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The logo of Cathay Cineplexes in Singapore

Cathay Cineplexes is a cinema chain established in 1939 in Singapore. The Cineplexes started as Cathay Cinema as Singapore's first air-conditioned cinema and first to screen American and British films in Singapore. The company is owned and operated by Singapore-listed media conglomerate mm2 Entertainment.[1]

History

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The first Cathay Cinema was located at the Cathay Building on 2 Handy Road, Singapore. It was the first air-conditioned cinema building in Singapore, opening on 3 October 1939 with the film The Four Feathers.[2] The cinema had a seating capacity of 1,321 and ancillary spaces such as a women's lounge and a spacious lounge bar.[3] The theatre was leased to and operated by Associated Theatres Ltd, but was later seconded by the colonial government and Malayan Broadcasting Corporation during WWII. The cinema was reopened in September 1945 when the Cathay Organisation regained full control.

Cathay became a household name in Singapore and Malaysia by the 1970s, where the chain owned and operated 75 cinemas at its peak.[4] This included Singapore's only open-air drive-in cinema, the Jurong Drive-in, which opened on 14 July 1971.[5] The drive-in cinema could accommodate 900 cars and an additional 300 people in its walk-in gallery. It was located on Yuan Ching Road, Jurong, next to the Japanese Garden. The Jurong Drive-in would close on 30 September 1985.[citation needed]

Acquisition by mm2 Asia

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On 24 November 2017, mm2 Asia Ltd acquired the Singapore business operations operated by Cathay Cineplexes.[6][7] mm2 Asia had earlier acquired Cathay's Malaysian cinema operations in September 2015.[8] The two cinemas acquired were Cathay Cineplex Damansara at e@Curve in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, and Cathay Cineplex City Square at Johor Bahru City Square. The cinema chain added 3 more cineplexes in 2015, with the acquisition of Mega Cinemas Management Sdn Bhd's sites in Prai, Langkawi and Bertam.[9] In 2016, mm2 Asia further acquired 13 cinemas in Malaysia from Lotus Fivestar Cinemas.[10]

In June 2017, mm2 Asia entered into an agreement to acquire the 50% stake of Golden Village Multiplex cinema business in Singapore, held by Australia's Village Cinemas.[11] However the deal was rejected by Orange Sky Golden Harvest Entertainment (Holdings) the owner of the other half-share of the Singapore business.[12] In November of that same year (2017), mm2 Asia announced its intentions to acquire all of Cathay Cineplexes' Singapore cinema operations.[13] In December 2020, mm2 Asia announced that it was in talks with Golden Village Singapore for a possible merger of its cinema businesses. The deal would be subject to approval from the shareholders of both mm2 Asia and Orange Sky Golden Harvest, as well as the Singapore Exchange, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore.[14]

mm2 Asia is the only cinema operator with operations in Singapore and Malaysia, trading under the Cathay Cineplexes and mmCineplexes brands respectively.[15]

Post COVID-19

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The COVID-19 pandemic affected the movie production and cinema businesses, and Cathay Cineplexes was ordered to close for several months in 2020, before reopening at reduced capacities.

In August 2021, mm2 Asia entered into a sale and purchase agreement with Kingsmead Properties to sell its cinema business.[16] The sale did not go through due to the "uncertainty arounds the Omicron variant dampening investor's appetites", as announced by Kingsmead in January 2022.[17]

In June 2022, Cathay Cineplexes announced that it would be ceasing operations at its Handy Road outlet on 26 June 2022.[18] The cinema space was taken over by independent cinema operator The Projector as Projector X: Picturehouse.[19] Cathay Cineplexes closed its Cineleisure Orchard outlet on 30 June 2023,[20] and its Parkway Parade outlet on 27 August 2023.[21] However the company stated that the closures were part of its efforts to "right-size" its cinema operations, as it was also opening a new cinema in Century Square at Tampines in the fourth quarter of 2023.[22] In June 2024, Cathay announced the closure of its AMK Hub outlet on 30 June 2024.[23]

Operations

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Singapore

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Cathay Cineplexes currently operates 35 screens in 5 locations in Singapore.[24]

The cinema lobby of Cathay Cineplexes in Singapore
  • Cathay Cineplex - Causeway Point
  • Cathay Cineplex - Downtown East
  • Cathay Cineplex - West Mall
  • Cathay Cineplex - Jem
  • Cathay Cineplex - Century Square[25]

Malaysia

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mmCineplexes currently operates 90 screenings in 12 locations in Malaysia.[26]

  • mmCineplexes - 1 Plaza Kuala Selangor, Kuala Selangor
  • mmCineplexes - Mahkota Parade, Malacca
  • mmCineplexes - Mesa Mall, Nilai
  • mmCineplexes - Kiara Square Bahau, Bahau
  • mmCineplexes - Prangin Mall, George Town
  • mmCineplexes - D'Mall Seri Iskandar, Seri Iskandar
  • mmCineplexes - Kerian Sentral Mall, Parit Buntar
  • mmCineplexes - Sunshine Bertam, Kepala Batas
  • mmCineplexes - Langkawi Parade, Langkawi
  • mmCineplexes - City Square, Johor Bahru
  • mmCineplexes - Segamat Central, Segamat
  • mmCineplexes - Summer Mall, Kuching

Cathay CineHome

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Cathay CineHome is a direct-to-consumer rental streaming service for video-on-demand (VOD) by Cathay Cineplexes and mm2 Entertainment.[27]

References

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  1. ^ "mm2 Asia". mm2 Asia. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
  2. ^ Soh, Gek Han. "Key Milestones in the History of Cathay Cinema". BiblioAsia.
  3. ^ "NewspaperSG". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  4. ^ "CORPORATE HISTORY". cathay-corporate. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  5. ^ "Jurong drive-in cinema | Infopedia". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  6. ^ https://links.sgx.com/FileOpen/mm2%20-%20Press%20Release%20-%20Completion%20of%20Proposed%20Acquisition%20of%20Cathay%20Cineplexes%20Pte%20Ltd.ashx?App=Announcement&FileID=479822. Retrieved 22 September 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ^ Yi, Wong Kai (2017-11-02). "mm2 Asia to acquire Cathay Cineplexes for $230m after failed bid for Golden Village". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  8. ^ Editor, Ann WilliamsAssistant Business (2015-08-17). "mm2 Asia to acquire two Cathay cineplex businesses in Malaysia". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 2023-09-25. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  9. ^ "mm2 Asia acquires 3 more cinemas". Yahoo News. 2015-08-25. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  10. ^ "mm2 Asia acquires 13 cinemas in Malaysia for RM118 mil". The Edge Malaysia. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  11. ^ "mm2 Asia to acquire Golden Village Cinema business in Singapore for S$184 mil". The Edge Malaysia. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  12. ^ Salim, Zafirah (2017-07-24). "MM2's Bid To Buy 50% Of Golden Village Cinema For S$184.25M Goes Down The Drain Within A Month". Vulcan Post. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  13. ^ Yi, Wong Kai (2017-11-02). "mm2 Asia to acquire Cathay Cineplexes for $230m after failed bid for Golden Village". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  14. ^ "Golden Village-Cathay merger proposed; will become Singapore's largest cinema operator if approved". CNA. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  15. ^ "mm2 Asia". mm2 Asia. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  16. ^ Ramchandani, Nisha (2021-08-31). "mm2 Asia inks agreement to sell cinema business, including Cathay, for $84.8m". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  17. ^ Correspondent, Sue-Ann TanBusiness (2022-01-03). "Sale of Cathay cinema business in Singapore falls through on Omicron concerns". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 2023-09-25. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  18. ^ "That's a wrap: Iconic Cathay Cineplex at Handy Road to close on June 26". AsiaOne. 2022-06-17. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  19. ^ "Golden Village x The Projector at Cineleisure launching in December, will feature blockbusters, indie films, live music". CNA Lifestyle. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  20. ^ "Commentary: Natural to feel nostalgic about the end of Cathay Cineplex at Cineleisure - but a refresh is due". CNA. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  21. ^ "Cathay Cineplex at Parkway Parade to shut down, last day of operations on Aug 27". TODAY. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  22. ^ "Cathay Cineplexes is set to open a new outlet at Century Square in Tampines!". InCinemas SG. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  23. ^ "Cathay Cineplexes at AMK Hub to close after Jun 30". CNA. Retrieved 2024-06-20.
  24. ^ "Cathay Cineplexes | Cinemas". www.cathaycineplexes.com.sg. Retrieved 2023-09-22.
  25. ^ Lui, John (9 November 2023). "Cathay Cineplexes to open new outlet at Century Square on Nov 21". The Straits Times.
  26. ^ "Showtimes in MMCineplexes, All Locations | Cinema Online". www.cinema.com.my. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  27. ^ "Cathay CineHome | Your favourite movies, delivered". cathaycinehome.com. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
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