CinemaNext Signs Agreement with Austrian Cineplexx for Melody TMS and Symphony Circuit Management Software

The deal was concluded during last week’s CineEurope, the European convention for major, regional and independent cinema exhibitors, in Barcelona (Spain).

“Selecting both Melody TMS and Symphony is a tremendous vote of confidence for our technologies from Cineplexx, which is known for being at the forefront of technological innovations in Europe,” explains Christof Federle, CinemaNext Regional Manager for Austria and Eastern Europe. “Currently operating on 1,300 screens, Melody is a fully-featured TMS at the cutting edge of technology. We are constantly working to adapt this solution to exhibitors’ evolving needs such as the upcoming mobile app, which allows users to transform the auditorium into a conference room by controlling every feature (projection, sound, light). Our brand new software solution for cinema chains, Symphony, helps connect, visualize and oversee a widespread group of cinema complexes from one central site resulting in significant time savings by allowing users to remotely schedule all shows for their cinema network”.

“We are thrilled to strengthen our collaboration with CinemaNext by deploying their innovative proprietary Symphony and Melody TMS solutions in our cinemas,” said Christian Langhammer, Managing Director of Constantin Film Group in Austria. “The fact that these new reliable solutions have been designed and produced from an exhibitor perspective to be as intuitive as possible as well as allow the automation of many time-consuming and error-prone processes is essential to delivering trouble-free and superior cinematic experiences to moviegoers.”

The Melody TMS is compatible with any third-party software (e.g., digital signage, points of sale), making it fully automated and therefore requiring less human intervention. It is also interoperable with all existing server technologies. Symphony provides a real-time monitoring interface that allows exhibitors to ensure cinemas are running smoothly and help detect any potential errors. Later this year, local cinema exhibitors will no longer need to spend time programming every week as they will have the ability to use centralized playlists and schedules created by central booking department across all cinemas.

CinemaNext is the Ymagis Group’s business unit dedicated to exhibitor services. Founded in 2007 and managed by professionals from the motion picture and high-tech industries, Ymagis Group is a European leader in advanced digital technology services for the cinema industry. Through CinemaNext and Eclair, the Group provides smart and comprehensive solutions to movie exhibitors, distributors, event cinema, production companies, cinema/TV advertising networks, rights holders, broadcasters, VOD platform operators and video publishers. Over the years, Ymagis Group has significantly grown its portfolio of solutions & services and further developed its geographic footprint in Europe with permanent offices in 20 countries. The company’s core business is structured around three main units: CinemaNext (exhibitor services: sales and field services, software solutions, customer service (NOC) and consulting), Eclair (content services: post-production, theatrical distribution, digital distribution, versioning and accessibility, restoration and preservation) and Ymagis (VPF & financial services). As of 31 December 2015, more than 7,000 cinema screens have been installed internationally by CinemaNext engineers and currently avail of service contracts. Eclair is the only provider with a pan-European content delivery service (via broadband or satellite) thanks to its network of 3,300 connected cinema sites. A publicly-traded company listed on Euronext, Ymagis Group is headquartered in Paris (France) and counts close to 700 employees. For more information, please connect to http://www.ymagis.com, http://www.cinemanext.digital or http://www.eclair.digital

The film distributor Constantin Film Holding GmbH was founded in Austria in 1951. A second mainstay was created at the end of the 1960's in the segment of cine operations. In this segment, 25 traditional cinemas and cinema centres were operated until the beginning of the 1990's and, following a structural change, the Cineplexx Cine Operations GmbH, a subsidiary company of the Constantin Film Holding GmbH, was founded in 1993. The business developed during a time when many traditional cinemas in Austria were disappearing and multiplex movie theatres were conquering the market. Constantin Film reacted to this trend by establishing a group of 19 cinemas and 153 screens in Austria. Additionally, traditional movie theatres with up to 18 halls existed. In 2009, Cineplexx INTERNATIONAL GmbH started expanding to Austria's neighbouring countries and the first cinema outside Austria was opened in Bolzano, South Tyrol. Cineplexx also took over a cinema in Zagreb's city centre, thus laying the foundation for expansion into Croatia. Further Cineplexx cinemas followed in 2011 and 2012 in Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia. In 2013 Cineplexx established five multiplex movie theatres in Slovenia and the first seven-hall cinema in Albania. The last expansion took place in spring 2014 with the opening of a multiplex cinema in Usce, Serbia. Today, Cineplexx has a strong market presence with 40 multiplex and six traditional locations in Austria, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Albania and Italy, offering 291 halls. In 2014, the company's workforce included 1,200 employees, the overall turnover amounted to 120 million euros and the number of Cineplexx visitors reached 10.5 million. More information is available at www.cineplexx.at