Unlimited is not the only cinema subscription
Alamo's Season Pass Limited gives subscribers one ticket credit per month, with unused credits able to roll over for up to three months — a subscription designed for people who do not visit weekly.
Published 8/10/2026
The idea
Design a light subscription for customers who want one film a month, rather than assuming unlimited is the only subscription worth selling.
Evidence
Observed example. The proposition and its rules are published; subscriber numbers, retention and profitability are not.
Operator takeaway
A lighter plan may create a regular habit at a frequency the customer can realistically sustain.
Try this
Pilot a one-credit monthly plan with a maximum balance of three credits and compare it with ordinary and unlimited membership.
Measure
Utilisation, average unused balance, churn, frequency before and after joining, food and beverage spend and migration to a higher tier.
Watch out for
Rollover creates a liability: unused credits are a future cost sitting on the balance sheet, and a capped balance is what keeps it bounded.
What they are doing
The current proposition gives one ticket credit per month. Unused credits roll over, with a maximum rollover window of three months. It is running as a pilot in Dallas and Chicago and is positioned as a lower-priced alternative to unlimited use.
Why it caught our attention
Many cinema customers do not visit frequently enough to perceive unlimited cinema as valuable. A lighter plan may instead create a regular habit without requiring very high frequency.
How the mechanism works
The credit is the unit, not the month. Rollover softens the penalty for missing a month, and the cap on the balance stops the liability growing without limit.
What another cinema might adapt
Test one monthly credit, a maximum balance of three, an optional member food and beverage benefit, and paid upgrades — then compare against both ordinary membership and unlimited membership.
Questions to consider
Does a light plan recruit new customers, or does it move existing unlimited members onto a cheaper tier? What does the unused-credit balance cost you at year end?
What could be measured
Utilisation, average unused balance, churn, frequency before and after joining, food and beverage spend, migration to a higher tier, subscriber acquisition and contribution after ticket liability.
What is currently known
The plan structure, rollover rule and pilot markets are published.
What has not yet been reported
Subscriber numbers, retention and profitability have not been published.
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