IMAX’s VR Centers are now down to just four locations following its most recent closure.
Variety last week confirmed that the company’s center at the AMC Kips Bay cinema in New York, which was the first location to launch inside a multiplex theater, had closed down. The location opened in June 2017 and was the second overall center to open in IMAX’s global rollout.
A statement issued UploadVR reads: “With the launch of the IMAX VR pilot program our intention was to test a variety of different concepts and locations to determine which approaches work well. After a trial period with VR centers in multiplexes, we have decided to conclude the AMC Kips Bay 15 IMAX VR pilot run.”
IMAX’s VR Centers are essentially VR arcades that let people pay to experience titles like Beat Saber, Raw Data and Star Wars: Trials on Tatooine. The company had once planned to also offer cinematic VR content that would serve as companion pieces to current movie releases, though it also recently transpired that the company’s VR camera project with Google had been canceled too.
But this is far from the first closure for these VR centers. Back in August IMAX also shut down its other New York location as well as one in Shanghai, China. At the time, CEO Richard Gelfond stated that, while reaction to the centers had been positive, the “numbers just weren’t there.”
That leaves locations in Toronto, Los Angeles, Bangkok and Manchester open for now. IMAX declined to comment on if these centers will stay open. That said, the company already shot down the possibility of opening more centers last week’s earnings call. “We’re not looking for new business projects,” said CFO Patrick McClymont. “We’re keenly focused on the core business. And that will be the approach for next year as well.”
Other location-based VR experiences are seeing some success, though. Dave and Busters recently labeled the launch of its Jurassic World VR experience as its biggest ever.
Tagged with: IMAX VR
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