From correspondents in Haryana, India, 10:13 AM IST
Cinépolis, the world’s 5th largest movie theater circuit, today announced its foray in India. Addressing the right combination of affluence, propensity of movie-goers and population, Cinépolis will be looking at a multi-city presence and a scale of 500 screens in the course of the next 7 years. Cinépolis currently operates more than 2000 screens in 6 countries and serves more than 100 million patrons annually.
The introduction of multiplexes in India has reinvigorated once again, the culture of going out to the movies. Today, movie goers expect the in-theater entertainment to be a holistic experience– a mission that Cinépolis pursues wholeheartedly. Cinépolis’ competitive edge is well established by its focus on pure play exhibition, high standards in theater design, culture of innovation, scale of business and strength in operations backed by its vast 38 year experience in the industry.
“We have made a substantial commitment to India and are excited at the prospects of being in a country which is the highest producer and consumer of filmed entertainment,” said Javier Sotomayor, Strategy Head – Cinépolis, “We envision ourselves to be present in India for the long term and for India to become our largest international expansion project.”
Cinépolis is the worldwide pioneer of the first luxury cinema concept-Cinépolis VIP – that was launched in 1999. Driven by innovation, Cinépolis was also the first to introduce novel concepts to the Latin American exhibition industry, such as the first multiplexes in 1972, the first megaplexes in 1994, the first IMAX® screens in 2004, the first concept of Edutainment with a six screen CinemaPark® in 2006 and the first digital 3-D screens with Real-D® in 2008. Now, film patrons across India will have the opportunity of watching their favorite films in the ambience of world class facilities and backed by the highest levels of customer service.
Cinépolis has consistently proven to be a major footfall driver and a strong anchor for the retail developments in which it participates. In Mexico, the world’s 5th largest box office by attendance, Cinépolis operates 22 of the top 25 theaters. In addition, with a 46% share of screens, Cinépolis has a 56% share of the box office, underscoring the ability to attract a disproportionately higher share of the viewership.
“As a major anchor tenant, we have a strong proposition to offer to mall developers and are extremely pleased by their response,” said Milan Saini, Country Head Cinépolis India. “Our differentiated customer experience will provide the shopping malls with a larger share of the footfall that will lead to superior mall economics for developers and contribute to the overall long term sustainability for the mall development.”
Cinépolis has enthralled patrons the world over with megaplex formats, stadium-seating, macro-screens and gourmet food and concession stands. Some of its popular services include the one million member strong loyalty program with ‘Club Cinépolis’, advanced technology enabled mobile & internet ticketing with ‘Cineticket’, gourmet food and beverage offerings with ‘Cinecafe’, and its internet portal that has won numerous awards as being the industry’s best.
In India, Cinépolis will build large megaplex facilities that will feature double digit screens per site at most of its locations. At this juncture, Cinépolis is in active talks with some of the country’s prime real estate developers to secure sites for its multiplexes.
“Cinépolis has been a great addition to our mall,” said Satish Magar Managing Director of Magarpatta Retail Mall, which is expected to open by 2010. “We are excited about implementing the innovative Cinépolis design concept that we believe will create a compelling movie going experience, one which the Pune audiences will fall in love with.”
Till date, Cinépolis has secured a pipeline of 110 screens across 8 cities. Operations are expected to commence by second half of 2009.
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