Yesterday, everyone on my Facebook feed was hype about the trailer of Hidden Figures starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Janelle Monáe; an untold true story of black, female scientists at NASA. I’ve never seen so many proclamations of being first in line to buy tickets since the last Star Wars was released. Which is a signifier that movie going isn’t dead; it’s the content and the experience that need reexamining. And Atom Tickets has come to remedy half of the problem.
Atom Tickets is the newest mobile ticketing application for theatres that redefine the way see films. The app takes all the hassle of going to the cinema – finding film trailers to see if you want watch that film, buying everyone’s tickets and hoping everyone brings cash to pay you back, inviting friends, waiting in long concession lines – and handles it for you. So all the headache that steered us away from Friday night movies, or to frown at dates to the cinema has been remedied; leaving time to enjoy the company you’re with. Even if that means going stag!
Recently, we had Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of ATOM Tickets, Matthew Bakal, answer some integral queries on ATOM Tickets in correlation with the experiential aspect of the movie industry.
Where did the idea of ATOM come from?
As a former executive at Lionsgate Entertainment, I saw an opportunity in the fact that there are over 5 billion unsold seats in the United States and Canada every year. As a movie industry, we should be better about connecting with our consumers and making it easier for them to come to the movies. A mutual friend connected me with Ameesh Paleja, a longtime Amazon executive. The DNA of the company is truly Hollywood meets Silicon Valley, and we created an innovative solution to make it more convenient for people to go to the movies. We tested and proved that when you remove the pain points in planning a night at the movies, people go more frequently.
How does this platform, or ticket purchasing option, differ from the other companies offering purchase before you go?
We are different than any current ticket buying app or service. By focusing on the needs and desires of the consumer first, we’ve created a mobile, social, movie ticketing platform that makes it easy to plan a night out with friends, pre-order tickets and concessions, and skip the lines. Our goal is to connect movie fans with content that resonates with them and a solution that will help them throughout their entire movie-planning process. Our app also focuses on streamlining and making the whole movie-going experience more social and convenient. Consumers use their phones to choose a movie and location that’s convenient for them, invite friends and family (without having to pay for anyone else), and order concessions, which will be ready when you walk into the theater.
Since it’s all app based, so no printout, will this be available for all theatres in the city? Is there an expectation of rolling out nationwide?
Currently we’ve partnered with every AMC Theatre and Regal Cinema in the city, and we will be nationwide by Labor Day. We are also actively working with other exhibitors to grow our list of local theater partners.
How do you think this will change the way people watch movies or the experience of going?
We’ve created a convenient way for people to plan a night out at the movies that benefits all moviegoers including millennials, busy professionals, families and large groups. Customers can buy movie tickets, pre-order concessions, invite friends (without having to pay for them), easily discover new movies, browse trailers, read reviews, all from within the app. There are no paper tickets and no hassling with IOUs. Best of all, you get to skip the lines at the theater. Movie going is a great American experience, a fun night out; so we’re adding the convenience of Uber to encourage you to go a bit more often.
Do you think it will benefit the current decline in moviegoers?
We have found that when you make going to the movies easier, people go more often. Our customers tell us on Facebook and Twitter every day. Please try Atom; we think you’ll love it.
[For a limited time, New York movie fans can download the free app on iOS or Android to receive their first ticket for free to see some of the most anticipated summer releases.]