Home Entertainment Theatres might soon allow texting during movies

Theatres might soon allow texting during movies

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You’ve got your movie ticket, you’ve got your seat, your popcorn and beverage, and you can’t wait to watch Ben Stiller in Scorcher 7 : The Re-Freezening.

But as the lights go dark and the Dolby assaults your ear-drums, you see it. A wave of fluorescent square-shaped lights, attacking your eyes with a blinding luminescence, while the tapping of OMG keystrokes drowns out the action.

Gentlemen, this might soon be a reality, if theatres allow for cell phones to be used inside again.

Deadline reported this week that a panel on industry issues was held at CinemaCon, where some theatre chain execs talked about about allowing texting and cell phone use back inside.

Regal Entertainment CEO Amy Miles commented such a move would appeal to younger viewers, as it would offer the tweens something that other cinemas couldn’t.

If we had a movie that appealed to a younger demographic, we could test some of these concepts. You’re trying to figure out if there’s something you can offer in the theater that I would not find appealing but my 18 year old son might.

Greg Foster, of IMAX, kind of agreed with this, commenting on how his 17 year old son was constantly using a phone.

We want them to pay $12 to $14 to come into an auditorium and watch a movie. But they’ve become accustomed to controlling their own existence.

One lone voice of reason spoke up though, in the form of Tim League from the Alamo Drafthouse, who explained that he would be considering a boots to asses approach to cell phones being used inside one of his cinemas;

Over my dead body will I introduce texting into the movie theater. I love the idea of playing around with a new concept. But that is the scourge of our industry… It’s our job to understand that this is a sacred space and we have to teach manners.

While cinemas need to draw in younger audiences, in order to make a profit, they also need to realise that waiving rules such as this will hurt everyone else who goes to the movies to escape from such distractions.

It’s not that kids feel like they are unnecessarily restricted, but that certain rules should apply to everyone.

Last Updated: April 26, 2012

5 Comments

  1. Tracy Benson

    April 26, 2012 at 14:14

    Noooo no no no cellphones in cinemas are the bane of every movie goer’s existence. It’s not about feeling included or excluded because of certain rules, it’s about paying attention to what’s on the goddamn screen. Even if your phone isn’t ringing, it’s still a hell of a distraction for the people around you. 

    Reply

    • Gareth Lagesse

      April 26, 2012 at 15:10

      I agree completely, and this is why I wait for movies to be released on Blu-ray / DVD. Sure, I see them 2-4 months later than everyone else, but the whole cinema experience is so discouraging and uninviting these days.

      I feel like I’m off to the dentist or similarly put-off each time I approach those theatre doors. 😛

      Reply

      • Tracy Benson

        April 26, 2012 at 15:25

        I feel the same sometimes. It’s the forced co-habitation with other people that puts me off, I sound very OCD but I find it difficult to sit next to strangers in a forced silence with the chompy chewing noise of popcorn and the whispers and the shifting in your seat and yes, the cellphone screens lighting up. I love the big screen and the surround sound and so on, but I can’t weigh that against actually being in the cinema. That’s why I would rather wait for a movie to be on circuit for a while, then go to a weird showing time like a Saturday morning so the cinemas are emptier

        Reply

  2. theLastBorn

    April 26, 2012 at 15:42

    no, f that s… if anything they should have devices that block cellphone reception within cinemas although you could argue that for safety reasons that’s a bad idea…
    but seriously, people that talk/sms/look at a cellphone need boots up the butt, even the cellphone light is distracting to everyone in view…
    terrible idea, here’s hoping it never happens!

    Reply

    • No Shit

      April 28, 2012 at 22:28

      Funny how billions of ppl have watched movies before the existence of cellphones and they all survived the ordeal…

      Anyway, cellphones and crap theatre equipment are the 2 biggest reasons I’ve stopped going to the cinema. I have a far superior experience in my home with my home theatre setup – 55″ 1080p, 3D, 7 channel surround with 2 subs and a comfotable spot for my ass… pwned

      Reply

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