Hong Kong financial group invests in low-cost multiplexes

According to the agreement, Beta Media is valued at VND600 billion (US$27.5 million). However, the specific value of the agreement and the stakes to be held by the Hong Kong partner have yet to be disclosed.

Previously, Beta Media received investment from Vietnam Investments Group (VIG)—the investor of Galaxy Cinemas and Galaxy Studios, as well as numerous food brands.

Since 2015, with the launch of the Beta Cineplex chain in northern province of Thai Nguyen, Beta Media has built and opened three other cinemas in Bien Hoa city in the southern province of Dong Nai and two in My Dinh and Thanh Xuan districts in Hanoi. Ticket prices are 60% to 65% lower than high-end cinemas in major cities.

Beta Media general director Bui Quang Minh said that by developing cinema theatres in smaller provinces, the company can avoid the fierce competition with large firms.

In 2017, Beta Media plans to open six more multiplexes in the central province of Thanh Hoa, the northern province of Bac Giang, as well as Hanoi, Nha Trang and Ho Chi Minh City, increasing the number of its total multiplexes to 10. The figure is expected to reach 20 by 2018.

At present, five leading businesses hold 98% of the Vietnamese film distribution market, three of whom are foreign-invested. 

They include CJ CGV with 43%, Lotte with 30%, Platinum with 10%, Galaxy with 9%, and BHD with 6%.

CJ CGV, owner of the CGV cinema chain, now has 38 cinema complexes in Vietnam alone, with 247 projection rooms, an increase of 20% over 2015.

Lotte Cinema is CJ CGV’s biggest rival, holding 30% of the market share. Owning 29 cinema complexes in the country, Lotte Cinema has a high average growth rate, even higher than CJ CGV’s.