Because turning off your phone for two hours seems like an impossible task to millennials, AMC is considering opening movie theaters that are texting-friendly.
In an interview with Variety[1], AMC's new CEO Adam Aron said he's considering opening mobile-friendly auditoriums in order to motivate millennials to go to the movies more often.
"When you tell a 22-year-old to turn off the phone, don't ruin the movie, they hear 'please cut off your left arm above the elbow," Aron said. "You can't tell a 22-year-old to turn off their cellphone. That's not how they live their life."
Brand New Images/Getty Images AMC wants to open texting-friendly movie theaters for millennials.
Aron said they would try and implement this new idea without disturbing today's audiences who are completely fine with a cellphone-free auditorium. One possibility is opening specific auditoriums that are mobile-friendly; another option is just having a specific section for texting.
"We need to reshape our product in some concrete ways so that millennials go to movie theaters with the same degree of intensity as baby boomers went to movie theaters throughout their lives," Aron said.
However, mobile-friendly movie theaters pose a different threat: bootleggers. The use of cellphones could potentially lead to more movies being filmed-especially with phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S7, which has the memory capable of recording and storing full length movies.
The Daily News reached out to AMC for comment, but did not immediately get a response.
Upon the news hitting the web, Aron went on Twitter to clarify his idea.
Press reported we considering a test allowing texts in a VERY FEW screens. We know vast majority of audience wants no texting (1 of 2)
— Adam Aron (@CEOAdam) April 14, 2016[2]
IF ever, we ONLY would pursue in a way we'd be TOTALLY confident ALL our guests will fully enjoy movie going experience at AMC (2 of 2)
— Adam Aron (@CEOAdam) April 14, 2016[3]
References
- ^ Variety (variety.com)
- ^ April 14, 2016 (twitter.com)
- ^ April 14, 2016 (twitter.com)
- ^ technology (www.nydailynews.com)
Source → AMC to consider texting-friendly movie theatres to attract more millennials
