Las Vegas/ShoWest—Apr 2, 2009
Christie Enjoys Explosive Digital Cinema Growth in Asia Pacific
Continues to Forge Massive Digital Deployment Deals in South Korea, Thailand, China and India
Christie, a global leader in visual solutions for entertainment, business and industry, is enjoying explosive digital cinema growth of more than 400% in the Asia Pacific region. With major deployment deals for the Christie CP2000 series of DLP Cinema® projectors, this growth firmly establishes Christie as the undisputed industry leader. To date, more than 600 sites in Asia Pacific have installed Christie digital cinema projectors, with an additional 500 sites scheduled for conversion by the end of this year.
After posting a record of more than 7,000 completed installations worldwide just three years after launching the world’s largest digital cinema deployment plan, Christie is now driving the growth of digital cinema in Asia Pacific, with many countries in the region embarking on large-scale digital cinema plans. Development deals have accelerated in South Korea, Thailand, India and China, with Christie projector installations leading the film-to-digital transition.
South Korea-based D-Cinema Korea Co. Ltd (DCK), the joint-venture company of CJ CGV and Lotte Cinema, has also announced a Virtual Print Fee (VPF) deal with major Hollywood studios that will launch the country’s largest digital cinema deployment to date. The studios, including Paramount Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox and Universal Pictures, have agreed to provide digital theatrical releases and pay VPF for each title to help offset the initial costs of conversion. For the initial deployment of the plan, Christie will provide its Christie CP2000 series projectors in theaters across the country. The agreement strengthens DCK’s leadership in digital cinema and introduces a new era in content distribution for Korea. With this, South Korea is expected to be the first, fully digitized country in the world.
In Thailand, Christie has worked with its Thailand-based partner, Golden Duck Group, to develop the local cinema scene. Major Cineplex Group, the country’s largest exhibitor, has also recently adopted a full Christie digital cinema solution for their theatres in Bangkok. In addition, SF Cinema, the second largest chain in Thailand, is also a firm supporter of the Christie CP2000 Series.
Christie’s digital cinema growth in China has gathered momentum since the triumphant performance of a record number of Christie digital projectors at the 2008 Beijing Summer Games ceremonies. Together with Beijing Time Antaeus (TA) Media Tech. Co., Ltd., Christie provided 120 Christie CP2000-ZX models that delivered a spectacular presentation for the event and demonstrated their full flexibility in a non-cinema environment. After the ceremonies, these projectors were installed in TA’s theaters across China as part of the country’s film-to-digital conversion. In addition, China’s renowned Shanghai Film Group (SFG) Corporation and Lianzhong (LZ) have also selected Christie exclusively for their respective nationwide digital cinema rollout plans.
In India, Christie continues its collaboration with Scrabble Entertainment (SE); to date it has successfully installed 200 Christie DLP Cinemaprojectors for India’s largest single digital cinema deployment. This historic rollout brought the digital cinema revolution to India. Christie projectors are now installed in theaters owned by PVR Cinemas, Fame Cinemas, INOX and Fun Theatres across the country.
“In the recent digital cinema deployment plans, Christie has expanded its market share in the Asia Pacific region very rapidly and surpassed the growth rate of most digital cinema providers in this part of the world. Leading exhibitors are now opting for Christie digital cinema solutions as they have witnessed successful Christie implementations worldwide, including the US. Our recent series of digital installations in the Asia Pacific is a testimony to the undisputed global quality of our entertainment solution and strong technical support team to help theaters complete their film-to-digital transitions,” comments Lin Yu, vice president, Christie Asia Pacific.
“These international deployments position the Asia Pacific region as the next frontier for digital cinema. Christie’s successful participation is backed by extensive experience, market leadership, and broad insight into the needs of the industry,” says Jack Kline, president and COO, Christie Digital Systems USA, Inc. “To compete on the world stage requires vision on a large scale. Christie is forging global partnerships with all the major industry players to provide the exceptional movie viewing experience of digital cinema.”
