AOL Moviefone Announces the Launch of Mars Sequel, Latest Version of Its Point-of-Sale Software System for Managing Movie Theaters.Business, Online & Entertainment Editors NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 16, 2000 New System Provides Theaters With A Powerful Management Tool, Gives Moviegoers Broader Access to Information and Tickets, Lets Moviegoers Print Tickets at Home AOL (A division of Time Warner, Inc., New York, NY, www.aol.com) The world's largest online information service with access to the Internet, e-mail, chat rooms and a variety of databases and services. Moviefone Inc., the nation's largest movie listing guide and ticketing service, today announced the launch of MARS Sequel, the newest version of its popular point-of-sale system for managing movie theaters. The MARS system is already in use at theaters with over 1800 screens, where theater owners use it to manage their business activities, from selling and printing tickets at the box office, to selling concession Selling concession The discount underwriters offer the selling group on securities in a new issue. selling concession See concession. stand items, to home-office reporting. The new system was launched at City Cinemas 86th Street Cinema, and is currently being rolled out to many more theaters. Based on the latest computing technology, including the Microsoft Windows See Windows. (operating system) Microsoft Windows - Microsoft's proprietary window system and user interface software released in 1985 to run on top of MS-DOS. Widely criticised for being too slow (hence "Windoze", "Microsloth Windows") on the machines available then. NT operating system operating system (OS) Software that controls the operation of a computer, directs the input and output of data, keeps track of files, and controls the processing of computer programs. and Sequel 7 Database architecture, MARS Sequel gives exhibitors a much higher level of control over their theater operations. Simultaneously, it gives theaters a seamless interface to Web and phone ticketing, making moviegoing more convenient at MARS-equipped theaters. The system also includes software that supports the ability for moviegoers to print tickets at home, a capability that Moviefone has announced will launch this Spring. "The new MARS Sequel system is a great addition to the suite of products and services we can offer our exhibitor partners," said Andrew R. Jarecki, CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of AOL Moviefone. "This new state-of-the-art point of sale solution will allow theater owners to better control and analyze their business, but it will also ensure that they have ready access to the millions of moviegoers who use Moviefone.com, 777-FILM, and our new wireless applications as they evolve." MARS Sequel gives consumers broader access to theater information, tickets, and seats in a number of specific ways, including: - Remote Ticketing: MARS Sequel's online interface to Moviefone and Moviefone.com, allows moviegoers to find showtimes and purchase tickets for current and future days via the Internet, phone, or wireless applications. MARS Sequel becomes the theater's instant interactive connection not only to Moviefone's millions of users, but also to all of America Online's more than 21 million members, and Internet users nationwide. - Automatic Ticketing Machines (ATMs): These full-service machines allow moviegoers to pick up tickets previously purchased online or on the phone, or to purchase same day, advance day and reserved seat tickets. Moviegoers will also be able to view movie trailers and other advertising and promotions, and access theater information screens. - Reserved Seating: Moviegoers can personally select and purchase specific seats using a unique interactive customer touch screen located outside the cashier's window. On Moviefone and soon on Moviefone.com, moviegoers can pre-select their seats from home and retrieve their tickets at the theater. Reserved seating enhances the moviegoing experience for end users and increases auditorium and concession yields. - Flexible Payment Methods: MARS Sequel allows moviegoers to use cash, credit cards, passes or coupons, and handles the purchase, redemption and tracking of gift certificates, VIP passes, special promotions, and group sales. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Richard Einiger, vice president and general manager of City Cinemas, "MARS Sequel gives us the opportunity to simultaneously improve the moviegoing experience for our patrons and better manager our theaters' performance." He continued, "The system provides reliability and stability in our transaction-intense environments, while also introducing new functionality to our industry. We are pleased to continue our long-standing partnership with AOL Moviefone and delighted to be the first theater chain to enjoy the benefits of MARS Sequel." System Feature Details MARS Sequel offers many features made possible through its use of the Microsoft Sequel 7 Database, and a level of scalability that allows for a quick roll out of new point of sale and management functionality. MARS Sequel also features the Microsoft Operating System (NT) considered the most stable operating system for heavy transactional networks. In addition, MARS Sequel utilizes "Crystal Reports" which are easy to customize and extremely flexible, with a user-friendly reporting format. The system includes a wealth of features designed specifically for the purpose of making theater management more reliable, flexible, and efficient. The easy-to-use graphical interface See GUI. provides for greater transactional control, including unlimited ticket types, unlimited advance day sales, multiple payment methods, group sales Group sales Block sale (of large amounts) of securities to institutional investors. group sales The distribution of a new security issue to institutional clients. , readmission readmission Managed care The admission of a Pt to a health care facility for a condition–eg, stroke, MI, GI bleeding, hip fracture, cancer surgery, shortly after discharge. See nth admission. Cf Admission, Discharge. tickets, and enhanced capabilities for the purchase, redemption and tracking of gift certificates, passes and coupons. MARS Sequel's "Business Monitor" feature provides managers with the ability to view real-time graphs and data for details on box office and concession sales. The system displays real-time seat count data for each movie so that theater managers can easily identify opportunities to increase sales by swapping auditoriums or interlocking interlocking /in·ter·lock·ing/ (-lok´ing) closely joined, as by hooks or dovetails; locking into one another. interlocking Obstetrics A rare complication of vaginal delivery of twins; the 1st shows. Changes to auditorium and movie properties can be made directly from the movie scheduler. Electronic count sheets make inventory management and adjustment simple. When cash amounts at the box office or concession stands Concession stand is the term used to refer to a place where patrons can purchase snacks or food at a cinema, fair, Stadium, or other entertainment venue. Some events or venues contract out the right to sell food to third parties. surpass a designated threshold, the business monitor will even prompt the manager to collect money from the cashiers as a security and theft prevention measure. MARS Sequel supports an unlimited number of concession offerings, combinations, and non-traditional merchandise. Bar code scanners A device specialized for reading bar codes and converting them into either the ASCII or EBCDIC digital character code. Pen scanners, also known as wand scanners, were the first type of bar code scanner developed in the 1970s. and a "One Touch Amount Tendered" button allow cashiers to process diverse, high volume customer orders quickly. MARS Sequel is also fault tolerant The ability to continue non-stop when a hardware failure occurs. A fault-tolerant system is designed from the ground up for reliability by building multiples of all critical components, such as CPUs, memories, disks and power supplies into the same computer. and supported by an automatic backup and recovery system so that data is always correct and available. To ensure maximum system uptime, MARS Sequel's equipment status monitor constantly evaluates all components of the system to identify hardware problems. About AOL Moviefone AOL Moviefone is a wholly owned subsidiary Wholly Owned Subsidiary A subsidiary whose parent company owns 100% of its common stock. Notes: In other words, the parent company owns the company outright and there are no minority owners. of America Online See AOL. , Inc. (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange : AOL), and is the leading offline and online moviegoing resource. Through Moviefone.com, and its AOL Moviefone telephone service (e.g. 777-FILM), the company provides millions of moviegoers each week with a complete, free directory of movies, showtimes, theater locations, the ability to purchase tickets, and other content of interest to moviegoers. AOL Moviefone, Inc. is a part of the AOL Interactive Properties Group. |
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