Page 24 - aruba-today-20190430

A24 technology
Tuesday 30 april 2019
MoviePass founder's next act: Watch ads, see free movies

By ANICK JESDANUN to eat (use the service)?
AP Technology Writer There were people going
NEW YORK (AP) — Stacy every day, and there were
Spikes co-founded Movie- people who maybe didn't
Pass, a subscription service use the service. There were
that lets you frequent mov- regions behaving differ-
ie theaters for a set monthly ently. The ad businesses
fee. After MoviePass sold are more straightforward.
off a majority stake in 2017, Facebook and others have
Spikes watched as the new figured it out.
owners quickly expanded, Q: With MoviePass, you
only to find the cost of all took a loss as you covered
those movie tickets too the full cost of movie tickets
high to sustain. in most cases. Will you also
Now Spikes has a new be subsidizing tickets with
idea: free movie tickets for PreShow?
people who first agree to A: We're expecting to
watch ads. His new startup run this business such that
is called PreShow. you're paying your way
Spikes spoke with The As- (through ads) to go to the
sociated Press recently movies. The way to do that
about the state of movie In this March 26, 2019, photo Stacy Spikes, co-founder of MoviePass, poses for a photo in New is to let in a few people,
theaters. Questions and York. and you have certain ad-
answers have been edited Associated Press vertisers to start, and you
for length and clarity. grow over time.
Q: Why change moviego- ads on your phone. What's A: Nothing is recording. It's entertained versus you're The investment community
ing? to stop me from just leaving a motion detector. There sitting through painful ads. wants smarter businesses.
A: If you do not evolve with the ads running on a table? is nothing leaving your de- The more time you spend There's not the same toler-
the times, you will wake up A: We had to build in facial vice, nothing stored. (All focused on an activity or ance to, "Oh, we'll figure it
and find you're like a re- recognition so that you can advertisers get) is this many brand, the more you're like- out."
cord store or a video (rent- tell that the person actually people watched these ly to spend your money. Q: What advice do you
al) store. To keep cinema watched. If I look away, it spots. Q: How's starting PreShow have for others starting their
at the forefront, we need can detect that. It'll pause Q: How are longer ads bet- different from MoviePass? own businesses?
to be innovating. if it doesn't see me for five ter than 30-second spots? A: We were trying to figure A: Do something that you
Q: You get a free movie seconds. A: You actually get the certain things out, like how know you love so much,
ticket after watching at Q: Whoa, that sounds time to go into a story. It much do you charge and you're your own kind of ex-
least 15 minutes of video creepy. should feel like you're being how much are they going pert at it. q

Streaming service Spotify hits

100 million paid user mark

COPENHAGEN, Denmark which was reached dur- is expected to release new
(AP) — Music streaming ser- ing the first three months of figures with its earnings re-
vice Spotify said Monday 2019, "an important mile- port on Tuesday.
that its paying subscribers stone." The number of Spotify's to-
have reached 100 million The growth was driven, tal monthly users, which
for the first time, up 32% on among other things, by "a includes those who do not
the year and almost twice better-than-planned pro- pay a monthly subscription
the latest figures for Apple motion in the U.S. and Can- fee but use the service with
Music. ada." Spotify said it had intermittent ads, rose to 217
In this Tuesday, April 3, 2018 file photo, a trading post sports the
Spotify logo on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. The Stockholm-based com- reached "the high end of million in the first quarter.
Associated Press pany called the figure, our guidance range of 97- The strong growth in its user
100 million." base led to a 33% rise in
By comparison, archrival revenue, to 1.5 billion euros
Apple Music had about 50 ($1.7 billion). Yet like many
million paying subscribers tech companies focusing
at the end of 2018, the lat- on building market share,
est available figures. Apple the company continued to
lose money, reporting an
operating loss of 47 million
euros.
Spotify says that voice
speakers like Google Home
and Alexa are a "critical
area of growth" and is look-
ing to invest more in pod-
casts to supplement its of-
fering of music.q