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- We have a cinema at home: a third of the audience does not go to the movies because of ticket prices
We have a cinema at home: a third of the audience does not go to the movies because of ticket prices
They stopped going to cinemas or they go much less often — this is the response of a third of the participants in the audience survey, which was conducted by the Wanta Group company on behalf of Izvestia. Because the average ticket price has increased by almost a hundred rubles over the year. Bottom line: in the first quarter of 2025, the fewest tickets were sold in the last three years — less than 40 million. Izvestia figured out what to do for viewers who do not want to pay more and cinemas that cannot work with empty halls.
Movie tickets will get more expensive
Russians are saving on movies because of the rise in ticket prices. These conclusions were reached by the Wanta Group, which, commissioned by Izvestia, conducted an audience survey in April. The opinion of respondents from cities with a population of more than one hundred thousand people and over the age of twelve was taken into account.
According to the survey, 16% of respondents continue to go to cinemas in the same way as last year, and they do so largely thanks to the discount system. The latter include the Pushkin Card and special offers for students. A significant part of the respondents — 39% — optimized their expenses. They buy tickets for promotions, refuse related services, including spending in the cinema bar, but, most importantly, choose cheaper halls than before. Simply put, they are looking for economy cinemas, sacrificing the quality of the screening and comfort.
At the same time, a third of the respondents completely abandoned going to the cinema or began to do it less often. As Maria Shcherbal, CEO of the Wanta Group, told Izvestia, the trend is especially noticeable among categories without access to preferential programs. We are talking about a part of the youth aged 25-34 and people over 35.
"The observed dynamics confirms that the availability of discount mechanisms plays a key role in maintaining consumer loyalty: where opportunities for savings are limited, the likelihood of a complete rejection of the service increases," Maria Shcherbal told Izvestia.
The EAIS data also indicates a rise in ticket prices. So, on April 23 of this year, the average price of going to the cinema was 417 rubles. On the same date in 2024, the ticket cost an average of 343 rubles. Against the background of rising ticket prices, we have to talk about low cinema attendance. In the first quarter of 2025, the minimum number of tickets for the last three years was sold. In the period from January to March, 39.3 million viewers visited cinemas, which is less than during the period of coronavirus restrictions, experts say.
Alexey Voronkov, head of the Cinema Owners Association, sees the reason for the low attendance in the first quarter in the absence of adult content and regular high-profile premieres.
"There was no adult content for the New Year," he explains. — Only children's films were released during the holidays — "The Wizard of Oz. The yellow brick Road" and "Finist. The first hero". Christmas Trees 11 were standing close to the holidays, they collected more than a billion. But they were released in December," Alexey Voronkov told Izvestia. — The children's content worked more than enough, but it wasn't enough to show fantastic traffic results for the first quarter.
Alexey Voronkov also spoke about the increase in ticket prices, which he considers the norm.
— Prices are rising for everything, this is normal. There have been no sharp jumps in movie ticket prices since 2014. And if we look at the occupancy rate during the New Year holidays, no one was confused by the prices of 500-600 rubles for box-office films, because there were cheaper tickets for other films. If the movie is good, it's not a pity to pay 450-500 rubles for it. If you do not take into account Moscow, then in the regions a cup of coffee in any cafe costs 350-500 rubles.
In the summer, moviegoers may face new shocks: the average ticket price may rise again — Voronkov predicts overcoming the "psychological threshold" of 500 rubles.
— By the middle of 2024, the cost of a movie ticket was 413 rubles. We took into account commercial cinemas. In December, the figure ranged from 467. In the summer, we will get a figure of 500-510 rubles," the expert believes. — At this price, you need to gather at least 15 people for a session. Only then will the cinemas work at least at zero. And you and I know that sometimes two or four people come to the sessions in the morning. Of course, the halls are much more densely packed in the evening.
Another statistic answers the question of how those who have given up cinemas spend their leisure time. According to the GfC-Rus analytical agency, in the first quarter, the share of urban residents using paid subscriptions to online cinemas exceeded 40% for the first time. In total, 54% used subscriptions, which was also a record.
At the same time, the drop in cinema attendance does not seem to fit in with the fees that film screenings bring. For the first quarter of 2025, the total Russian cash register amounted to 17.3 billion rubles, according to the EAIS data. In recent years, the result was better only in 2024 - 18.4 billion.
According to the results of the second and third quarters, it is unlikely to expect high figures: summer is ahead, and distributors are not risking big releases. Cinema owners are hoping for autumn and winter, and then there will be a New Year and Pinocchio. Fortunately, the audience who will go to see this film is not going to give up cinemas yet.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
