Vista’s purpose is to bring more people together to experience the magic of movies and cinema by creating a platform that connects the industry and powers the moviegoer experience.

Vista has a long history of innovative digital technology; in 2003 we released the very first automated ticketing machine (kiosk) for cinemas; in 2006 we released the world’s first mobile app that allowed moviegoers to select their seats and buy tickets right from their phone — before Apple changed the world with the iPhone and the App Store — and we have continuously pushed the boundaries of web ticketing with order baskets, web payments, and print-at-home tickets. We have continued that innovation with digital channel products that many of your moviegoers love today: Vista Web, Vista Mobile, and Vista Kiosk are all widely adopted products that Vista has continuously invested in for over a decade.

As we strive to deliver our purpose and continue our journey to cloud, we must make balanced decisions about where to focus our efforts. Where products are delivering exceptional value but no longer require enhancement, we consider these products to be feature complete. Feature complete products undergo thorough review by the product teams and where appropriate we are placing these products in Basic Maintenance Mode (BMM).

From June 1, 2023, Vista Web, Vista Mobile, and Vista Kiosk are all entering Basic Maintenance Mode (BMM), and you’ll hear us refer to these products as Legacy Web, Legacy Mobile, and Legacy Kiosk from now on. This change means we will no longer be adding new features or enhancements to those products, but we will continue to support those of you who use these products today.

This change affords us the opportunity to focus on innovation in modern and highly-secure technology that delivers improved moviegoer experiences via our latest digital products. We now offer two streams of digital products: highly bespoke engagements via our Omnia product line, and white-label CMS-driven off-the-shelf digital channels via our Lumos product line.

We will continue to update products in BMM with security and regulatory patches and are committed to delivering any client funded enhancements that have been through the design and approval process prior to this announcement. Speak to your account manager if you’re unsure about an outstanding feature request for a product in BMM.

Why are Vista Web, Vista Mobile, and Vista Kiosk entering ‘basic maintenance mode’?

These channels are considered feature complete and we have pushed each to its technological limit. The Vista Web, Vista Mobile, and Vista Kiosk products are built on older, less reliable, or obsolete technology that means our speed-to-market for innovation is heavily impeded, we’re exposed to more cyber threats, and in a competitive technology-driven labour market, we struggle to find talent for these legacy technologies.

When are Vista Web, Vista Mobile, and Vista Kiosk entering ‘basic maintenance mode’?

June 1, 2023, at 0900 NZT.

What is ‘basic maintenance mode’?

Products that enter basic maintenance mode are considered feature complete by Vista and will no longer receive any new features, whether requested by customers or as part of our internal product strategy. We have determined that now is the appropriate time for Legacy Web, Legacy Kiosk, and Legacy Mobile to enter BMM.

Is a product in ‘basic maintenance mode’ going to be ‘end-of-life’ soon?

Not necessarily. Unless we have directly communicated a plan to end-of-life a product, basic maintenance mode does not mean a product is going to be deprecated any time soon. We will always provide customers with ample notice that a product is entering end-of-life mode (ELM). We are committed to providing you at least 12 months’ notice ahead of any such date to ensure you have an appropriate opportunity to replace those products that do enter ELM with either a replacement product from Vista, or one of our partners.

NB: we are not communicating an ELM date for Vista Web, Vista Kiosk, orVista Mobile Cinema at this time.

We remain committed to our mission to deliver the best possible digital solutions to moviegoers and cinemas and we’re sure you’ll love what comes next from Vista Digital. Please speak to your account manager about how we plan to deliver on this commitment as we continue our collective journey to cloud.