Comcast and Fandango enable movie ticket buying… if you are watching a TV
One of the strategies behind getting consumers to adopt alternative payments is to reduce if not remove friction to the transaction as well as make it easy peasy for the consumer to use. In the case of Comcast teaming with Fandango to enable the buying of movie tickets through the television, it’s pretty cool but it’s a remidner that Comcast is still tied to the set top box in what is increasingly a cut the chord and mobile device world in our increasingly Connected Society.
A smart move for Comcast and a positive one for Fandango that brings greater functionality to a shrinking audience. Trailer watchers have been able to do this with Apple TV for some time, and it’s a snap to order tickets through the Fandango app on one’s smartphone or tablet as it has the option to maintain one’s credit card on file.
I’ll be curious to see how quickly Comcast expands this shopping capability – not to other movies, but to other apps much the way Apple has with a number of apps found in the Apple TV store. The revenue split may be crumbs, but they tend to be high margin ones. The difference is Apple’s iOS and tvOS power multiple devices enabling consumers to view and shop where they want, when they want. Comast, not so much.
Comcast’s Xfinity unit and Fandango announced Wednesday (May 30) that they are giving movie fans the ability to find local show times and movie tickets via their television, thanks to an integration between the two.
In a press release, Comcast said that with Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment’s “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” Xfinity X1 customers can say “Get tickets” into their X1 voice remote while watching the movie trailer to search more than 30,000 U.S. movie theaters. Comcast said this is the first time this capability is available on a set-top box.
The companies expect to extend this feature to additional new releases throughout the year.
X1 customers who watch the latest “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” trailer on Xfinity On Demand will see an on-screen notification prompting them to say “Get tickets” into their voice remote to initiate the online ticket-buying process. They can then view a list of show times at nearby theaters and have the times sent to their mobile phone to complete the purchase via Fandango’s mobile app or website.
Source: Comcast, Fandango Enable TV Movie Ticket Buying | PYMNTS.com
