New City Centre to include 20 movie theatres
Bahrain Cinema Company (Cineco) is to open the largest megaplex, capacity wise, in the entire Middle East in the new City Centre, come June 2008, Ahmad Rashed (pictured), the general manager of Cineco told the Tribune.
"Bahrain has always been a pioneer. Now it is doing it again" said Rashed.
The City Centre Megaplex will consist of 20 new screens, cover 8,000 square metre of ground and hold more than 4,000 seats, said Rashed.
The Megaplex will have the best of everything, counting state-of-the-art seating, sound systems, decorations and concession stands.
VIP seating with service, a first in Bahrain, will also be available and the complex will include two large multi-purpose theatres which can also be used for live shows.
One benefit of opening the Megaplex is that there will no longer be any exclusivity on major studios to any cinema operator as it does now, said Rashed. An estimated BD6.5 million is the cost of this huge project.
"Today, Cineco is thriving given that its actual yearly profits are better than the anticipated profits laid out in its budget plan," Rashed said. Compared to the 200-500 fils price range of tickets sold in 1968, when the company was first established, ticket prices at present range from a fixed BD2.500 for all seating in Arabic and English movies, to BD1.800 for balcony seats and BD1.200 for auditorium seats in theatres showing Indian movies.
Cineco's profits actually increased with the entry of other "healthy opponents" in the market, Rashed said.
Cineco will be booming even further with the opening of the City Centre Megaplex as "growth comes with expansion," he added.
Twenty new screens may be a lot for the size of Bahrain, said Rashed, but such expansion is no doubt needed as Bahrain becomes the hub for GCC tourists who flock to the country for entertainment and, in turn, power Bahrain's economy.
Since the attraction-filled, spacious City Centre will become the focal point for such tourists, having the Megaplex situated in it is profitable.
Cineco will also unveil 13 new screens, including an IMAX theatre, in Villagio Mall, Qatar, before the end of the year. Today, Cineco owns 24 screens in Bahrain and 14 screens in the Doha City Centre. By June 2008, Cineco will own a total of 71 screens (27 screens in Qatar and 44 screens in Bahrain), making it one of the biggest cinema operators in the Middle East, Rashed said.
Cineco, which also owns two restaurants in Bahrain (Rendezvous-buffet concept and Takatak-Indian casual dining), will also be opening a Rendezvous in the City Centre here and in the one in Doha, along with a fine-dining Indian restaurant in Doha, as part of its new projects.
© Bahrain Tribune 2007
