Leading digital cinema company Arts Alliance
Media (AAM) and Europe’s number one cinema operator Odeon & UCI Cinemas
Group have announced a deal to supply Odeon’s UCI Kinowelt sites in Germany and
Austria with AAM‘s Locksmith KDM delivery software. The deal covers 25 sites and
231 screens, and will see the software being rolled out over the coming weeks.
Locksmith is designed to manage distribution of digital cinema
security keys (KDMs), collecting them from distributors and delivering directly
to the relevant screen server in the cinema in order to play out content.
Previously, distributors needed to email KDMs to each cinema and thereafter
exhibitors followed a manual and time-consuming process of searching for and
transferring each KDM. Now Locksmith automates the process by receiving the
KDMs from a cloud, examining each key, calculating which screen it relates to,
and delivering it ready for use - all without human intervention or error.
Other benefits to the system include reporting and alerts to enable
exhibitors and distributors to see any errors with KDM delivery. Alerts may be configured so they are sent
directly via email or phone. Locksmith is run via a secure, web-based system, which
means it is accessible from anywhere with an internet connection.
Locksmith integrates with other AAM digital cinema software,
including the Screenwriter Theatre Management System (TMS) and Producer, the
enterprise TMS for managing cinema chains. Once an exhibitor schedules a show
using Screenwriter or Producer, Locksmith proactively examines each show to
determine if any are missing KDMs. This
innovative system alerts cinema operators before any shows are lost.
Jens Heinze, Director of Operations for UCI, said “We have been
trialling Locksmith on three of our sites very successfully, and have
transferred over 300 KDMs in just the past two weeks and over 1500 since the
start of the trial. We have been impressed with Locksmith’s efficiency, by
automating an error-prone and time-consuming process it has made our operations
faster and more accurate, and crucially, reduces the chances of losing shows
due to KDM errors. We’re looking forward to seeing those benefits across all
our sites.”
Eric Stevens, Commercial Director of AAM, added “It’s great to see
Locksmith in action; providing concrete benefits to exhibitors in saving time
and reducing human error. KDMs have long been a source of frustration for both
distributors and exhibitors. Locksmith’s
automation of the process enables both parties to see even more benefit from
digital distribution while ensuring absolute content security. Locksmith is a
crucial part of our end-to-end software system making all aspects of digital
cinema work seamlessly to deliver efficient operations.”
Odeon UCI sites in Germany, Austria and Italy already use Arts
Alliance Media’s Screenwriter TMS, as well as the company’s Auditor software to
manage VPF deals. AAM also provides the sites with remote monitoring and log
collection from its London-based NOC.
