There was a weird time in the ’90s when people in search of a movie time could just call a hotline for a full list of showtimes. An all-knowing, slightly robotic man could tell you the showtimes of The Lion King with ease. Technology swept in, and the idea became outdated.
According to Deadline, Google has a new way of making ticket purchasing a breeze. Instead of taking all the time to dial your rotary, just tell your Google Assistant: “Hey Google, give me the showtimes for Frozen 2 in New York City this weekend.” It will respond with booking information it’s taken from the online ticketing operations of 70 companies in both the U.S. and the UK — including AMC, Odeon, and movietickets.com.
One of the partners, Boxoffice Company, says that in several months of testing they saw a 20%-25% increase in the number of people who ended up purchasing tickets compared to those who didn’t use a google-aided system. The collaboration is an effort to make the movie ticket buying process easier for people. They believe it’s easy for the process to get frustrating, so people just give up. Boxoffice Company has been partnering with Google for more than 20 years, and its roots trace back to the silent movie era. The company is cautious with this new venture, however, citing that it’s created this partnership in a way that will not disadvantage theaters that are already in trouble due to consolidation and the streaming wars.
Technology may change, but the magic of movies will last forever. No dial-up necessary.
Photo: Google
