Food for thought for multiplexes

A recent qualitative research that was commissioned by Fun Cinemas, with the help of the Indian Market Research Bureau (IMRB) has thrown up several interesting pointers to understand the out of home entertainment space and to gauge consumer interactions with multiplex cinema as an entertainment avenue.

1. The study finds out that for most consumers, while the agenda is the movie, it is an entertainment trip not just restricted to movies. While whether the consumers are movie driven or multiplex driven is a question that remains debatable, the study clearly indicates that multiplexes should focus on value added services to draw the customer, who is seeking to spend good quality leisure time, apart from the movie itself.
   
   
2. Noting that the trickiest of all factors that contribute to customer satisfaction is the pricing, the study notes that when rates of admission touched Rs 200, it was noted as expensive. However, the irony is that when the pricing is affordable, the multiplex is seen as having a non premium image. The study notes that it is a tough call for the multiplexes to maintain a balance between affordability and a premium image.
   
   
3. For a family of young adults (married), it is quite clearly the child who is the decision maker regarding which movie to watch. Once the decision is taken, families play safe by insisting on advance booking. The study concludes that this is an indicator of the efficient and varied booking facilities that a multiplex needs to offer.

For the study, students (18-21 years), first jobbers (22-24years ) and young adults/ family (in the age group of 25-35 years), were used as sample groups. Select multiplexes were chosen in Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Lucknow for the study.