Movie Pass
Movie subscription service MoviePass has received a new equity investment from Comcast’s Forecast Labs.
The investment from Forecast Labs, Comcast NBCUniversal’s consumer venture group, will be used to support television advertising to help attract new MoviePass customers. Financial terms of the investment were not disclosed.
The news comes as MoviePass claims to achieve its first-ever profitability in 2023 after filing for bankruptcy in 2020. The service first launched in 2011 before being reduced to $9.95 per month in 2017 after Helios & Matheson bought a majority stake in the company and took control.
The subscription allowed members to watch one movie per day and soared in popularity, but an uneven economic outlook led the service to file for bankruptcy.
The service was reacquired by co-founder Stacey Spikes in 2021, and its trajectory was the subject of an HBO documentary. MoviePass, MovieCrash.
The company says its growth in recent years has been driven by advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning, helping to create better marketing opportunities for studios and theaters, as well as helping consumers operate within its new business model, which allocates a set number of credits based on title and showtime to help find cheaper titles.
“Today’s investment will accelerate our mission to bring new technology and innovation to the movie world, driving growth and increasing theater attendance,” Spikes said. “We also continue to invest in the development of our movie theater marketplace to ensure studios and theater partners can derive maximum value from engaging directly with movie fans on the platform.”
