MoviePass CEO proudly says the app tracks your location before and after movies

ronjor · Mar 5, 2018

by Devin Coldewey

Everyone knew the MoviePass deal is too good to be true — and as is so often the case these days, it turns out you’re not the customer, you’re the product. And in this case they’re not even attempting to camouflage that. Mitch Lowe, the company’s CEO, told an audience at a Hollywood event that “we know all about you.”
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mirimir · Mar 5, 2018

That's just plain creepy. So they want to market you to restaurants etc. I also see that they sign deals for some films, and then don't list competing films.

ronjor · Mar 8, 2018

MoviePass update on iOS ‘removes unused location capabilities’ following privacy concerns

Chance Miller Mar. 7th 2018 4:02 pm PT
Earlier this week, Mitch Lowe, CEO of the popular all-you-can-eat movie subscription service MoviePass, made headlines for bragging about how the app can track the location of its users. Shortly after that comment, MoviePass issued a statement clarifying its actions, and now the iOS app has been updated to remove the features…
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mirimir · Mar 8, 2018

My bet: It'll come back quietly, if they sign requisite third-party contracts. Or after they sell. It was probably just a "see what we can do" demo for potential buyers.

Palancar · Mar 10, 2018

I won't be adding that app!

RockLobster · Mar 10, 2018

I bet Mitch Lowes popularity took a beating amongst all those who were set to make a buck from that user tracking haha

ronjor · Jul 27, 2018

MoviePass was down last night because it ran out of money

By Bijan Stephen Jul 27, 2018
The end is nigh — again
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mirimir · Jul 27, 2018

That just says it all, doesn't it?

guest · Jul 30, 2018

MoviePass is down again
July 30, 2018
https://techcrunch.com/2018/07/30/moviepass-is-down-again/

Twitter noticed too, and people are starting to sound the death knell for the beleaguered monthly movie subscription service. Some MoviePass theaters that offer e-ticketing still appear to have available showings according to Twitter users, but that doesn’t appear to be true across the board.

On Monday, stock for MoviePass parent company Helios and Matheson Analytics (HMNY) plunged by a rather bleak 60 percent.

Given the service’s unreliability and apparently shady cancellation practices, it wouldn’t be surprising to hear the FTC and other consumer protection groups getting involved.

The company hasn’t tweeted or provided any official updates yet, but if this isn’t the end, then it’s certainly near.
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ronjor · Jul 31, 2018

MoviePass’ latest survival plan: increase prices, gut first-run movie access

By Patricia Hernandez@xpatriciah Jul 31, 2018
It’s pass or fail time
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guest · Aug 15, 2018

MoviePass posts huge quarterly loss, shareholders sue
The company’s quarterly losses jumped from less than $3 million to $126.6 million in a year
August 15, 2018
https://www.theverge.com/2018/8/14/...s-report-operating-losses-shareholder-lawsuit

MoviePass parent Helios and Matheson has quietly posted its quarterly earnings report, [...] The report also shows that the MoviePass parent burned through more than $219 million in Q2 2018 — or approximately $73 million a month — and has only $51.4 million in assets left.

But adding to its problems, The Wrapreports that one shareholder has filed a lawsuit against Helios and Matheson in New York, accusing CEO Ted Farnsworth and CFO Stuart Benson of defrauding shareholders with misleading or withheld information in order to portray the company’s future as rosier than it actually was.
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guest · Aug 24, 2018

MoviePass kills off its annual plan -- even if you already paid for it
This is getting sad. And a little shady.
August 24, 2018
https://www.cnet.com/news/moviepass-kills-off-its-annual-plan-even-if-you-already-paid-for-it/

Even if you paid for an annual subscription and got to keep your grandfathered unlimited plan, MoviePass is now forcing you onto its monthly three-movie-a-month plan -- effective immediately.

Though MoviePass previously said that it would honor the terms of its annual subscription plan until your next billing cycle, the company is emailing customers today to let them know that those "terms" actually allow them to change the deal early.

To add insult to injury, MoviePass says you'll only have until Aug. 31 -- a week from today -- if you want to get some of your money back in the form of a prorated refund, which you can only get by canceling your plan. And just to make things more ridiculous, MoviePass is preying on your FOMO by saying that if you do take the refund, you won't be able to sign up for MoviePass again for nine months.
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guest · Sep 28, 2018

MoviePass is now forcing former users to opt out of new plan or risk being charged
When you think it can’t get any worse
September 28, 2018
https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/28/...-former-users-opt-out-new-plan-monthly-charge

This time, however, the company is automatically enrolling lapsed former subscribers into its service, saying its choosing those users to be part of a “select test group” to try a version of MoviePass similar to its original one-movie-per-day plan.

In an email sent to select MoviePass customers [...] the company says it’s decided to enroll those people into a new subscription because “we really hope you begin enjoying your MoviePass subscription.
If they don’t want to be charged for the service, MoviePass is demanding they proactively opt-out of the plan they were enrolled in without their consent by Thursday, October 4th.

So if you’re still an existing MoviePass subscriber or a lapsed one, perhaps it’s due time to definitively cancel and get your credit card unlinked from its mobile app for good. Otherwise, it’s unclear what the company will try to charge you for next.
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Beyonder · Sep 29, 2018

MoviePass seems to be an excellent company. If they keep this excellent plan of theirs up, they will surely go bankrupt just like they've always wanted.

ronjor · Oct 18, 2018

MoviePass under investigation by state of New York for misleading investors: Source

By EZRA WOLFGANG Oct 18, 2018
The New York attorney general’s office has launched an investigation into whether the parent company of MoviePass, Helios and Matheson, misled investors about their finances, a source familiar with the investigation confirmed to ABC News.
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ronjor · Oct 23, 2018

MoviePass to be jettisoned by parent company

October 23, 2018
MoviePass, the struggling discount movie ticket subscription service, is being spun off by the company that owns it.
Helios and Matheson Analytics Inc. did not try to obscure the reasons why on Tuesday. MoviePass has become a burden.
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ronjor · Mar 19, 2019

MoviePass brings back its unlimited movie plan, with a limited time price of $9.95

Anthony Ha@anthonyha 19 Mar 2019
Now, you may be thinking that this kind of deal is exactly what got MoviePass into so much trouble last year, to the point where it nearly ran out of money and began announcing new pricing plans and restrictions on a seemingly constant basis.
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guest · Apr 18, 2019

MoviePass Has Lost Over 90% of Its Subscribers in Less Than a Year (Report)
April 18, 2019
https://variety.com/2019/digital/news/moviepass-subscribers-loss-crater-225000-1203192468/

MoviePass users apparently hit the exits en masse after it scaled back the number of movies users could see each month: The flailing cinema-subscription provider has seen its subscriber rolls plunge from a peak of more than 3 million to just 225,000 in under a year, according to a new report.

The numbers were reported by Business Insider, which cited “internal data” it had obtained. Asked for comment, a MoviePass spokeswoman declined to confirm the subscriber figure.

In August 2018, MoviePass Inc. began to convert subscribers on annual subscription plans to the three-movies-per-month subscription plan, by giving annual subscribers the option to either cancel or refund their annual subscription or continue on the new three-movies-per-month subscription plan.
Evidently, over 90% of MoviePass’ previous subscribers didn’t care to continue paying for the service given the dramatically scaled-backed terms.
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guest · Jul 3, 2019

MoviePass temporarily suspends service to improve its mobile app
July 3, 2019
https://techcrunch.com/2019/07/03/moviepass-temporarily-suspends-service-to-improve-its-mobile-app/

MoviePass is temporarily suspending its service, starting on July 4, in order to finish working on improvements to its mobile app, the company announced today.

MoviePass’ announcement said the hiatus will start at 5 A.M. Eastern Time on July 4 and that subscribers will be automatically credited for the number of affected days once service resumes. It did not say when service would return, but replies to customers from its Twitter account say the company “estimate[s] this process will take several weeks.”
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guest · Aug 9, 2019

MoviePass reportedly changed passwords to keep users from ordering tickets
August 9, 2019
https://www.cnet.com/news/moviepass...-keep-them-from-ordering-tickets-report-says/

MoviePass, the $10-a-month movie subscription service that once dominated the industry, has been hit with financial issues that essentially brought an end to the company as we knew it. It dealt with those issues in-part by changing some users' passwords to keep them from ordering tickets, according to a Business Insider report this week.

Because MoviePass' business model essentially involved paying theaters the full price for customers' tickets, the company was quickly losing money, according to the report.
CEO Mitch Lowe reportedly became frustrated with subscribers who took advantage of the low monthly rate by going to the movies every day, and ordered the company to limit subscriber access before the April 2018 release of Avengers: Infinity War.

Lowe called for the passwords for a "small percentage of power users be changed," which would keep them from going into the MoviePass app and ordering tickets, according to Business Insider.
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mirimir · Aug 9, 2019

I wonder if password reset worked for them.

ronjor · Aug 20, 2019

MoviePass exposed thousands of unencrypted customer card numbers

Zack Whittaker@zackwhittaker
Movie ticket subscription service MoviePass has exposed tens of thousands of customer card numbers and personal credit cards because a critical server was not protected with a password.
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ronjor · Aug 21, 2019

MoviePass confirms it may have exposed customer credit card numbers

By Ahiza Garcia, CNN Business August 21, 2019
The breach is believed to affect tens of thousands of customers, according to TechCrunch, which first reported the news. But MoviePass did not confirm the number, stating it is still investigating the scope and will notify affected customers eventually.
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mirimir · Aug 21, 2019

At this point, I'm curious about what companies haven't leaked PII.

guest · Aug 30, 2019

MoviePass laid off roughly a third of its staff, including its entire team focused on relationships with movie theaters
August 30, 2019
https://www.businessinsider.com/moviepass-lays-off-exhibitor-relations-team-2019-8

This week, the New York City-based movie-ticket subscription service laid off at least seven employees, including the office manager, members of the marketing department, and the two-person exhibitor-relations team, multiple sources close to the company told Business Insider.
The firing of the exhibitor-relations team, whose sole purpose was to build relationships with movie theaters, is a major loss for a company that needs connections with movie theaters for discounts on bulk tickets, as well as advertising and marketing deals.

The MoviePass staff is now down to about 12 full-time employees, one source close to the company said. There are also a few consultants who work for the company. At the company's height in 2017, the staff numbered around 40.
During MoviePass' downward spiral, CEO Mitch Lowe used questionable tactics to keep the company going, like blocking subscribers out of their accounts [...]
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