Published:
26-Jul-07
Kinepolis, the pioneering Belgium exhibitor, will equip each of its 23 complexes throughout Europe with digital 3D cinema. The group, active in France, Spain, Switzerland and Poland, will convert one screen per complex using the Dolby 3D Digital system. Kinepolis has been one of the early adopters of d-cinema in Europe, and now has over 50 screens deployed, which is the first provision for a 3D upgrade. The group had already earmarked digital equipment from Barco and Dolby. Kinepolis is now the first chain to choose the Dolby 3D system, which is based on an upgraded server unit, a filter wheel inside the projector and repeat-use eyewear, also with special filters. However, Dolby has also stated that the technology would be licensed to other server manufacturers.
Our take...
Kinepolis has started with a relatively low base of one 3D screen per complex, perhaps due to the fact it is trialing the technology or partly because it is easier to move the Dolby system around a cinema complex, according to changing demand for the 3D movie. This is in contrast to the system from market leader RealD, which uses a silver screen and is essentially fixed to one auditorium, unless several are deployed per theatre. However, leading exhibitors in the US have already equipped as many as four screens per complex with 3D capabilities. The decision by Kinepolis to embark on the additional investment for 3D follows similar moves by other European exhibitors in first half 2007, particularly Lusomundo Cinemas and Village Cinema with the RealD system, in Portugal and Greece, respectively.
Belgium,
France,
Spain,
Switzerland,
