Moviepass recently slashed their prices for unlimited in-theater movies (one per day) to only $9.95 per month. Here how it works in practical terms:
- You are limited to one 2-D movie per day. You can watch first-run movies on opening day. No 3D. No IMAX.
- This service is not affiliated with any specific movie chain. You can use the official Moviepass website (scroll to bottom) or this handy-but-unofficial locator to see eligible theaters.
- You must download and use the service through the Moviepass smartphone app (Android and iOS). You can’t use Fandango or other 3rd-party service.
- You must be within 100 yards of the theater (tracked by GPS via phone app) before you can redeem your free ticket for the day. This helps prevent you from sharing your subscription. If you want to reserve seats, you should get to the theater area early.
- Once you check-in via the app, the appropriate funds will be loaded onto a your personalized Moviepass Mastercard debit card. You then use that specific debit card to pay for the ticket (at kiosk or ticket counter).
- There is no contract.
My take? I don’t see how this is a sustainable business model. MoviePass is paying full price for the movies (not even some sort of wholesale discount). MoviePass must be hoping that a lot of casual people sign up and then forget to watch movies some months? I don’t think it’s a coincidence that they wait until after the summer movie season to announce this. I am skeptical that they can monetize the group data enough to cover their costs.
AMC doesn’t like Moviepass but since the are just using a normal debit card to pay full price, I don’t see how they can stop the service.
Bottom line. The service seems legit in that they’ve been in business since 2011 and the CEO is one of the co-founders of Netflix and former Redbox executive. However, I still see a late “pivot” for a wobbly startup. Watch a bunch of movies in the next few months if you can, but don’t be surprised if your Moviepass card suddenly stops working.
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This guy who is running the company came from Netflix. He understands the business. He is going to use the data from moviegoers to sell to resturants near by etc. Also to movie producers. Here is a good article: https://www.cnet.com/news/moviepass-ceo-mitch-lowe-interview-amc/
if you want to join please use this: https://www.moviepass.com/referral/email/nZCxw19Qdh9poGQ4XQpXm0xzRhNYLcDc%252BtdGbIARG4A%253D/1503276456761
I get a $10 discount
My guess is that theaters may see an uptick in concession sales. Moviepass will be able to show theaters increased revenues allowing them to negotiate cheaper movie prices for their customers.
At the end of the day, theaters are sitting empty half the time… Seems like a good idea to try and fill the seats somehow.
I’m guessing there’s not anything that would stop folks from buying concessions with this card, and then not bother to watch a movie, if you’re in the vicinity. Or, perhaps buy a gift-card for a movie each day, which then can be given/sold to others.
Without getting cooperation from theaters, I can’t see this model working very long. It is interesting though.
Has anyone tried this deal yet? Most of the comments on their Support Center -> Using MoviePass are problems. People can’t login or see any theaters in their vicinity.
Just received this note:
To the MoviePass Community,
We’ve been blown away with all of the excitement surrounding our new $9.95 unlimited plan. Though we anticipated a high level of interest, we received an unprecedented volume of traffic: so much so, it completely crashed our servers. Last week, MoviePass was the #1 consumer news story in the world.
To meet this demand, our production facility has rapidly increased capacity. Currently, you should expect to receive your card around September 6-10th. If you signed up Tuesday, August 15th or Wednesday, August 16th, expect it sooner. Orders are being fulfilled in the order in which they are received. We apologize for the delay. Your account will not activate until you’ve received your MoviePass card and your billing date will be adjusted accordingly.
E-Ticketing
In some markets, we have partners who allow for e-ticketing. You can attend those theaters now without waiting for the card. E-ticketing is voluntary and up to the theaters. Any theater that wishes can be activated with E-ticketing capability.
For your convenience, here are some resources that can help you find additional information you may need.The FAQ’s should provide answers to all of your questions and the theater map allows you to search for supported locations in your area. Our customer service team is working around the clock to respond to your additional questions.
FAQ’s: https://moviepass.zendesk.com/
Theater Map: https://www.moviepass.com/
Thank you so much for your patience and support. We can’t wait to go to the movies with you!
Sincerely,
The MoviePass Team
Frustrating, because my husband signed up and his pass was lost in the mail, but there seems to be no way to contact this company. So I guess this is the downside. Customer service is severely lacking. Which is fine until you need customer service. Husband told me today (about 8 weeks later) that he was thinking of canceling his account and re-signing up, since it would probably be a faster resolution. But he had paid $10 up front and was reluctant to give it up. (At this point though, probably best for his sanity, and still a good deal).
He is the type who would go to the movies like every day. On top of that, we get e-mail notifications from USPS and we *know* it should have been in our mail 10 days ago. The universe is being kind of cruel to my husband. If it was anything else, not sure he’d care so much, but he’s such a movie buff.
How do they decide which movie theaters to use?
when I put my zip code in on the official site, nothing pops up. When I use the unofficial, the two closest to me are Harkins. Neither seem to be on there.