Popular Kenya Cinema theatre closes its doors

When television sets made their debut in living rooms in the 1950s, the death of movie theatres drew close.

When VHS landed in the 1970s, the chief angel Gabriel was seen beckoning. When DVDs made a waltzing entry in the 1990s, the movie theatres were admitted to the ICU. But today?

Movie theatres seem to have lost the fight to stay alive. Today, the Kenya Cinema in Nairobi is closing. Yes, you will watch no more movies at the Kenya Cinema.

Movie piracy, advancement in home entertainment systems, and improvements in broadband and the Internet have all conspired to kill the movie theatres, says Fox Theatres marketing and communication consultant, Mourine Nyanjong’.

Although it is sad that they are closing the Kenya Cinema today, Nyanjong’ is quick to add that movie going is not going away any time soon.

“In order to become more competitive in the East African marketplace, Fox Entertainment Group embarked on refining its strategy, which is similar to pruning in horticulture,” she says.

“We are closing our unproductive cinemas and planning renewed development of the most profitable cinemas, introducing new products and services and embracing modern ideas to what has now become a highly competitive environment,” she told the Review.

Those, she says, will include 3D installation at specific theatres. “As the entertainment scene gets more diverse and the patrons become more sophisticated, we are looking to provide cinema goers with a new experience in theatres.

“With the installation of 3D at the Fox Cineplex Sarit Centre, we are creating a paradigm shift in cinema viewing,” she said. Trushna Budhev, the general manager of Silver Bird (formerly Numetro) concurs, adding that new technological advancements are pushing theatres to spend too much money to stay afloat globally.

If one cannot make profits, it makes sense to close shop, he adds. For starters, movie theatre chains have to pay royalties to the movie studios. They do not make a lot of cash on the actual movies, so they have only two options: raise ticket prices and mark up on popcorn, soda and hot dogs by 1,000 per cent!

“However, efforts to stay relevant go beyond hi-tech,” Trushna says. “People want a cool experience. Theatres must appeal.” Someone lamented sadly about the closure.

“I used to love going to the movies at Kenya Cinema. Actually I liked meeting my pals and even dates there. The experience was always worth it, but nowadays, I see no sense. When a movie comes out in the US, the trailer is on line the next minute, and I can get it the next week in 12 different DVD versions, watch it at home with a couple of friends and pay very little… it is better.”

And so it is time to start writing the obituary of movie theatres in Kenya.