[Press Release]

Ipsos Media CT’s latest cinema audience research shows that in 2010, film-goers were 7 times more likely to see a film in 3D instead of in 2D, but in 2011 the playing field was level. The young lead the 3D market with over 2/3s of under 35s watching 3D films, but just half of over 35s do the same.

But these figures mask what looks to be a ‘saturation point’ for 3D. Viewership has been static for a year and taken with the steep fall in satisfaction ratings. Only 29% of 13-17 year olds rated a 3D film as excellent down from 48% in 2010 and only 28% of women aged 18-34 down from 41%. Ratings may have risen amongst men in the same age group, but overall ‘excellent’ ratings dropped from 43% to only 39%.

There has been a change in attitude towards ticket costs. Over 54% of people expect to pay an extra £2-3 for a 3D ticket compared with only 40% last year and even better for cinema’s is that 62% of consumers are happy to pay the extra.

Although people are willing to pay more, most don’t completely understand what they’re paying for and almost 3 in 5 think it’s for the 3D Glasses rather than the film with 1 in 5 looking for discounts if they bring their own. Targeting families with child-size glasses would get parents into 3D with almost 2 in 5 saying they’d switch to 3D if these glasses were available.

Films that were ‘re-released in 3D’ were far less popular than ‘original 3D’ amongst consumers and less than 40% of people said they would pay extra to see one.

A spokesperson for Ipsos MediaCT said:

“Cinema goers are feeling the financial squeeze just as much as anyone else, 3D does seem to appeal to the younger generation and, a bonus to cinema owners, consumers now expect and will pay a premium for the privilege. Technology alone cannot revive the romanticism of the cinema. 3D films are less popular amongst young women and could end the cliché of teenagers kissing in the back rows. This could be due to a majority of 3D films being action movies proving that the story is still key. A 3D film may look pretty, but it needs substance too if it is to revive cinema’s fortunes.”

ENDS

Industry wide cinema audience research programme in the UK and Ireland insights into the position of cinema-going in the wider entertainment space. It is an online quantitative survey a nationally representative sample of 1,700 cinema-goers aged 13-54 with 1,500 in the UK and 200 in Ireland (including parents of 7-12s). All go at least 2+ times a year.

Core findings from the survey can be found in the attached slides.

[Philip Lelyveld comment: this information was emailed to me by Ashish Prashar, Head of Media Relations – Ipsos MORI.  I will supply the slides to you upon request.]