AMC to Change all Projectors to Laser

[Lyle Romer]

I didn't see this posted but the press release was 4 months ago. 2k or 4k isn't specified. I assume this deal with Cinionic is some kind of revenue share agreement so AMC doesn't have upfront costs except maybe the installation labor and only pays when revenue comes in. It looks like they've already converted 9 locations.


https://investor.amctheatres.com/new...n/default.aspx

AMC Theatres® Introduces Laser at AMC, Powered by Cinionic, Ushering in the Next Evolution of On-Screen Presentation

Company Release - 4/22/2022

In its first major broadscale projector upgrade since the transition to digital, AMC signs exclusive agreement with Cinionic to install laser projectors in 3,500 of its U.S. auditoriums through 2026

The laser projection equipment and associated auditorium enhancements powering Laser at AMC at the 3,500 auditoriums have an estimated value of around a quarter of a billion dollars, with minimal upfront capital investment from AMC

Laser at AMC represents a significant acceleration of AMC’s commitment to enhance the on-screen presentation

Moviegoers enjoying Laser at AMC can expect improved picture contrast, maximum picture brightness, and more vivid color, all of which are on-screen benefits of Laser projection from Cinionic

LEAWOOD, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AMC Theatres (NYSE:AMC), the largest theatrical exhibitor in the United States, in Europe & the Middle East, and in the world, today announced its first major broadscale projector upgrade since the transition to digital with the launch of Laser at AMC. The announcement is the result of an exclusive agreement between AMC and Cinionic, the Barco cinema joint venture and global leader in laser-powered cinema solutions, to significantly upgrade the on-screen presentation at 3,500 auditoriums throughout the United States, with cutting-edge laser projectors. Laser at AMC reinforces AMC as the leader in premium theatrical exhibition experiences and signals a significant AMC commitment to the future of movie-going, on-screen presentation, and the Company’s dedication to Make Movies Better. The move to laser projection offers a more environmentally friendly way to present movies with less waste, including the elimination of replacing xenon bulbs, and a significant reduction in energy usage.

Later this year, AMC and Cinionic will begin installing laser projectors in AMC auditoriums around the country on a market-by-market basis, with the full initiative expected to be completed by the end of 2026. The laser projection equipment and associated auditorium enhancements powering Laser at AMC in the 3,500 auditoriums is valued at around a quarter of a billion dollars. Cinionic’s Cinema-as-a-Service program enables minimal upfront capital investment required by AMC to bring Laser at AMC to moviegoers around the country.

The Laser at AMC experience delivered by laser projection from Cinionic includes improved picture contrast compared to digital projectors, more vivid color, and maximum picture brightness, with guaranteed light levels that exceeds most 2D digital projection. Cinionic, and founding partner Barco, have spearheaded laser-based presentation technology for cinema since 2014 and today boasts more than 30,000 laser projectors installed in theaters worldwide.

In addition to Laser at AMC, powered by Cinionic, AMC offers laser projection in its Premium Large Format auditoriums: Dolby Cinema at AMC, PRIME at AMC, and select IMAX at AMC, as well as in its recent new-build openings.

Adam Aron, Chairman and CEO of AMC Theatres commented: “For the last two years as AMC has navigated its way through the pandemic, we have done so not only with the intention of survival, but with an eye to the future of moviegoing and continuing to enhance the guest experience at our theatres. Through our wonderful Premium Large Format partnerships with IMAX and Dolby, AMC is firmly established as the industry leader in premium experiences. Laser at AMC, powered by Cinionic, allows us to bring a premium on-screen presentation to hundreds of our theatres and thousands of auditoriums around the country, for a greener way to go to the movies, with only a minimal capital investment. This partnership with Cinionic helps ensure that the future of the on-screen presentation at AMC is, fittingly, very bright.”

“At Cinionic, we’re in this for the long-term. Together with AMC, we’re giving moviegoers the laser difference that you can only get in the cinema,” added Wim Buyens, CEO of Cinionic. “Made possible by our industry-pioneering Cinema-as-a-Service program, the partnership with AMC enables a consistent, elevated, and laser-powered big screen experience for the next generation. Cinionic is dedicated to cinema and investing in its future.”

[Leo Enticknap]

The word on the street at Cinemacon was that it was going to be all SP4Ks.

[Mike Blakesley]

Dividing a quarter-billion dollars by 3500 comes to $71428 per screen, is that about right? I wonder if lasers will ever get more affordable?

I saw a laser presentation at Cinemacon last year (in the GDC demo booth) and didn't think it looked much different onscreen than regular xenon... blacks were still pretty gray-ish. I was expecting to be stunned by the difference and walk out of there with a burning desire to move to laser, but it was more of a "eh" moment for me.

[Martin McCaffery]

Rumor I heard is they won't be converting the "Classic" theatres, either closing them immediately, or allowing them to live as long as there are parts in the warehouse to keep them running (and there will be plenty of parts as they pull out the old projectors at the new laser houses). As these are mostly old theatres they bought up (Carmike) their shelf life is pretty short anyway.

[Leo Enticknap]

I'm increasingly hearing xenon vs. laser opinions analogous to vinyl vs. CD and film vs. DCP ones. Subjectively, some people seem to prefer one, and others the other. It should be remembered that the SP4K crams a lot of pixels onto a pretty small chip, and contrast does take a hit because of that. IMHO, the contrast and black levels on the SP2Ks are notably more impressive.

Dividing a quarter-billion dollars by 3500 comes to $71428 per screen, is that about right?

Although obviously I can't talk exact figures, that is very roughly in the ballpark of what the outright purchase and installation cost of a medium power 4K RGB laser projector with an integrated server would be. Of course it isn't what it actually costs Barco to build and ship the things.

What I find interesting is that Barco/Cinionic is sharing the risk with AMC on this one. It sounds like Barco/Cinionic is fronting the initial cost of manufacturing the projectors, AMC their installation, and that thereafter, AMC will pay Cinionic per hour of light on time (maybe with a guaranteed minimum per year?), presumably for a fixed period and with the option to buy the projectors outright for an agreed price at the end of it. If all the sites that receive the projectors stay open for the duration of the contract, AMC will achieve cost savings relative to if they'd either bought new projectors outright, or continued to eat the running costs of older Series 2 models; and Barco/Cinionic will make their projected margin on the deal. But if the industry never completely recovers from covid and some of those sites close, Barco/Cinionic will be left having to sell a bunch of used projectors.

A side effect of this is that a flood of used xenon Series 2 projectors is likely to come on to the market. There will likely be a market for some of them among the indies, arthouses, and college campuses, as long as xenon bulbs continue to be available, but this will drive down the resale value of used projectors in the USA.

[Marcel Birgelen]

I guess Barco/Cintonic will secure at least a part of their deal with some kind of bank guarantee from AMC.

Aren't a lot of those first installs that went into AMC Sony projectors? I remember them having some kind of exclusive VPF-like deal with Sony.

[James Gardiner]

Leo, good info. So AMC is taking the Barco pay-as-you-go offering. You are absolutely right. This does offload a large amount of the risk onto Barco/Cineonic if the industry does not bounce back well. This is all happened at a difficult time as we are now technically in the next transition period in that... if projectors are rated for 10 years, we are clicking over that now for a large portion of the industry. Considering the commercial structure of how these big companies work, they are all looking to upgrade to the next financially supported purchase model.

I can see the non-major chain locations sweating the kit as long as possible, and in some ways, much of it will last 15 years if not pushed to hard... But the larger chains, do have to commit to large payments to establish support and maintenance for the next 10 years basically now. And now is still a very opaque view into the demand for cinema. By no means is it back to where it was, and the slate, if you ask me, for next year, has some good films, but nowhere nearly as many as pre-pandemic thus far. I do personally expect a new equilibrium in that cinemas will not be making as much money as the good old days due to fragmented markets leading to lower visits per person per year. This will require a thinning out of screens per population. How that manifests is anyone's guess.

[Steve Guttag]

It should be remembered that the SP4K crams a lot of pixels onto a pretty small chip, and contrast does take a hit because of that

Might you have any evidence on that? First the SP4K covers both .98" and 1.38" projectors (e.g. SP4K-20 and SP4K-40).

The SP4K-C projectors (.98" chips) have a native contrast of 2300:1...300 better than the equivalent xenon projectors. The SP4K-B projectors, using the bigger chip have a native contrast of 2000:1...worse than the smaller chip. However, again the SP4K-B has a notably higher contrast ratio than the equivalent xenon projector.

The SP2K is more murky. The smaller ones, like the SP2K-11 are based on the S2K chipset and has a native contrast ratio of 2200:1...close but slightly less than the SP4K-12 (.98" 4K) at 2300:1. On the larger SP2K-20...that is based on the .98" chipset, one drops to 2000:1 (Same as xenon).

A key takeaway though is that the SP4K is the higher contrast projector in all sizes compared to other offerings with the same lumen output.

There are High Contrast lenses available for the S series imagers and both high contrast and Very high Contrast lenses offered for the B lens mount (for which the "C" projectors may be ordered with a B lens mount. Officially, one cannot use the VHC lenses on non-HC projectors (SP4K-27HC or SP4K-13HC). One takes a pretty significant light hit for them...the SP4K-27HC is the SP4K-40B with an iris in the light path and the VHC lens...you get 5000:1 but 27,000 lumens instead of 40,000. The high contrast lenses normally get about a 30% contrast improvement. The hit on the lumen output is often on the order of 20%.

I think the HC lenses look better in more ways than just contrast.

[Leo Enticknap]

I've installed around 50 SP4K-Cs, but only three -Bs, and only one of those in the high contrast variant (both lens and light pipe); and around 20 SP2K-Ss. Subjectively, comparing the 4K-C to the 2K-S, the blacks look blacker and the whites whiter to me with the latter. In both cases they are a big improvement on xenon-lit equivalents, but even with laser projection and to my subjective eyes, there is still a contrast hit with 4K relative to 2K.

I can see the non-major chain locations sweating the kit as long as possible, and in some ways, much of it will last 15 years if not pushed to hard..

And several thousand used projectors flowing onto the market will help them to do that (unless, just maybe, Barco/Cinionic required that they be scrapped as part of the deal, in order to avoid cratering the market for new projectors elsewhere). The big variable is the future of xenon lamp availability. Up to 3,500 projectors that used two or three of them a year are now to be withdrawn from service, and that's not including all the other auditoria that upgrade from xenon to laser. The market for xenon arc bulbs is undoubtedly shrinking, and I would not be surprised if at least one of the manufacturers quits it within the next year or two. These older Series 2 machines will become unusable if it becomes impossible to buy bulbs for them.

[James Gardiner]

On 2k vs 4k DLP chips. Yes, I was talking to an engineer about this. Basically it comes down to the fact that on a 4K chip, due to there being so many more pixels, and the need for a small but effectual distance between each mirror required as it is moving.. These small areas of non-mirror are much greater in the 4K units and as such, have more light contamination. It's much better in the more recent generation of 4K DLP chip, but "you canna change the laws of physics" (As scotty would say). 2K (over 4K) will always have better black levels under current DLP technologies.

Bulb wise.. I can see some small companies pushing out Lamps for a as long as a reasonable demand existed. I expect, unlike film, there are some carry overs to other production requirements that the same equipment could do as well as making cinema lamps. I could be wrong.. But my gut feeling is it's not as big an issue as we had with celluloid. But yes, if lamps stopped. it would be another rushed transition for all the lamp-based projectors left.

[Lyle Romer]

On 2k vs 4k DLP chips. Yes, I was talking to an engineer about this. Basically it comes down to the fact that on a 4K chip, due to there being so many more pixels, and the need for a small but effectual distance between each mirror required as it is moving.. These small areas of non-mirror are much greater in the 4K units and as such, have more light contamination. It's much better in the more recent generation of 4K DLP chip, but "you canna change the laws of physics" (As scotty would say). 2K (over 4K) will always have better black levels under current DLP technologies.

Bulb wise.. I can see some small companies pushing out Lamps for a as long as a reasonable demand existed. I expect, unlike film, there are some carry overs to other production requirements that the same equipment could do as well as making cinema lamps. I could be wrong.. But my gut feeling is it's not as big an issue as we had with celluloid. But yes, if lamps stopped. it would be another rushed transition for all the lamp-based projectors left.

I wonder if the same wattage xenon lamps are used in other industry's applications (aviation maybe?) that would keep production alive for quite some time. I think the light beam at the Luxor hotel is made up of xenon lamps although I'm surprised they haven't switch to a bunch of high power LED fixtures yet.

[Steve Guttag]

Leo,

You have several factors that you have not qualified. As measured, the SP4K has a higher contrast than the SP2K on all equivalent sizes. Thats the facts when you compare same-same. There is more to the contrast ratio than just the DLP chip and mirror size, though that is a factor. The SP4K series is using RGB lasers without any phosphor wheel in the light path too...the SP2K has a phosphor wheel. They have smaller optics throughout too.

So, when comparing the SP4K to the equivalent SP2K, are they on the same screen (same gain)? How were the colors between the two? Might that have affected your perceptions? Did you actually measure contrast to back up your feelings?

It should be remembered that the smaller SP2Ks use the same crappy imager (.69") as the lamp based S2K series and is no larger than the mirror size of the fulls size 4K (1.38" chip). The .98" 4K chip is a different mechanism and can pivot in more than one axis so you cannot merely go JUST by size.

In the lamp based projectors...by FAR the worst contrast was the S2K...which came in around 1650:1 (optimistically)...the 4K xenon projectors were a little better...some claimed 2000:1 while others fessed up at closer to 1850:1. I have Xenon 4K, Xenon 2K and Laser 4K (SP4K-25C) and the laser 4K beats the xenon on contrast...quite handily. The xenon is better for colors.

[William Kucharski]

AMC certainly is able to do this a lot; I think most people remember their conversion to digital 4K was because of their deal with Sony.

[Armand Daiguillon]

Very interesting ... but they do have a four year window they've given themselves on this.
I wonder how this revenue sharing possibility will truly play out with revenues down so much.

[Steve Guttag]

I'm curious...when AMC makes these sorts of deals...how often do they actually carry it to completion? That is...when they convert over to some technology over a period of years...do they actually hit their numbers over that time? I think they STILL have an exclusivity on Dolby Cinema, at least in the US...what was that time frame supposed to be and how many were/are they to do?