NZ cinema software firm targets US market

Auckland cinema software firm Vista Entertainment Solutions is gearing up to take on the lucrative United States market after doubling its revenue in the past three years to $20 million.

SkyCity Entertainment sold its 50 per cent stake in Vista back to the company last week as part of its withdrawal from the cinema industry, but Vista director Brian Cadzow says it is unfazed.

The company's software is now installed in about 1500 cinemas in 49 countries, including in Greece, Bulgaria, Poland and Spain – where the cinema industry is growing.

A further 500 cinemas have signed contracts to use Vista's products.

The central-American market has proved a happy hunting ground for Vista, he says, which now holds about 80 per cent of the Mexican market – roughly 400 cinemas.

"Over the first four years of the deal that's worth around $7.5 million. It's a very good piece of business," Mr Cadzow says.

Cinema installations, staff numbers and revenue have doubled in the past three years, partly thanks to funding from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise.

The signing up of Australian cinema exhibitors Hoyts and Greater Union in 2008 means it has all the major cinema names in Australasia, bar Reading Cinemas.

Vista has 70 staff, 50 of whom are based in Auckland, and offices in London, Shanghai and Los Angeles. Its next major push will be into the US market, where there are 4500 cinemas.

The global cinema software market is very fragmented, and that fragmentation is even more exaggerated in the US, Mr Cadzow says. "We're the largest cinema software company in the world and we still only have 5 per cent of the world market. In America we have less than 1 per cent.

"We're never going to get 75 or 80 per cent of the market in America, but even if we get 10 per cent, that's a lot of cinemas."

The advent of 3-D is both a blessing and a curse for the firm, Mr Cadzow says. "It's a negative in the sense that a lot of capital is having to go into cinema upgrades. "But what cinemas are doing in conjunction to that is they're wanting to offer new sales channels and new experiences in the food and beverage offerings they have. They're investing in a new cinema experience and that's where we can help."

Vista's MobilePOS software lets cinema staff with handheld computers process and receive payment for food and beverage orders from customers in their seats.

"You can run a bar, you can run a restaurant, you can run a shop. That gives a lot of flexibility."

SkyCity contributed significantly to Vista's growth and development, he says. "They were a really good shareholder and we appreciated the opportunity to acquire their share."

- © Fairfax NZ News