Read More《「吃爆米花的人少了」，除了看电影，年轻人在电影院还干什么?》
Positive Reviews: Innovative Cinema Operations Activate the “Second Growth Curve” and Reconstruct a New Scenario for Offline Entertainment Consumption
Against the backdrop of traditional cinemas facing transformation pressure due to changes in the audience structure and the sluggish growth of non – ticket revenue (represented by snack sales such as popcorn), the “themed cinema” strategy and diversified operation model of Poly International Cinema demonstrate the cinema industry’s active exploration to break through in the stock competition. Its innovative practices have not only effectively increased box – office and non – ticket revenue but also redefined the “social attribute” of cinemas, providing a replicable transformation model for the industry.
First of all, the themed cinema strategy precisely captures the “emotional consumption” needs of young audiences, achieving an upgrade from a “movie – watching venue” to a “cultural experience space”. As mentioned in the news, in 2025, the proportion of audiences aged 30 – 39 will reach 40%, becoming the main movie – going group, while the proportion of those under 24 has dropped from 38% in 2019 to 21%. This change means that the audience’s demand for cinemas has shifted from “simply watching movies” to “immersive cultural experiences”. Through activities such as the re – screening of Harry Potter, IP – themed decorations for Zootopia 2, distribution of special items, and stamp – collecting check – ins, Poly Cinema has transformed the cinema into an “offline IP culture community”, successfully attracting cross – regional audiences (some audiences even come after staying in a hotel in advance). This “emotional connection” strategy has not only increased the participation of young audiences (for example, audiences of animated films have stronger spending power) but also extended the user’s stay time through derivative sales and movie – watching group activities, forming a closed – loop of “movie – watching + socializing + consumption”. Data shows that themed cinemas can increase the box – office of the same movie by 40% and significantly increase non – ticket revenue, verifying the commercial value of this model.
Secondly, the diversified operation model expands the boundary of the cinema’s “non – ticket revenue” and breaks through the traditional single – profit structure that relies on popcorn. For a long time, the non – ticket revenue of cinemas has mainly relied on snack sales. However, the news mentions that “fewer people are eating popcorn, and the revenue from derivatives is higher”, reflecting the change in the audience’s consumption preference from “functional consumption” (filling the stomach) to “emotional consumption” (collecting, commemorating, and social sharing). Poly Cinema transforms movie content into tangible physical products through official special items, self – made derivatives, and customized materials for movie – watching groups, which not only satisfies the fans’ sense of “ownership” but also stimulates consumption impulse through limited quantity and scarcity (such as the shortage of special items). For example, during the Harry Potter themed event, audiences came from other cities to get the materials; a derivatives sales area for Zootopia 2 was prepared one month in advance, which all reflect the commercial potential of derivatives as “emotional carriers”. In addition, activities such as cooperation with movie – watching groups and NPC interactions further enhance user stickiness, transforming “one – time movie – watching” into “long – term community operation” and accumulating stable private – domain traffic for the cinema.
Finally, this innovative model promotes the “tripartite collaboration” among cinemas, film studios, and audiences, activating the long – tail value of the film industry. Traditional cinemas’ cooperation with film studios is mostly limited to screening and revenue sharing, while Poly Cinema actively participates in IP operation through its themed cinema strategy – from applying for official materials to self – made decorations and event planning, transforming the film studio’s IP resources into the “fuel” for offline experiences. This not only helps film studios expand the influence of their IPs (such as attracting more audiences to pay attention to the movies) but also upgrades the cinema from a “screening terminal” to an “IP promotion node”, forming a closer industrial cooperation relationship. At the same time, through in – depth interaction with audiences (such as collecting feedback and adjusting activities), the cinema can more accurately grasp market demand, providing data support for subsequent film selection and scheduling (such as a high 50% – 60% screening rate for fan – oriented animated films in the first week), achieving a virtuous cycle of “demand feeding back to supply”.
Negative Reviews: Hidden Worries behind Innovation – IP Dependence, Cost Pressure, and Homogenization Risks
Although Poly Cinema’s innovative model has achieved remarkable results, there are still potential challenges in its operation logic. We need to be vigilant about problems such as over – dependence on IPs, rising operating costs, and activity homogenization, which may affect the sustainability of the model.
Firstly, over – dependence on popular IPs and the fan economy may lead to insufficient anti – risk ability in operation. The core of themed cinemas is “IP attractiveness”, but not all movies have strong IP attributes or a fan base. As mentioned in the news, Poly Cinema “will do themed cinema operations for all movies it deems suitable”, but for non – IP and non – fan – oriented ordinary movies (such as small – and medium – budget art films and real – life themed movies), the effect of themed operation may be greatly reduced. If cinemas overly rely on IP movies, once there is IP aesthetic fatigue in the market (such as the box – office of some sequel movies falling short of expectations in recent years) or fluctuations in the supply of popular IPs, their box – office and non – ticket revenue may face a significant decline risk. In addition, the “high stickiness” and “high volatility” of the fan economy coexist – fan groups are likely to quickly disappear due to negative news about stars or controversial events related to IPs. If cinemas do not establish a diverse user profile, the overall operation may be affected by the fluctuations of a single group.
Secondly, the high – cost investment in themed operation may compress the profit margin. From the details in the news, Poly Cinema’s innovation requires multi – dimensional investment: one is the material cost (such as purchasing derivatives, customized decorations, and designing stamp – collecting seals); the second is the labor cost (such as staff distributing special items, receiving movie – watching groups, and replying to user consultations late at night); the third is the time cost (such as preparing for the derivatives sales area for Zootopia 2 one month in advance). Although non – ticket revenue has increased, it remains to be verified whether these implicit costs can be covered. For example, during the Harry Potter themed event, audiences came from other cities to get the materials, but such “high – spending audiences” may be concentrated on top – tier IPs, and it is doubtful whether ordinary IP events can attract cross – regional audiences. If the event traffic is insufficient to support the cost, the cinema may fall into the trap of inefficient investment of “innovating for the sake of innovation”.
Thirdly, activity homogenization may weaken users’ sense of freshness, leading to a diminishing marginal benefit of the “check – in economy”. Currently, most cinema innovations revolve around “themed decorations + derivatives + stamp – collecting check – ins”. If the industry quickly replicates similar models (such as other cinemas following the themed cinema strategy), users may lose interest due to the similar activity forms. As mentioned in the news, the themed decorations of Poly Cinema are “independently designed” by the staff, but if this “independence” only lies in the difference in IP selection (such as Harry Potter vs Zootopia 2) and fails to continuously innovate in activity forms and interactive experiences (such as combining AR technology and script – killing games), users’ “check – in enthusiasm” may fade over time. In addition, although the “official attribute” of derivatives can guarantee attractiveness, some self – made derivatives lacking design creativity (such as keychains with only the movie logo printed on them) may be regarded as “cheap peripherals” by users, affecting the brand image.
Suggestions for Entrepreneurs: Build a Sustainable Innovative Operation System with “User Needs” as the Core
The innovative practices in the cinema industry provide important inspiration for entrepreneurs (especially offline scenario operators). Based on the experiences and hidden worries in the news, the following suggestions are for reference:
Precisely position user needs and balance IP dependence and “general user” coverage: Entrepreneurs need to deeply analyze the core needs of target users – whether it is IP sentiment, social experience, or cost – effective movie – watching. For IP – dependent scenarios (such as themed cinemas), the risk can be reduced through a combination of “top – tier IPs + mid – tier IPs” (for example, using Harry Potter to attract cross – regional fans and local small – and medium – sized IPs to attract nearby residents); at the same time, for non – IP users, “scenario – based services” (such as parent – child movie – watching areas and couple – exclusive halls) can be developed to expand the user coverage.
Establish a dynamic “cost – benefit” evaluation mechanism to avoid inefficient investment: Innovative activities need to pre – evaluate the cost (materials, labor, time) and expected benefits (box – office increase, derivatives sales, user repurchase rate). For example, before planning a themed event, a small – scale test (such as a “trial – operation themed day” for a certain movie) can be carried out to collect user feedback and calculate the input – output ratio; if the cost is found to be higher than the benefit, the strategy needs to be adjusted in time (such as reducing the number of self – made derivatives and cooperating with third – parties to share the cost).
Pay attention to “experience differentiation” to avoid homogeneous competition: In addition to IP – themed decorations, new technologies and new gameplay can be combined to enhance the uniqueness of the experience. For example, AR photo – taking (audiences “taking pictures” with movie characters), script – killing – style movie – watching (designing interactive tasks according to the movie plot), and limited – edition derivatives (such as “city – exclusive peripherals” co – branded with local brands) can be introduced; at the same time, the activity forms can be quickly iterated through user feedback (such as regularly updating stamp – collecting patterns and adjusting the types of derivatives) to keep users fresh.
Strengthen “private – domain operation” to transform “traffic” into “retained users”: Cinemas can use tools such as movie – watching groups and membership communities to transform single – time movie – watching users into long – term fans. For example, a “movie – fans club” can be established to provide members with privileges such as priority to get special items and participate in meetings with movie creators; user needs can be collected through the community (such as “hoping to add a certain type of derivatives” and “looking forward to a themed event for a certain movie”), which can guide the operation strategy in reverse, forming a positive cycle of “user participation – need satisfaction – stickiness improvement”.
Focus on the “emotional value” of derivatives rather than just sales: The core of derivatives is “emotional connection”, and “uniqueness” and “commemorative significance” need to be highlighted in the design. For example, “assemblable models” can be designed based on classic scenes in the movie (such as a “miniature model of Zootopia” for Zootopia), or “time – limited editions” can be launched (such as a “first – day commemorative medal” only sold in the first week of the movie’s release); at the same time, the quality should be strictly controlled (to avoid a cheap feeling), and user trust can be enhanced through “limited quantity + genuine product” labels.
In summary, the essence of innovation in the cinema industry is the transformation from “function provision” to “emotional satisfaction”. Entrepreneurs need to take user needs as the core, balance risks and benefits in innovation, and build a sustainable “offline scenario ecosystem” through differentiated experiences and refined operations – this is not only the survival path for cinemas but also the key to breaking through for all offline entities in the era of “experience economy”.
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