AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark USA and Regal Entertainment Group Form Company to Launch Theatre Conversion to Digital Cinema; Former Loews CEO Travis Reid to Lead Digital Cinema Joint Venture
The motion picture industry is at the threshold of another major theatrical transition: the transformation from celluloid 35mm film to digital technology.
Three leading motion picture exhibition companies, AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark USA, Inc. and Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC), have formed an equal partnership to create Digital Cinema Implementation Partners, LLC (DCIP). The company will plan and implement the deployment of digital cinema in theatres. DCIP has named Travis Reid, former Loews Cineplex Entertainment CEO, as its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. The company will be headquartered in Bergen County, NJ.
DCIP owes its start to, and will continue to build off of the digital cinema business plan that was developed by National CineMedia (NCM) on behalf of the three DCIP founding partners. That plan includes procuring equipment, arranging financing and negotiating usage agreements with studios and other content providers. Simultaneous with NCM’s recent IPO, the NCM founding exhibitors determined that execution of the digital cinema plan was best served through direct oversight outside the corporate structure of NCM.
Each founding member of DCIP will have an equal ownership interest. The company’s board of directors will be comprised of seven persons including CEO Travis Reid and two directors appointed by each founding member. As announced in June of 2006 by NCM, JPMorgan will continue to assist with the evaluation and development of a financing plan to help support the exhibition and motion picture industries’ transition from film to digital cinema.
Digital cinema promises a new world of programming flexibility, picture quality and image consistency. It is expected to expand alternative, non-traditional theatre programming, ultimately providing more choices to moviegoers.
“These are exciting times in the motion picture exhibition industry,” Reid said. “Within the next four years we will literally see thousands of auditoriums retrofitted with digital technology. Moviegoers will enjoy a number of additional entertainment options at their favorite theatre including many upcoming releases using digital 3-D technology.”
Prior to his current position, Reid served as president and chief executive officer of Loews Cineplex Entertainment and acted as a digital cinema consultant to NCM. He has also held positions with General Cinema Corporation, Cineamerica Theatres, Century Theatres and Theatre Management, Inc. Reid served as a member of the executive committee for the National Association of Theatre Owners and as vice president of the Will Rogers Memorial Fund. He was recently honored as the 2005 Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation Pioneer of the Year.
About Digital Cinema Implementation Partners
Digital Cinema Implementation Partners, LLC (DCIP) is a joint venture owned equally by exhibition industry leaders AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark USA, Inc. and Regal Entertainment Group, representing more than 14,000 screens in the U.S. and Canada. Formed in February 2007, the company is headquartered in Bergen County, NJ, with offices in Minneapolis, MN, and Denver, CO. DCIP will plan and implement the deployment of digital cinema during the transition in the motion picture industry from film to digital technology.
About AMC Entertainment Inc.
AMC Entertainment Inc. is a worldwide leader in the theatrical exhibition industry. With a history of industry leadership and innovation dating back to the early 1900s, the company today serves more than 240 million guests annually through interests in 382 theatres and 5,340 screens in 10 countries including the United States. The company is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. Additional information is available online at http://www.amctheatres.com.
About Cinemark USA, Inc.
Cinemark USA, Inc., a leader in the theatre exhibition industry, operates 396 theatres and 4,488 screens in 37 states in the United States and internationally in 13 countries, mainly in Mexico, South and Central America. True stadium seating, wall-to-wall screens and digital sound are all hallmarks of a Cinemark theatre. Cinemark was also among the first theatre exhibitors to offer advanced real-time Internet ticketing at its own Web site. Visit http://www.Cinemark.com for more information.
About Regal Entertainment Group
Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC) is the largest motion picture exhibitor in the world. The Company’s theatre circuit, comprising Regal Cinemas, United Artists Theatres and Edwards Theatres, operates 6,403 screens in 539 locations in 39 states and the District of Columbia. Regal operates approximately 18% of all indoor screens in the United States including theatres in 43 of the top 50 U.S. markets and growing suburban areas. We believe that the size, reach and quality of the Company’s theatre circuit not only provide its patrons with a convenient and enjoyable movie-going experience, but is also an exceptional platform to realize economies of scale in theatre operations. Additional information is available on the Company’s Web site at http://www.REGmovies.com.
