Regal Cinemas, National CineMedia Sign New Long-Term Deal

Etan Vlessing
·2 min read

National CineMedia has signed a new longterm deal with Regal Cinemas, one of its founding partners, in the latest sign both companies are moving towards restructuring their struggling businesses in a recovering exhibition sector.

Terms of the new 10-year exhibitor service agreement were not disclosed, but the deal will see NCM continue to exclusively offer on-screen advertisements at Regal Cinemas’ over 6,000 screens and 450 theaters, while also running its Noovie show with national, regional and local advertisers.

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Regal, along with AMC Theatres and Cinemark, launched NCM in 2007 to supply in-theater advertising, but those companies ran into the buzzsaw of the pandemic with industry shutdowns and disruptions to the Hollywood movie supply.

Under its contract with Regal, the company serves as the exclusive advertising service provider in exchange for monthly fees. Since 2007, Regal has been paid roughly $1.3 billion, with an average annual payment of $58 million from 2015 to 2019.

The deal, however, was endangered by Cineworld’s filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In 2022, NCM sued Regal Cinemas for allegedly exploiting parent company Cineworld’s bankruptcy proceedings to breach its legally-binding advertising deal with the company.

The in-cinema advertising network claimed Regal was looking to rewrite the agreement for better terms, enter into a new agreement with a competitor or bring in-house advertising services. In April, NCM itself filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and struck a debt restructuring deal with lenders to strengthen its balance sheet.

NCM’s business was hit by the shutdown of cinemas due to the COVID pandemic, followed by the slow industry recovery since the reopening of theaters and advertising being affected by macro-economic clouds.

Now, in the latest chapter in NCM and Cineworld’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, the in-theater advertising firm has hammered out a new deal with Regal, contingent on parent Cineworld emerging from bankruptcy court proceedings in Texas.

“The agreement we announced today strengthens and deepens NCM’s 20-year relationship with Regal Cinemas well into the future and reaffirms our position as the market leader and premier company in cinema advertising,” Tom Lesinski, CEO of NCM, said in a statement.

The agreement also marks another milestone in NCM restructuring its own business coming out of the pandemic.

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