Cineplex was fined $39 million for deceptive marketing practices by the Competition Tribunal on the 23rd of this month but have stated that they would appeal it according to a press release issued that same day, so consumers will probably continue paying the $1.50 online convenience fees until further notice.
Personally, I’ve decided to simply go with discounted tickets and gift cards from Costco to counteract the fee. But I of course have a local Landmark Theatre so I’m in a better position than some. And theatres are closing.
Cine Starz is down to five theatres and Cineplex recently closed their theatre in Brockville, the community’s only movie theatre, so the industry is in serious trouble, especially the independent theatres according to a recent study.
The recent addition of foreign films to the major theatre chains could help but most European films appear to still be limited to the smaller indie theatres, which are usually downtown, so more could be done to get people into seats. But I don’t think nickel and dime schemes will be tolerated by most consumers.
Home premiere releases have already resulted in a significant drop in attendance and consequently concession sale losses yet they thought this fee would somehow not be perceived as negative by consumers?
I don’t get it. And like many consumers I’m getting quite picky when it comes to films because of trope fatigue so they’ll need to somehow counteract these fees, if not drop them entirely for members of their loyalty programs, at least.
