‘Meerkat Movies’ to replace Orange Wednesdays
When it was announced that Orange Wednesdays – the popular 2-for-1 ticket deal Orange mobile phone owners were treated to – was going to be put to bed after 12 years, it seemed the end of an era. Not necessarily so: Compare the Market, the insurance company, have picked up where Orange and EE have left off with Meerkat Movies, which commences on April 7.
As with the Orange Wednesday deal, with Meerkat Movie you’ll be given a code – if you’re a Compare the Market customer – which you can use to purchase two tickets for the price of one. The major difference is that the deal is valid for Tuesdays, too – not just Wednesdays. It’s a savvy move on the part of Compare the Market, a pledge that will cost £100m; the CE of Cinema First, Phil Clapp, who are sponsoring the deal with Compare the Market, told BBC Newsbeat:
‘This is the biggest promotion that cinema has ever seen… People look for value and we are very hopeful this exciting new promotion will offer a significant incentive to people who otherwise wouldn’t go to the cinema… Orange Wednesdays was hugely popular but this offers extra flexibility with a choice of two days rather than one.’
With cinema attendance expected to reach 170m and over this year (in no small part thanks to tentpole releases such as Avengers: Age of Ultron, SPECTRE, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens), this is a savvy move on Compare the Market’s behalf. At the moment, the deal will currently only last a year – so in reality, they could easily back out when it comes to renewing next year, once the guaranteed box office smash that will be 2015 is done with. Hopefully for us, they will renew: who doesn’t love free cinema tickets?