MoviePass, a movie subscription service, has received an investment from Comcast’s Forecast Labs, a consumer venture group.
Per a report from The Hollywood Reporter (THR) the investment comes after MoviePass reached its first profitable year (2023) in the company’s history following a stretch of financial tumult.
The company has had a storied business history. Launched in 2011 by Stacy Spikes, MoviePass made headlines when it went from being a fan favorite to its parent company falling by over 99.99%, leading to losing hundreds of millions of dollars. In 2022, it made a triumphant return when the company was reacquired by Spikes and relaunched, opening up to a waiting list that received more than 500,000 users.
In a 2022 interview with Indiewire, Spikes said it’s a great problem to have. “We are drinking from the firehose. When I bought MoviePass back, in November, I reached out to all three (of the big theater chains). I had conversations with Cinemark, I had conversations with Regal, and Adam (AMC owner) didn’t call me back.”
Now, the company is turning a new successful leaf after facing a slew of challenges, as documented in the recent HBO project. MoviePass, MovieCrash.
The recent investment will be used to continue its growth according to Spikes.
“Today’s investment will accelerate our mission to bring new technology and innovation to the film community that will spur growth and drive higher traffic to theaters,” Spikes said. “We are also continuing to invest in the development of our cinematic marketplace so that studios and partner theaters can see maximum value by engaging directly with movie fans on the platform.”