At the start of the year with the slate of films on offer admissions should have easily crossed 200m barrier.
They may be claimed the highest since 1971 but this is spin too as algorithm used to generate admissions claims average ticket price is £6.72. Vue Cinemas in a Variety article said they sold 238,000 tickets for The Force Awakens for £3m would be an average ticket price of £12.60 87.5% more than claimed average ticket price Cinema Exhibitors Association and BFI claim is average ticket price.
Been so much hype surrounding the release of the new The Force Awakens but this was very similar to the first Star Wars prequel The Phantom Menace similarly the trailers were great while advance ticket were also strong. But ticket prices were a third they are now with all the surcharges.
30 years ago UK cinema admissions started to climb thanks to the opening of the firs multiplex in the UK and for the years that followed till 1994 saw admissions grow steadily. In 1994 box office experts were predicting admissions by 2000 would hit 200m but they never did. They dropped in 1995 but had massive increases in 1996 and 1997 thanks to National Cinema Day in June one day when all cinemas were £1 and millions came out to the cinema (Next year is the 120th anniversary would be a great way to get people back into the cinema habit).
Cinema admissions grew steadily 1996-2000 but had a huge increase in 2001 and in 2002 thanks to Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings but then in the years that followed till this year they have flat-lined.
Over the same period average ticket prices have gone from £1.88 in 1985 to £6.72 in 2015 (257%). But as everyone knows real average ticket price since 2009 has been far more with cinemas adding surcharges for 3D/IMAX and in the past year Odeon added their “blockbuster tax”. Also included are Event Cinema screenings which are often double regular prices along with the loss of Orange Wednesday Meerkat Movies might be for two days but it’s nowhere nearly as popular.
20 years ago it was simple an adult or a child ticket now there are more price tariffs than Easyjet.
Annual box office for the UK in the last 5 years from £944m to £1.057 billion in 2014 up 12% during this increase is thanks to 3D and IMAX surcharges.
Box office for 2015 is likely to be £1.25 billion 18% up from 2014 with admissions claimed to be 185m but this would be the case if we were paying an average £6.72 to go to the cinema?
Have been many surveys and articles written about how expensive cinema has become to put it into some perspective in 1930 you could go to cinema (and say all day) for the price of a pint of Guinness in 1970s it was the cost of a Big Mac and anyone who can possibly say an average standard ticket price in the UK now less than £9 and £12 for 3D hasn’t paid to go to the cinema in the last 5 years.
Until the industry uses real average ticket prices to create yearly admissions they are as trustworthy as reports from FIFA.
Had cinema admissions increased as they were doing till 1997 we would be looking at admissions over 266m today. Just using £9.50 as average ticket price admissions for 2015 would be 131.5m the lowest since 1997.
Tim Richards, the chief executive of Vue compares going to cinema as like going to Legoland or London Zoo? Going to the cinema is something people used do on a weekly basis while you go to these other places once a year?
Phil Clapp came out with a similar comment saying going to the cinema was still cheaper than live theatre how can you possibly compare the two? Sky Store are currently promoting pre-order Spectre for £13.99 (digital download and DVD) I paid more than this to see it at my local Vue.
Going to the cinema used to be a cheap night out now it can cost up to £100 I don’t condone piracy but soon cinemas will be pricing people out.
We have seen this year the top 6 films will likely take more than 40% of the annual box office with the other 740 films fighting over the rest.
As people are becoming far picker on the films they go to see happy to wait 3 months to see it on demand. 4K TV will become much more regular in homes which is on par with many cinemas.
Phil Clapp talks about enthusiasm and optimism that has not been around for a few years but many exhibitors are already predicting next year won’t be as strong.
There are a lot of big films in 2016 but they are very similar sequels with many comic-book movies watch Captain America Civil War trailer last week and Batman Vs Superman this week and they just feel very samey.
Odeon are selling or closing more screens than opening them selling several to Everyman and then West End, High Street Kensington and soon Marble Arch to developers there will be cinemas on those sites but much smaller than they are now.
IMAX used to be a format that was in purpose built cinemas but exhibitors have seen as 3D they can add surcharges to prices and have been retrofitting Digital IMAX into conventional cinemas the result audiences get what is technically known as Fake IMAX but exhibitors charge a premium. Odeon Swiss Cottage charges almost the same as BFI IMAX £20.
