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Notes
from Austin: SPECIAL REPORT
THE
CLASH OF THE CINEMA TITANS PART 2 - "Your Ad Here: Advertising
at the Multiplex" by CINEMAD
Our
anonymous author, who now wishes to be credited as "Cinemad"
has once again provided us with an insightful look into the
world of film exhibition. with numerous multiplex chains declaring
bankruptcy, the search for any and all revenue possible has
moved from box office and concession sales and into the realm
of advertising. While I don't see eye to eye with Cinemad
on this issue (I happen to like the music, slides, movie ads
and such before a feature), I certainly understand his disgust
at the commercialization of the movie going process. What
Cinemad sees here as a "selling out" of the exhibitors, I
see as an interesting and profitable way to keep ticket prices
down and theater doors open. Still... interesting points are
raised in...
- lodger
THE
CLASH OF THE TITANS PART 2 - "Your Ad Here: Advertising at
the Multiplex" by CINEMAD
Now that the exhibitors are scrabbling for "cash flow" to
help pay for those "low performing" theaters and those "put
me in debt" megaplexes, let's examine the "other money making"
ways theaters are participating in.
It is SHOWMANSHIP BE DAMNED as movie patrons are bombarded
with advertising from the horrid "MOVIE TUNES" that play between
showings to the SCREENVISION commercials tacked on to the
beginning of all features except those released by Warner
Brothers and the Disney company.
Most theater circuits have gone to MOVIE TUNES as their
music source to bypass the "public performance" payments demanded
by ASAP and BIM, publishing organizations that help song writers
and performers get royalties for when their work is used.
So, in the best interest of the exhibitor, Movie Tunes provides
a radio atmosphere with commercials and music. For the cinema
employee who must endure the lobby presentation of MOVIE TUNES,
it can be annoying as the CD repeats every hour.
Screenvision has provided "commercials" to movie theaters
for a couple of decades. Patrons, as a "captive audience",
can watch as many as 6-10 of these commercials at the beginning
of their feature presentations. You say, "6-10" commercials?
Well, yes as each theater benefits from those showings. Recent
advertisers include Volkswagen, Chyrsler, Timex and Coke.
Is there a "common decency" amount of commercial placements
on your features? Apparently not.
Now that AOL is in a merger with TIME WARNER, "Moviefone"
will be seen on Warner Brothers features as well as all other
distribution companies except the Mouse company, which seems
to exercise some control as to what an exhibitor can place
on the screen with their film product. Moviefone is owned
by AOL, and is a very internet service for movie patrons to
look up showtimes and/or buy tickets. Moviefone does need
to change it's commercial more frequently as the spots tend
to wear thin after a couple of months.
"What, my popcorn bag doesn't have "popcorn" on it"...yes,
the ever- wise exhibitors have found that "popcorn bags" is
another way to inflict advertising on customers. There is
no limit in the way a popcorn bag can influence movie goers
with title art from movies or other advertising. And the exhibitor
gets paid to sell popcorn bags without their company logos
on them.
A few "hungry for cash" circuits have gone to "samplings"
for chewing gum. Chewing gum is the worst enemy of theatre
floors and seats. What were the exhibitors thinking here?
Lobby displays for other up and coming movies has been a
great tradition over the years. Outside advertising is creeping
even into this area.
Now that you have been bombarded with advertising from the
box office to the concession, you get to your theater to relax
before your movie starts...but wait, there is more advertising...SCREEN
SLIDES. Those annoying commercial slides, mixed in with trivia
questions and if you are in a COCA COLA served theatre, those
trying SENSELESS SURVEYS. "You too, can be on the big movie
screen for pennies a customer by placing an advertisement
on the movie screen". Car dealers, restaurants, tv stations,
cable channels, colleges...you name it, it's there. Actually,
it isn't that cheap to advertise with a screen slide.
Not only has "showmanship be damned", but "the customer
be damned" as theaters exhibitors have "sold out" and compromised
the reel mission of movie going. To provide an exciting and
comfortable atmosphere for the movie going patron, so that
they can escape for 2 hours, the outside world.
The era of "the customer comes first" has broken down to
"the exhibitor comes first". Raising admission and concession
prices is not the answer for patrons returning for another
dose of "bombastic intrusions", making the movie going patron
feel wanted...by providing a "commercial free" atmosphere
with "movie oriented" excitement of selling movies...and only
movies.
THE
CLASH OF THE TITANS PART 1 - by CINEMAD
THE
CLASH OF THE CINEMA TITANS PART 3 - "A Gun to Our Heads: Violence
and the MPAA Ratings System" By CINEMAD
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