On Wednesday, AMC Theatres (NYSE: AMC), a long-time critic of movie subscription service MoviePass, announced the launch of its own subscription – AMC Stubs A-List, a new VIP tier of its loyalty program. Priced at $19.95 per month plus tax, the subscription will allow moviegoers to see up to three movies per week, including multiple movies per day and repeat visits to movies they’ve already seen. The subscription can be used at all AMC, AMC Dine-in and AMC Classic theatres in the U.S., and it is valid on premium showings including IMAX, Dolby Cinema, PRIME, RealD 3D, BigD and D-Box movies and special events.

The program will be available on June 26 as part of the AMC Stubs loyalty program, and a minimum commitment of three months is required. Members will not get a physical card like some movie subscriptions offer, but they can get a virtual card using the AMC mobile app.

In addition to seeing movies, AMC Stubs A-List subscribers will get all the benefits of AMC Stubs Premiere including:

• Free upgrades on popcorn and soda
• Free refills on large popcorn
• Express service at the box office and concession stand
• No online ticket fees
• 100 points for every $1 spent, including the monthly subscription fee and food and beverage purchases in theatres. Tickets reserved through AMC Stubs are not eligible for points, but additional tickets are.
• An extra $5 reward for every 5,000 points

‘We believe that our current and future loyal guests will be interested in this type of program, as AMC Stubs A-List rewards guests with something that no one else offers: the very best of AMC, including IMAX, Dolby Cinema and RealD 3D up to 3 times per week, for one simple, sustainable price,’ said Adam Aron, CEO and President, in a news release.

‘Since its inception in 2011, AMC Stubs has continued to evolve to meet the needs of its customers, as it did in 2016 when we introduced the free tier, AMC Stubs Insider. AMC Stubs A-List is AMC’s next evolution of delivering amazing benefits to our loyal customers, and we’re excited to continue to grow the program by leaps and bounds,’ Aron added.’

For subscribers, the movie week count begins on Friday when movies traditional debut, running through the following Thursday. Subscribers can see all three movies in one day, with a two-hour break between films, and they can see the same movie more than once. There is no carryover, however, if a subscriber does not see three movies in a given week. Subscribers can buy their tickets online or in advance to reserve seats for their favorite movies. Advance reservations are limited to three movies at a time.

Subscriptions are month-to-month and are billed monthly. The monthly subscription fee of $19.95 is guaranteed for one year. If the fee changes, members will be notified via email.

According to AMC’s corporate fact sheet, the company operates about 1,000 theatres and 11,000 screens worldwide. They serve more than 250 million guests in the U.S. each year, and they employee more than 39,000 full-time and part-time associates. The AMC Stubs membership program has more than 12 million members.

In other movie subscription news, MoviePass is introducing surge pricing in July for popular movies, yet another change to the subscription service. Subscribers will pay an additional $2 per movie that it deems to be popular, reports Business Insider. Other changes coming soon are a bring-a-friend option and premium pricing for Imax and Real 3D movies.

‘At certain times for certain films – on opening weekend – there could be an additional charge for films,’ Lowe told Business Insider.

Insider Take:

AMC’s new subscription service comes as no surprise. AMC has long criticized MoviePass for creating an unsustainable model. In fact, in August 2017, AMC Theatres expressed its concern in a news release that a ‘small fringe player’ reselling movie tickets ‘is not in the best interest of moviegoers, movie theatres and movie studios.’ AMC Theatres said it was consulting with attorneys to see if it could prevent MoviePass from being used in AMC Theatres.

Creating its own subscription seems like the best solution, and AMC has put together an attractive package for use in its own theatres. With 12 million members in its loyalty program, AMC already has a strong customer base it can market to. MoviePass’s announcement of surge pricing – yet another change to its business model – makes that subscription service seem even more volatile because its pricing and offer change regularly. Our money is on AMC to be successful with AMC Stubs A-List. We aren’t so sure about MoviePass.