MoviePass Suspends Service To Revamp App

With MoviePass suspending its service for “improvements” to its service, the end could reportedly be in sight for the movie theater subscription service. The offering went from having 3 million users in its ranks to approximately around 225,000 in April, CNBC reported.

The company wrote on its website, “For the past several months, MoviePass has been working hard to improve our groundbreaking subscription service to ensure it meets the vision that we have for it.” It continued, “We are temporarily not accepting new subscribers as we work on these improvements.”

And the company replied to questions on Twitter from users by pointing out that the “process will take several weeks.” Users on Twitter noted their complaints about the company temporarily closing its app. Some said they were questioning how they could cancel their memberships if they can’t access the website or app. The abrupt closure of the app came as a surprise for people who still tap into MoviePass.

At the same time, the report noted that movie theaters are creating and deploying loyalty programs. AMC Theatre’s Stubs A-List subscription-based offering has over 860,000 members as of June’s end. Cinemark’s Movie Club counts over a half a million subscribers, while Regal Cinemas is said to be set to roll out an unlimited movie ticket subscription of its own.

The news comes as MoviePass announced in March its intention to “implement a new business model” and focus on a “new business strategy going forward.” Back in the good old days, MoviePass was known best for providing consumers with a $9 subscription on a monthly basis for an “all-they-could-view” selection of movies in the theater for that month. The company reportedly received no special discount offer from the theaters and was said to pay the retail price of the tickets. Previous reports have pointed out that average movie ticket in the U.S. costs approximately $9.