Mar 28, 2024
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Cineplex boost in adult attendence

TORONTO (CP) _ A strong slate of adult-skewed films and alternative programming like big-screen hockey and opera helped movie exhibitor Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund (TSX:CGX.UN) cut its first-quarter loss to $3.8 million from a year-ago $8.9 million.

Films like the warrior-themed hit "300" drew older audiences, boosting adult attendance numbers to 57 per cent of the total mix, from 53 per cent a year earlier.

"This shift has had an impact on both our average ticket price and concession per patron amount," chief financial officer Gord Nelson said Tuesday in a conference call.

For the period ended March 31, concession stands sold $52.3 million worth of goodies, from $49 million a year earlier. Total quarterly revenue rose 9.8 per cent to $178.6 million, from $162.7 million. Cineplex Media, which handles on-screen and lobby advertising and is a major profit driver, reported a revenue increase of 23.7 per cent.

Cineplex Galaxy also announced it has hiked its monthly distributions to 10 cents a unit, from 9.58 cents. That move is effective for May, to be paid June 29 to unitholders of record as of May 31 and amounting to an annual rate of $1.20 per unit, up from the current annual rate of $1.1496.

Cineplex box-office numbers climbed 9.6 per cent in the quarter, handily beating the overall Canadian box-office increase of about three per cent.

Company units rose 20 cents to $17.60 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The earnings report capped off a quarter that was notably strong across North America, with a lineup of diverse films and Hollywood productions with big-name stars, such as "Ghost Rider" starring Nicolas Cage.

Meanwhile, Imax (TSX:IMX) was showing a giant-screen version of "300" for a somewhat higher ticket price during the quarter, funnelling in more revenue.

Continued success from big-screen showings of NHL hockey games and the recent introduction of the "Metropolitan Opera _ Live in High Definition" series also drove revenues.

"We had originally launched the opera in 24 locations with one screen each and we very quickly expanded that … to the point where our Sheppard Grande theatre in Toronto had four screens sell out" simultaneously, said Cineplex spokeswoman Pat Marshall in a phone interview.

She said the opera event drew audiences that hadn’t been to a movie theatre in years.

"The common remarks were that some people didn’t even know we had stadium auditoriums. It had been that long since they’d been in a theatre," she said.

Revenue figures for the special events weren’t publicly disclosed.

The Metropolitan Opera is still negotiating a second season of live opera programs, which were beamed to theatres around the world.

Cineplex CEO Ellis Jacob said the company is looking into hosting future special events, such as summer concerts, though the programs are traditionally used to fill weaker periods rather than the booming movie seasons.

"With the screens being as busy as they are, it’s better that we have these programs in a weaker month, from a box-office perspective," he said.

Cineplex is looking towards the summer for what the industry expects will be a surge in earnings as a rush of sequels invade theatres. In the next three weeks alone, hot titles like "Spider-Man 3" and "Shrek the Third" will be released. After that, lucrative franchises will unspool titles like "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End" and "Rush Hour 3," to name only a few.

Industry analysts have been predicting that the summer movie season 2007 could drive profits to a new high for Hollywood.

Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund owns 75.7 per cent of Cineplex Entertainment LP, which owns, leases or has a joint-venture interest in 128 theatres with 1,290 screens serving about 60 million customers annually.

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Headline, Industry News

Cineplex boost in adult attendence

TORONTO (CP) _ A strong slate of adult-skewed films and alternative programming like big-screen hockey and opera helped movie exhibitor Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund (TSX:CGX.UN) cut its first-quarter loss to $3.8 million from a year-ago $8.9 million.

Films like the warrior-themed hit "300" drew older audiences, boosting adult attendance numbers to 57 per cent of the total mix, from 53 per cent a year earlier.

"This shift has had an impact on both our average ticket price and concession per patron amount," chief financial officer Gord Nelson said Tuesday in a conference call.

For the period ended March 31, concession stands sold $52.3 million worth of goodies, from $49 million a year earlier. Total quarterly revenue rose 9.8 per cent to $178.6 million, from $162.7 million. Cineplex Media, which handles on-screen and lobby advertising and is a major profit driver, reported a revenue increase of 23.7 per cent.

Cineplex Galaxy also announced it has hiked its monthly distributions to 10 cents a unit, from 9.58 cents. That move is effective for May, to be paid June 29 to unitholders of record as of May 31 and amounting to an annual rate of $1.20 per unit, up from the current annual rate of $1.1496.

Cineplex box-office numbers climbed 9.6 per cent in the quarter, handily beating the overall Canadian box-office increase of about three per cent.

Company units rose 20 cents to $17.60 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The earnings report capped off a quarter that was notably strong across North America, with a lineup of diverse films and Hollywood productions with big-name stars, such as "Ghost Rider" starring Nicolas Cage.

Meanwhile, Imax (TSX:IMX) was showing a giant-screen version of "300" for a somewhat higher ticket price during the quarter, funnelling in more revenue.

Continued success from big-screen showings of NHL hockey games and the recent introduction of the "Metropolitan Opera _ Live in High Definition" series also drove revenues.

"We had originally launched the opera in 24 locations with one screen each and we very quickly expanded that … to the point where our Sheppard Grande theatre in Toronto had four screens sell out" simultaneously, said Cineplex spokeswoman Pat Marshall in a phone interview.

She said the opera event drew audiences that hadn’t been to a movie theatre in years.

"The common remarks were that some people didn’t even know we had stadium auditoriums. It had been that long since they’d been in a theatre," she said.

Revenue figures for the special events weren’t publicly disclosed.

The Metropolitan Opera is still negotiating a second season of live opera programs, which were beamed to theatres around the world.

Cineplex CEO Ellis Jacob said the company is looking into hosting future special events, such as summer concerts, though the programs are traditionally used to fill weaker periods rather than the booming movie seasons.

"With the screens being as busy as they are, it’s better that we have these programs in a weaker month, from a box-office perspective," he said.

Cineplex is looking towards the summer for what the industry expects will be a surge in earnings as a rush of sequels invade theatres. In the next three weeks alone, hot titles like "Spider-Man 3" and "Shrek the Third" will be released. After that, lucrative franchises will unspool titles like "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End" and "Rush Hour 3," to name only a few.

Industry analysts have been predicting that the summer movie season 2007 could drive profits to a new high for Hollywood.

Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund owns 75.7 per cent of Cineplex Entertainment LP, which owns, leases or has a joint-venture interest in 128 theatres with 1,290 screens serving about 60 million customers annually.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Headline, Industry News

Cineplex boost in adult attendence

TORONTO (CP) _ A strong slate of adult-skewed films and alternative programming like big-screen hockey and opera helped movie exhibitor Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund (TSX:CGX.UN) cut its first-quarter loss to $3.8 million from a year-ago $8.9 million.

Films like the warrior-themed hit "300" drew older audiences, boosting adult attendance numbers to 57 per cent of the total mix, from 53 per cent a year earlier.

"This shift has had an impact on both our average ticket price and concession per patron amount," chief financial officer Gord Nelson said Tuesday in a conference call.

For the period ended March 31, concession stands sold $52.3 million worth of goodies, from $49 million a year earlier. Total quarterly revenue rose 9.8 per cent to $178.6 million, from $162.7 million. Cineplex Media, which handles on-screen and lobby advertising and is a major profit driver, reported a revenue increase of 23.7 per cent.

Cineplex Galaxy also announced it has hiked its monthly distributions to 10 cents a unit, from 9.58 cents. That move is effective for May, to be paid June 29 to unitholders of record as of May 31 and amounting to an annual rate of $1.20 per unit, up from the current annual rate of $1.1496.

Cineplex box-office numbers climbed 9.6 per cent in the quarter, handily beating the overall Canadian box-office increase of about three per cent.

Company units rose 20 cents to $17.60 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The earnings report capped off a quarter that was notably strong across North America, with a lineup of diverse films and Hollywood productions with big-name stars, such as "Ghost Rider" starring Nicolas Cage.

Meanwhile, Imax (TSX:IMX) was showing a giant-screen version of "300" for a somewhat higher ticket price during the quarter, funnelling in more revenue.

Continued success from big-screen showings of NHL hockey games and the recent introduction of the "Metropolitan Opera _ Live in High Definition" series also drove revenues.

"We had originally launched the opera in 24 locations with one screen each and we very quickly expanded that … to the point where our Sheppard Grande theatre in Toronto had four screens sell out" simultaneously, said Cineplex spokeswoman Pat Marshall in a phone interview.

She said the opera event drew audiences that hadn’t been to a movie theatre in years.

"The common remarks were that some people didn’t even know we had stadium auditoriums. It had been that long since they’d been in a theatre," she said.

Revenue figures for the special events weren’t publicly disclosed.

The Metropolitan Opera is still negotiating a second season of live opera programs, which were beamed to theatres around the world.

Cineplex CEO Ellis Jacob said the company is looking into hosting future special events, such as summer concerts, though the programs are traditionally used to fill weaker periods rather than the booming movie seasons.

"With the screens being as busy as they are, it’s better that we have these programs in a weaker month, from a box-office perspective," he said.

Cineplex is looking towards the summer for what the industry expects will be a surge in earnings as a rush of sequels invade theatres. In the next three weeks alone, hot titles like "Spider-Man 3" and "Shrek the Third" will be released. After that, lucrative franchises will unspool titles like "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End" and "Rush Hour 3," to name only a few.

Industry analysts have been predicting that the summer movie season 2007 could drive profits to a new high for Hollywood.

Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund owns 75.7 per cent of Cineplex Entertainment LP, which owns, leases or has a joint-venture interest in 128 theatres with 1,290 screens serving about 60 million customers annually.

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Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

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