When MoviePass was first founded in 2011, it had a relatively simple business model: a subscription service for theatrically released movies, where members would pay a monthly fee in exchange for a kind of all-you-can-eat buffet of movies. The idea was to bring theaters on board with a profit-sharing system that would benefit both the theaters and the service. But theater chains were immediately resistant, and MoviePass’ experiments with various pricing tiers — some as much as $50 a month — only drew small numbers of subscribers.
But shortly after analytics firm Helios and Matheson acquired a majority stake in the company in August 2017, MoviePass dropped its monthly rate below $10 for a subscription that offered users one movie ticket per day. The gambit brought in millions of subscribers, which CEO Mitch Lowe openly hoped would force theaters to cooperate with the company. Since then, MoviePass has undergone a wide variety of public experiments in revenue generation, as it tries to disrupt the movie industry without going bankrupt. Follow along with the latest MoviePass news here.
The execs behind the MoviePass debacle are now facing criminal charges
Prosecutors allege Mitch Lowe and Ted Farnsworth knew all along that MoviePass couldn’t make a profit offering its $9.95 ‘unlimited’ plan to watch movies in theaters but lied to investors about it.
You can now sign up for whatever the new MoviePass is going to be
Some movies, some places, for some money
MoviePass’ co-founder has bought back the company and wants to relaunch it next year
MoviePass could be staging a comeback
MoviePass is deader than ever as parent company officially goes bankrupt
The end of MoviePass is finally, actually here
Why MoviePass really failed
An industry-shaking idea, and a company that flew directly into the sun
Thousands of MoviePass customers’ credit card numbers were exposed online
MoviePass has since removed the database
MoviePass reportedly changed account passwords to prevent users from seeing films
The company’s model was bankrupting it
MoviePass has shut down for ‘several weeks’ to update its app
‘There’s never a good time to have to do this’
MoviePass brings back unlimited plan with heavy caveats
The cinema subscription service reserves the right to limit your selection
MoviePass will launch three new subscription plans in January
All tiers offer three showings a month, but you get more choice the more you pay
MoviePass is staffed by dogs now, apparently
And the ‘director of Barketing’ apologizes for the ‘ruff’ year
MoviePass’ parent company being investigated over fraud concerns
The New York attorney general’s office is using the state’s Martin Act to investigate
MoviePass subscribers aren’t going to the movies, and that’s what MoviePass wants
At least the company is being transparent about it
MoviePass is now forcing former users to opt out of new plan or risk being charged
When you think it can’t get any worse
MoviePass forces annual subscribers into monthly memberships
All previous annual plans have been converted to limited monthly ones, to ‘capture the needs of the community’
The new MoviePass plan has arrived, and it’s weird
The latest plan: offer a list of six specific movies per day to subscribers ‘for the time being’
MoviePass posts huge quarterly loss, shareholders sue
The company’s quarterly losses jumped from less than $3 million to $126.6 million in a year
MoviePass is opting some users into its new plan even after they cancel
The company now claims it was a bug
MoviePass will limit users to just three movies a month starting on August 15th
‘I am altering the deal. Pray I don’t alter it any further’
Jul 31, 2018Patricia Hernandez
MoviePass’ latest survival plan: increase prices, gut first-run movie access
It’s pass or fail time for the struggling subscription service
MoviePass was down last night because it ran out of money
It borrowed $5 million to stay afloat, but it looks like the end is nigh — again
MoviePass is using you to ruin the movies
Disruption isn’t always the best solution
MoviePass says it will refund users who were affected by last night’s outage
It’s not a good look for a Friday movie night
Jun 21, 2018Patricia Hernandez
MoviePass will start to surge prices for popular movies in July
Seeing a hot new film will incur an additional fee
Jun 20, 2018Patricia Hernandez
AMC is launching a MoviePass-like subscription service
It’ll be twice as expensive, but it boasts fewer restrictions than MoviePass
Today’s SEC filing suggests MoviePass’ time is running out
Dwindling cash reserves could spell doom for the increasingly erratic service
MoviePass is bringing back its unlimited plan
Just two weeks ago, CEO Mitch Lowe said he “didn’t know” if the unlimited plan would ever be coming back
MoviePass is no longer too good to be true
Restrictions on seeing movies more than once, and no longer selling its one-movie-per-day plan, are bad signs
MoviePass auditor has doubts about the company’s business model after significant losses
But CEO Mitch Lowe has said the company will be profitable by 2019
MoviePass CEO formally apologizes for controversial location-tracking comments
‘At MoviePass, we take customer privacy extremely seriously’
MoviePass updates iOS app to remove ‘unused’ location-tracking features
The update comes days after MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe claimed the app was tracking users’ locations
MoviePass says it’s ‘exploring’ gathering location data on users, but it won’t sell it
The ticket subscription company has responded to claims it violates users’ privacy
MoviePass won’t let its customers buy tickets to Red Sparrow in some markets
The all-you-can-watch movie app is playing hardball again
MoviePass’ claims about its importance to AMC Theatres are grossly deceptive
Why is a data-analytics company playing fast and loose with facts?
MoviePass pulls support from popular AMC theaters
The subscription service hangs its customers out to dry
MoviePass launches a new division to acquire and distribute movies
The startup wants to start investing in film
