Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp.
(NASDAQ: CIDM), the global leader in the digital
cinema industry, today announced R/C
Theatres, a Maryland-based cinema chain, has signed an agreement to
participate in Cinedigm’s Phase 2 digital cinema deployment program.
R/C
Theatres is the first of many National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO)
Cinema Buying Group (CBG) members expected to commit to this program. The CBG
represents more than 600 members that collectively have over 6,000 screens. R/C
selected Cinedigm’s Exhibitor-Buyer financing plan, which means the exhibitor
will purchase its own equipment and Cinedigm will administer the systems under
its Virtual Print Fee agreements with all major studios for a ten-year term for
68 screens at 6 locations.
In Phase 2,
Cinedigm has created an Exhibitor-Buyer financing option for exhibitors. When
exhibitors participate, they select and purchase their own equipment and
Cinedigm manages the reporting, billing and collection of VPFs from movie
distributors, receiving a fee for doing so. R/C will install Cinedigm-certified
fully-networked digital cinema systems. Cinedigm and the CBG also have system
supply and service agreements with Barco and NEC.
John Fithian,
President of the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO), commented,
“Wayne Anderson, the former Managing Director of the CBG, and the CBG team who
selected Cinedigm as its integrator had confidence in Cinedigm’s technology,
equipment vendor relationships and ability to bring appropriate financing
options to the table. Wayne’s tireless work with Cinedigm on behalf
of all the CBG members makes it fitting that R/C Theatres is the first of many
CBG members to move forward.”
“The CBG was
established to enable independent exhibitors across the U.S. and Canada to survive and thrive in the
digital age,” said J. Wayne Anderson, former Managing Director of the buying
group. “R/C Theatres and the CBG, in partnership with Cinedigm, today begin an
historic transition to provide high-quality digital cinema to the patrons of
independent and small-town cinemas in North
America.”
Bill Campbell,
current Managing Director of the CBG, said, “CBG, Cinedigm and our equipment
partners have developed several options for our members, including
exhibitor-financed, vendor-financed and integrator-financed programs. Beginning
with Wayne’s
leadership and continuing today, the CBG and Cinedigm encourage all CBG members
to be proactive in securing their place in the digital future of our
industry.”
David Phillips,
COO-CFO of R/C Theatres, “ We are excited to be the first circuit to sign up for
the CBG Cinedigm Phase 2 digital cinema self-finance agreement. R/C has had the
good fortune to be involved in so many aspects of the industry conversion due to
the hard work, dedication and insight of its now retired Chairman and CEO, Wayne
Anderson. To finally be at the end point of all that hard work is like coming to
the end of filming and editing a movie. All the work has been done and now it’s
time to screen the final product – digitally of
course!”
“Since the CBG
selected us as the integrator partner for its members, the Cinedigm team has
been working diligently to develop agreements that worked for all parties,” said
Bud Mayo, Chairman and CEO of Cinedigm. “This process for Exhibitor-Buyers was completed at
the end of October and we’re very excited that R/C Theatres will be the first to
move forward in converting its theatres to digital cinema.”
“R/C’s decision to
invest in digital cinema is a testament to their commitment of bringing the
highest quality presentation and the diversity of alternative content
programming to their audiences. Cinedigm is proud to be working with R/C to
help them continue to fulfill that commitment,” said Chuck Goldwater, President of Cinedigm’s Media
Services Group. “At the same time, we are at work with many more CBG members
and look forward to adding them to our Phase 2 program as
well.”
Cinedigm's Digital Cinema division
is the industry-leading deployment program for Digital Cinema that facilitates
the funding, installation support and administration for the company's
studio-supported Digital Cinema rollout plans. In April 2008, the CBG, a buying
program of the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) for small and
independent theatre operators, announced the selection of Cinedigm as the
digital cinema integrator of choice for the CBG’s 600+ members in the
United States and Canada.
To date, Cinedigm
has contracted for and completed the rollout of nearly 4,000 systems in
forty-one states with exhibitors including Atlas Theatres, Allen Theatres, Carmike Cinemas, Celebration!
Cinema, Cinema West, Cinetopia, Dickinson Theatres, Emagine, Galaxy Cinema,
Georgia Theatre Company, Great Escape Theatres, Marquee Cinemas, Krikorian
Premiere Theatres, MJR Theatres, Neighborhood Cinema Group, Premiere Cinema
Corp., Rave Motion Picture Theatres, Showplace Cinemas, UltraStar, and
Cinedigm's own Pavilion Digital Showcase Theatre.
Its Phase 2 plan
for up to an additional 10,000 screens will provide networked, turnkey Digital
Cinema systems in conformance with DCI specifications.