Self-service empowers consumers in every facet of our modern lives; from supermarket self-service checkouts to airline apps, and like many other technological developments, the cinema industry has embraced the best it can offer for their moviegoers.

Shifts in moviegoing behaviour show just how strongly the modern audience champion these new changes, too. Self-service kiosks are a common sight, and online ticketing has been on a dramatic rise for years. Our US Moviegoer Report showed that online ticketing in the US accounted for less than half of tickets sold in 2019. But by last year, we saw this number rise to 70% of all ticketing, vastly becoming the most-preferred way to purchase.

More power than ever is in the moviegoer’s hands. However, now it was time for what happens after a guest completes an online ticket purchase to evolve and elevate the entire moviegoer journey.

An evolution in self-service

This was the birth of the Living Ticket. Rather than the simple, static email PDF receipts moviegoers received after purchasing tickets online, Vista wanted to provide an accessible, dynamic ticket that would update with new or altered information about their bookings.

Very quickly, we realized the real power this could offer was not only for moviegoers—but cinemas as well—by placing control of their experience in moviegoers’ hands.

The Living Ticket aims for the ultimate convenience, always staying up-to-date, and providing features like Add to calendar and Add to digital wallet to give guests the easiest access to their tickets and information depending on their own preferences. But more than simply checking their booking, the Living Ticket enables moviegoers to take actions like swapping their seats or adding food to their tickets.

These enhancements to moviegoing self-service not only make their lives easier, but reduce resources and strain on cinemas. When a guest can swap seats to sit next to a friend from the comfort of their living room, or initiate a self-service refund without needing to call support, the pressure is taken off call centres and support teams. In service of making guests’ lives easier, self-service can directly make life easier for cinemas as well.

Connecting ticketing, F&B, and moviegoer agency

Ticketing and F&B come together in countless ways, from combined ticketing flow to advanced F&B offerings, seat association for in-seat delivery, and Living Ticket extends this connection. From the moment after their online ticket purchase, the Living Ticket gives them the ability to add food to their experience with add food to existing ticket.

After all, when booking a ticket a week in advance, moviegoers may not know what food they’ll feel like. The Living Ticket lets them add food to their order from the convenience of home the day before, or even on the way to the cinema. Keeping the option open to moviegoers enables a potential increase in spend-per-head, and connects every part of the experience.

F&B isn’t just about ordering; the Living Ticket features a ‘Start My Order’ button to give guests flexibility in the preparation of their order, so they can pick it up at the right moment, reducing queues and waiting time.

Integrating the Living Ticket with your business doesn’t have to be complicated. We designed the Living Ticket with flexibility in mind so you can implement it in the way that best suits your business:

1. Out-of-the-box with Lumos: Living Ticket is part of every Lumos channel, even Kiosk!
2. As a plugin: Add just the Living Ticket to the end of your existing website and/or app.
3. Custom with APIs: Build your own Living Ticket; every single feature is exposed via our APIs.

Continuing to innovate and expand our capabilities

We’re continuing to add features to the Living Ticket, opening more opportunities for cinemas to provide the best journey-wide experience to their moviegoers. Expansions to existing features are on the way, such as start my order supporting in-seat delivery, and an even more convenient method of self-service refunds with refund to account balance keeping moviegoers’ money easily available for a new booking.

The Living Ticket encompasses the entire moviegoer journey; from purchasing tickets to adding to their order and executing F&B during their visit. But we’re extending it beyond the credits of their movie with React: an upcoming development on our roadmap that introduces a post-movie survey to gauge moviegoers’ sentiment and intent, giving precious insight into your moviegoers to use in future promotion.

At Vista, we’re constantly excited by the opportunities to uncover and build new possibilities for the moviegoing experience, and the Living Ticket is one of many innovations we continue to refine. To see more of what’s coming for Vista, join us at our Discovery Session at CineEurope!

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