Mid-Plex Development Concept
In the past it was necessary for a multiplex operator to ideally have at least 10 screens in order to have an optimal mix of appealing films to present simultaneously, providing a full schedule for customers. Over the past few years the emergence of digital projectors now allows for much more flexibility in the scheduling of cinemas, since physical film prints are not involved.
A cinema can concentrate as many screens as it likes on the opening weekend of the newest blockbuster and then quickly schedule in other films during the week. Alternatively, a much larger variety of films can be scheduled in on a daily and weekly basis due to the simplified logistics of using computers for scheduling and storage of films. As a result, what we call the "mid-plex" with fewer (means 4 – 6 - 8) screens allows for a smaller physical footprint while still presenting a large and varied schedule to the customer. This lowers the cost to both the landlord (who can spend less on the fit-out and gives up less in terms of lower cinema leasing rates versus retail leasing rates) and the cinema operator (who spends less on equipment, lease costs and personnel costs of the simplified cinema operation).