Talk about a rip off, going to the movies has become so expensive I don't even have a clue why people even go anymore, the prices of 3D movies are surging, in some cases tickets are going up as much as 26%. If consumers were smart enough they would cut back on overpriced movies that come to DVD 2 months later and buying overpriced water at $5 a bottle. As long as the consumer is dumb enough to pay these prices, prices will continue to surge.
Mar 26, 2010
Theaters raise ticket prices for 'Dragon' in 3D
09:35 AM
Brace yourself for some sticker shock this weekend if you head to the movie theater to see the new Dreamworks Animation film, How to Train Your Dragon -- especially if you want to see it in 3D. Theaters are jacking up ticket prices by as much as 26% for the flick, according to spot checks by two Wall Street analysts.
By AP
Following the success of Avatar and Alice in Wonderland, theater owners believe that "consumers are so 'hungry' for 3D contentâ¦that they will not mind paying substantially higher prices," says Richard Greenfield of investment firm BTIG in a report this week.
His random survey of 10 theaters in different cities found prices up 4.1% for an adult ticket to the 2D version of Dragon, 8.3% for a conventional 3D version, and 9.9% for Imax 3-D.
An AMC theater in Boston is charging $14.40 for a child to see Dragon in Imax-3D, up from $11.50 for a similar ticket for Alice.
J.P. Morgan's Vasily Karasyov reports similar results this morning from his own check of prices in 10 markets. Tickets for Dragon in 3D cost about $3.80 more than they did for the same flick in 2D. That 3D premium is about 15% higher than theaters were getting for Alice, and 7% higher than for Avatar.
The higher prices may be important for Dreamworks, which has a lot riding on Dragon's fire-breathing power. 3D screens are still in short supply, and Dragon could lose a lot of them next weekend when Clash of the Titans opens.
What's more, early tracking of audience interest in Dragon "is lower than hoped, below last year's Monsters vs. Aliens," Lazard Capital Markets analyst Barton Crockett says this morning. Although those surveys are "notoriously inaccurate" and Dragon could benefit from strong reviews, the findings are "consistent with our nagging sense that buzz has been less than we had expected," he says.
The bottom line: Crockett sees "more risk than we had hoped that the movie could miss our opening weekend estimate of $61 million. Anything below $55 million we believe would weigh on (Dreamworks Animation) shares. Anything above $65 million we believe would be positive."
Mar 26, 2010
Theaters raise ticket prices for 'Dragon' in 3D
09:35 AM
Brace yourself for some sticker shock this weekend if you head to the movie theater to see the new Dreamworks Animation film, How to Train Your Dragon -- especially if you want to see it in 3D. Theaters are jacking up ticket prices by as much as 26% for the flick, according to spot checks by two Wall Street analysts.
By AP
Following the success of Avatar and Alice in Wonderland, theater owners believe that "consumers are so 'hungry' for 3D contentâ¦that they will not mind paying substantially higher prices," says Richard Greenfield of investment firm BTIG in a report this week.
His random survey of 10 theaters in different cities found prices up 4.1% for an adult ticket to the 2D version of Dragon, 8.3% for a conventional 3D version, and 9.9% for Imax 3-D.
An AMC theater in Boston is charging $14.40 for a child to see Dragon in Imax-3D, up from $11.50 for a similar ticket for Alice.
J.P. Morgan's Vasily Karasyov reports similar results this morning from his own check of prices in 10 markets. Tickets for Dragon in 3D cost about $3.80 more than they did for the same flick in 2D. That 3D premium is about 15% higher than theaters were getting for Alice, and 7% higher than for Avatar.
The higher prices may be important for Dreamworks, which has a lot riding on Dragon's fire-breathing power. 3D screens are still in short supply, and Dragon could lose a lot of them next weekend when Clash of the Titans opens.
What's more, early tracking of audience interest in Dragon "is lower than hoped, below last year's Monsters vs. Aliens," Lazard Capital Markets analyst Barton Crockett says this morning. Although those surveys are "notoriously inaccurate" and Dragon could benefit from strong reviews, the findings are "consistent with our nagging sense that buzz has been less than we had expected," he says.
The bottom line: Crockett sees "more risk than we had hoped that the movie could miss our opening weekend estimate of $61 million. Anything below $55 million we believe would weigh on (Dreamworks Animation) shares. Anything above $65 million we believe would be positive."
