Samsung seeks a bigger screen presence, launches its premium brand Onyx

The Korean consumer electronics brand positions Onyx as a disruptor in the cinema business, but the challenge lies in getting audiences to pay more for their movies

Given the country’s longstanding romance with movies, consumer electronics major Samsung is betting big on the cinema exhibition market in India. It has just launched its premium brand of LED screens called Onyx in alliance with PVR Cinemas and says that it is looking to acquire at least 10 per cent of the multiplex market in the next couple of years. 

However the screens come at a steep investment of Rs 70-80 million. And while Samsung promises a revolutionary viewing technology, viewers would have to pay more for the movies that play on these screens. But are Indian moviegoers willing to pay more for their weekly dose of multiplex entertainment? 
 

Some say that, especially after the recent protests over ticket prices, Samsung may be pitching its brand in the wrong market. Movie going is already an expensive proposition in the metros and people are resistant to any further price hike. The company however offers another perspective. Onyx disrupts the movie experience, not just for viewers but movie makers too, Samsung says and sets the stage for the future.  And the brand will benefit from the first-mover advantage.

Samsung’s new screens hit the theatres in the US in April this year and in August, made an appearance in India. The first Onyx screen has been installed inside a PVR multiplex in New Delhi’s tony Vasant Kunj locality. 

“Onyx Cinema LED will be pivotal in showcasing the work of film directors as intended, offering a deeply immersive and intriguing viewing environment to the movie-lovers,” says Puneet Sethi, vice president, Enterprise Business at Samsung India Electronics. The screens are already up in in Korea, Mexico, China, Germany, Austria, Zurich and US. PVR Icon in India is Samsung's twelfth screen in the world. In China, Samsung has tied up with Wanda Cinemas and in India, apart from PVR Cinemas, the company is talking to other exhibitors and expects to install 5-7 screens by the end of this year.

PVR wants to offer a unique cinematic experience for its audiences, says Gautam Dutta, CEO, PVR Cinemas. His company also sees the new technology being offered via Onyx screens as the way forward for the entire exhibition-movie making industry. As for prices, both Samsung and PVR say that the increase would be nominal, just Rs100 more than that charged for movies on other screens. 

Consumers, PVR and Samsung believe, are willing to pay more a better time at the movies. And Samsung is sparing no effort to convince moviegoers about the new technology. It has been using digital and on-the-ground promotions to provide an understanding of what separates Onyx from the rest. Influencers Shraddha Kapoor and Rajkumar Rao were also brought on board at the time of the launch. The digital campaign was activated across two phases, during the launch and then during the sustenance phase. 

“The marketing and advertising efforts are geared towards transactional information-dissemination, pure perception enhancement, building brand affinity and enhancing brand relevance by creating ongoing customer value,” said the company. 

The Onyx launch was an elaborate splash too. It ran campaigns on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and used outdoor and point of sale advertising to create greater awareness about the brand. 

Importantly, points out Dutta, the technology could bring about a shift in the way movies are made. Dutta also says that the screens eliminate the need for bulky projector equipment, thereby allowing cinema exhibitors to include more seats in the auditoria and that will help recover costs too. 
 

The screens allow exhibitors to host e-sport tournaments, live musical performances, concerts, corporate events, stand up comedies and such other events. That will bring a whole new audience into the theatres, PVR and Samsung insist.

Mukesh Malhotra, an independent strategy and finance consultant who has worked with large multinationals and Indian companies says, “Onyx is going to disrupt the cinema industry the way iTunes disrupted the music industry. It will redefine movie viewing and the entertainment industry as a whole.”