A movie theater, cinema, or cinema hall, also known as a movie house, picture house, picture theater or simply theater, is a business that contains auditoria for viewing films for public entertainment. Most are commercial operations catering to the general public, who attend by purchasing tickets.
A home cinema, also called a home theater or theater room, is a home entertainment audio-visual system that seeks to reproduce a movie theater experience and mood using consumer electronics-grade video and audio equipment and is set up in a room or backyard of a private home. Some studies show that films are rated better and generate more intense emotions when watched in a movie theater, but convenience is a major appeal for home cinemas. In the 1980s, home cinemas typically consisted of a movie pre-recorded on a LaserDisc or VHS tape; a LaserDisc Player or VCR; and a heavy, bulky large-screen cathode-ray tube TV set, although sometimes CRT projectors were used instead. In the 2000s, technological innovations in sound systems, video player equipment, TV screens and video projectors have changed the equipment used in home cinema set-ups and enabled home users to experience a higher-resolution screen image, improved sound quality and components that offer users more options. The development of Internet-based subscription services means that 2020s-era home theatre users do not have to commute to a video rental store as was common in the 1980s and 1990s.
The Empire, Leicester Square is a cinema currently operated by Cineworld on the north side of Leicester Square, London, United Kingdom.
Goodrich Theater NewCo, LLC. is a chain of 22 movie theaters, headquartered in Grand Rapids, MI, representing a total of 174 screens in the United States. The majority of GQT Movies' locations are in Michigan, but other locations could be found in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Alabama, and Pennsylvania. The company filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection in February 2020. All employees were terminated March 19, 2020 without notice largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as many movie theaters were closed by government order in many states. In last July 2020, the company began reopening some of their locations. By the end of the year it had reopened its 22 locations.
Cinema City is a brand of multiplex cinemas in eastern and central Europe, run by the Israeli company Cinema City International (CCI). In Europe it has cinemas in Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia. In Poland, Cinema City has almost 40% of the multiplex market, with Multikino its major competitor. CCI also runs a chain of Israeli multiplexes under the name of Rav-Hen.
Landmark Cinema of Canada Inc. is a Canadian cinema chain. Based in Calgary, Alberta, Landmark operates 36 theatres with 299 screens, primarily in Ontario and western Canada. Its holdings include much of the former Empire Theatres chain which it acquired in late 2013, and some Famous Players locations divested as part of that chain's purchase by Cineplex Entertainment. Landmark is the second-largest cinema chain in Canada after Cineplex. It was acquired by Belgian company Kinepolis in 2017 for $123 million.
Golden Screen Cinemas Sdn Bhd (GSC) is Malaysia's largest cinema exhibitor and a wholly-owned subsidiary of PPB Group Berhad, which is an exhibitor and distributor of movies and content in Malaysia. It operates over 600 screens in 70 locations across Malaysia and Vietnam, with 504 screens in 55 locations in Malaysia, and 108 screens in 18 locations in Vietnam through a partnership with Galaxy Studio.
Ocean Shores Video Limited is the home video division of Win's Entertainment Co Ltd. The company is owned by Television Broadcasts Limited the entertainment division of Panasonic, Pioneer and Philips was a Hong Kong–based distributor of martial arts films in the 1980s.
Major Cineplex Group Public Co. Ltd. is the largest operator of movie theaters in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia. Combined with its subsidiary, EGV Entertainment, the company has 838 screens in 180 locations around Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos. Among its properties is Thailand's largest multiplex, the Paragon Cineplex at Siam Paragon, with 16 screens and 5,000 seats, along with the IMAX theater. The second-largest chain in Thailand is SF Group.
Astro Shaw Sdn Bhd is a Malaysian film studio that has produced films for the local and regional markets and is pursuing expansion into international film investments. It also provides a marketing and distribution services for theatrical and non-theatrical release in Malaysia and abroad.
Caribbean Cinemas is a chain of movie theaters in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. It is the only major chain in Puerto Rico following CineVista's bankruptcy. The chain has expanded into Dominican Republic, Panama, St. Thomas, St. Croix, St. Maarten, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, Antigua, Aruba, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Curaçao, Guadeloupe, Guatemala and Bolivia.
MBO Cinema Sdn. Bhd., also known as MBO for short, is a chain of cinemas in Malaysia. It is the third largest cinema chain in the country after Golden Screen Cinemas and TGV Cinemas. MBO Cinemas went into liquidation in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Later in 2021, Golden Screen Cinemas acquired MBO Cinemas' majority assets. But on 19 December 2021, it was relaunched with new investors and under a brand new management.
Lotus Fivestar Cinemas (M) Sdn Bhd is a cinema chain in Malaysia owned by the Lotus Group. Lotus Five Star is also a major Indian movie distributor in Malaysia. LFS Cinemas is the fourth largest cinema chain in Malaysia after Golden Screen Cinemas, TGV Cinemas, and MBO Cinemas.
MJR Theatres is a Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based cinema chain. A subsidiary of Kinepolis, it owns 10 theaters in the Metro Detroit area, operating around 160 screens.
Dolby Cinema is a premium cinema created by Dolby Laboratories that combines Dolby proprietary technologies such as Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, as well as other signature entrance and intrinsic design features. The technology competes with IMAX and other premium large formats such as Cinemark XD and Regal's RPX.
