too jovial for you, the company's also considering a chopped-down $30 plan, which would impose a four movie limit each month. It's launching as a trial this weekend in San Francisco, so if you've nothing better to do, give it a go and let us know how it works out.
