AMC Entertainment Holdings
said Thursday it wasn’t moving forward with a controversial rollout of premium-priced seats in its movie theaters.
AMC said tests of the pricing plan, which charged higher prices for the best seats at its theaters, will end in the coming weeks. It won’t continue the practice at test theaters and won’t introduce the plan nationwide.
The company said tests of its Sightline program revealed that more than three out of four people who previously bought tickets in preferred seat sections chose to sit in those sections even at a slightly higher price. It said more than one of out 10 people bought tickets outside the preferred seating areas at no additional charge. The firm said it saw little or no increase in patronage of front row seating, where ticket prices are lower.
Instead, the firm plans to attract patrons to the front row of the theater by investing in better seats with more extensive recliners.
“Large, comfortable lounge style seating areas will allow guests to lay all the way back and relax,” the company said. “The angle of the seats will also make it more enjoyable to watch movies from these front row seats closest to the screen.”
AMC’s plans to charge more for certain seats drew some ire online when it was announced. The theater operator is looking to turn itself around after the pandemic shut down theaters and weighed on the firm’s balance sheet.
AMC was able to raise cash selling stock, especially after a wave of retail investor enthusiasm sent shares soaring. AMC is known as a meme stock, because it has attracted an online following of investors who hold on to shares and post inside jokes on social media sites taunting short sellers betting against the stock.
AMC stock was down 0.7% in after-hours trading after dropping 0.9% in Thursday trading. The stock is up 6.4% so far this year but down 59% in the past 12 months.
Write to Connor Smith at connor.smith@barrons.com
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