How to use MoviePass’ e-ticketing feature

Hollis Johnson/Business
Insider

• MoviePass’ e-ticketing feature allows users to purchase
  tickets on the app without being at the theater.
• Users can also see big films with e-ticketing that are
  now otherwise restricted.
• But it’s only offered at a select group of
  participating theater chains.

As movie-theater subscription service MoviePass overhauls its
business model, one feature has gone untouched: e-ticketing.

MoviePass’ e-ticketing is
a way to purchase movie tickets through the app without using the
MoviePass card. You can reserve seating when available, and
MoviePass says “you can check in from anywhere, like work
or home.”

But it only works at a select group of participating theater
chains.

For those MoviePass users who are near participating
e-ticketing theaters, it’s one of the worthwhile perks of a
service that is undergoing drastic changes,
many of which are perceived negatively by frustrated
subscribers.

MoviePass recently decided that it would not offer big films on
its service in their first couple weeks of release for the
foreseeable future to try and control its cash burn. But
MoviePass confirmed to Business Insider that the restriction
doesn’t apply to e-ticketing, so customers can still enjoy big
releases if they are close to a participating theater.

The participating theaters include
Goodrich Quality Theaters, Studio Movie Grill, and MJR
Theatres. In March, it struck a partnership with the
Mark Cuban-owned  theater chain Landmark Theatres for
e-ticketing and other perks.

These theaters are few and far between. Goodrich has 30 theaters
throughout Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri.
SMG has 30 theaters throughout
Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina,
Pennsylvania, and Texas (13 out of the 30 are in Texas). MJR has 10 locations, all in Michigan. And
Landmark has 52 locations in 27 markets.

In an email to customers in May, MoviePass announced
additions to its e-ticketing feature, such as: QR code support to
“speed up the ticketing process at the kiosk or counter because
now you only have to scan your phone”; sofa seating integration,
so “theaters with different seating options are now supported and
integrated” into the app; and accessibility messaging, in which
“seats designated for wheelchair accessibility will now include
pop-up messaging to ensure that these seats are not selected by
those who do not need them.”

Available e-ticketing theaters in your area will appear at the
top in the list view of theaters on the app, and with a red and
white ticket symbol in the map view. You’ll receive a
confirmation code with your check-in, and then can head to the
box office or kiosk at the theater to pick up your ticket.

For more of Business Insider’s MoviePass coverage,
click here.