Going to themoviesused to be a fun , cheap time out – a good day of the month idea or a path to entertain the kids on a showery afternoon . of late , though , it seems like you much have to drop a week’spaycheckto screening a few tickets and enjoy a little popcorn . As of July 2014 , the countrywide average price of a pic tag was more than $ 8.00 , but in metropolitan area , a just the ticket can cost more than $ 10 [ source : Cunningham ] . And we ’re just peach regular film here , not IMAX or 3 - D , for which tickets can cost between $ 15 and $ 20 apiece .
Why are movie tickets so expensive ? Who makes the money : the movie theater or the movie studio ? Typically , theatre of operations and studios cleave the proceeds of tag sales , but the theater set the ticket cost . theatre in reality make the legal age of their money on grant , which is why you find oneself yourself pay outrageous toll for popcorn , tonic and candy . Historically , movie theater of operations have increased the Leontyne Price of concessions rather than tag .
But late , many theatre have raised their slate terms ( especially for premium movie experiences ) so as to brood expense for upgrading to 3 - D projectors and other technologies . These surcharge can make seeing an IMAX film quite expensive . For illustration , at the time of this writing , purchase an IMAX movie ticket cost $ 21.50 in New York City . That mean if you want to take your family of four to see an IMAX motion picture , you ’re spend $ 86 – and that ’s without a undivided bag of popcorn [ source : Sampson ] !
The steady rise of movie ticket prices is part of a brutal cycle . Moviegoers just are n’t decease to the cinema as much any longer ; instead , they ’re redeem their money and look on movies via rain buckets services or on - demand in the comfort of their own homes . To attempt to lure their customer back , theaters are offering good viewing experiences , like luxury seating , full - service menus , reserve seats and more . field of operations need to pay for these rise somehow – and that ’s reflected in a gamy ticket terms . See how it just go around and around ?
It seems everyone is a loser in this scenario . However , an emerging business mannikin might offer an interesting solution . A newfangled company called Movie Heroes offers a subscription - based service to smaller movie theaters . or else of paying for a ticket every meter people see a picture show , they pay a monthly subscription fee that allows them to see as many movie as they want . When enough people sign up , field have a stabilize revenue current . The company ’s first customer , a theater in California , increased taxation from $ 700,000 to $ 1.5 million after signing up with Movie Heroes [ reference : Pomerantz ] .
At the minute , subscription - based services lend themselves best to small , independent theaters , but the example is an attractive one . Could it bring down the price of movie tickets without decreasing the quality of a blockbuster movie experience ? The future tense will tell . In the lag , save some money by opting for matinees and bargain showings .
