Barco, a global leader in digital cinema technology, announced today that Cobb Theatres of Birmingham, Alabama has selected and installed Barco digital cinema projectors into its first three “CineBistro” theatres located in the Tampa and Miami, Florida areas. For Cobb Theatres, CineBistro is a new entertainment concept that combines premium dining services with luxury movie-going and reserved seating. While enjoying gourmet cuisine and premium wines and cocktails, customers can view first-run or independent movies in their own luxurious leather rocking chair.
A CineBistro consists of an intimate lounge and restaurant area in a boutique setting, surrounded by multiple theatres — each seating between 80-100 customers. After dining, the tables are rolled back and patrons enjoy a movie in what Cobb Theatres describes as a true “private Hollywood movie screening experience.”
When designing the CineBistro concept, Cobb Theatres chose to go “premium” in every way possible, with digital projection and sound as a key component. After carefully evaluating their projector options, Cobb Theatres selected Barco as their CineBistro projector provider. As a long time Barco customer, Cobb Theatres was familiar with the superb quality, high efficiency and proven reliability of Barco digital cinema projection systems.
With Texas Instrument's DLP Cinema® technology at the core, Barco DP-1500 and DP-2000 projectors were installed in the first three CineBistro venues, enabling Cobb Theatres to offer customers both 2D and 3D films with ease. In addition, for the Hyde Park (Tampa, FL) CineBistro, a Barco ACS-2048 alternative content switcher was also installed. This specialized switcher effectively expands the theatre's display capabilities beyond movies, with the ability to input and scale “alternative content” formats (such as DVDs or satellite feeds) directly into the projector. With this addition, the CineBistro venue becomes an attractive option for private corporate events and screening of live telecasts such as boxing bouts and concerts.
According to Jeremy Welman, Chief Operating Officer for Cobb Theatres, Barco is Cobb's preferred partner as his company advances their digital projection deployment. “Barco has been our choice for digital cinema projectors for several reasons,” Welman explained. “The superior image quality, energy efficiency, and Barco's desire to work closely with us and to stand behind their products — these are the important factors. In the CineBistro, where we're selling a premium dining and viewing experience, we naturally had to provide our patrons with the very best image quality, just as we do in each of our theatres. All in all, it was a pretty easy decision for us to continue using Barco in the CineBistros.”
Welman's comments were amplified by Joe DeMeo, Director of Sales for Barco's Digital Cinema business. “Cobb Theatres' preference for Barco is a testament to our quality and reliability” noted DeMeo. “These first three CineBistros are just the start of a very popular trend in digital cinema and family entertainment, and we're honored that Barco is a part of it.”
