It’s a tough time for movie theatres. Not only are they unable to make any money now as a result of worldwide closures in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19, but with movie studios perhaps embracing other release mechanisms in the future, there’s no guarantee of box office blockbuster ticket sales for them even when they are allowed to open up again.
Perhaps it’s no surprise that with no current revenue and a tough outlook on their future, that stocks are at an all-time low for some of the world’s biggest cinema chains, such as AMC (although you could argue that their recent feud with Universal didn’t help either). As a result, their low share price also means that AMC is now a prime target for acquisition as companies that still believe in the future of the arts could perhaps pick them up for a bargain.
And one company that seemingly believes in the future of the movie theatre business is one of those who have been accused of taking businesses away from them, in the form of Amazon. According to Screen Rant, Amazon is considering purchasing the beleaguered cinema chain. And although no decision has been finalised, talks are ongoing and an offer to AMC shareholders might be made in the near future if these discussions develop further.
For Amazon, this will not be the first time they have shown interest in purchasing movie theatres, as they had previously considered buying Landmark Theatres but they eventually lost out to the Cohen Media Group. AMC is a lot larger though and would give Amazon a massive piece of the global theatre market. While it might seem odd for a company with its own streaming network, the company has shown that it is willing to play nice with the studios unlike some of the other streaming services like Netflix. It would also not be the first time Amazon has tried to take on both sides of a market space after having acquired Whole Foods in the US five years ago, which put them in both the online and in-store retail market.
What innovations could they possibly bring to the theatre game though that could make it not just a better experience for consumers, but a more profitable one though, would be interesting to see. This is all speculation for now of course, but things could be interesting to see what a big tech company could do for the movie theatre market and especially if it would have any impact on our own local movie theatre companies.
Last Updated: May 12, 2020
