U.S. motion picture exhibitor Digital Cinema Destinations, operating under the Digiplex Destinations brand, has found a honey hole in the movie theater industry through the integration of alternative programming.

In addition to major motion pictures, DCIN theaters show live sporting events, concerts, conferences, operas, ballet, Broadway plays, and other programming such as Indie features and documentaries.

The company’s strategy is to offer a wide range of alternative programming and build awareness and attendance gains by executing active targeted marketing and comprehensive social media outreach.

DCIN has found that alternative programming consistently outperforms the lowest, and often highest, grossing movies at higher prices.

As a percentage of total third quarter 2013 admission revenues, alternative programming averaged roughly 6 percent at eight locations (comprised of 73 screens) owned for more than one year.

The company’s long-term goal is to generate 20 percent of its total box receipts from alternative content, improving attendance metrics with a roughly 50 percent higher ticket price and by replacing underperforming Hollywood titles with alternative programming.

In addition to alternative programming, select DCIN theater locations have started presenting special engagements of major Hollywood movie releases with both Spanish and English sound tracks. The company plans to further expand this entertainment option to include more locations and to feature Asian and other foreign language presentations.

DCIN has also formed a specialty content joint venture with Nehst Studios through which it features a curated series of documentaries and indie features that have been hand-selected from world’s leading film festivals. DCIN receives 50 percent of all net downstream/ancillary revenues stemming from this joint venture, including DVD, digital downloads, and international broadcast rights.

For more information, visit www.digitalcinemadestinations.com

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