Hong Kong ought to calm down the licensing renewal standards for cinemas to permit them to host stay performances or sports activities broadcasts, a lawmaker has stated, as town continues to grapple with a slew of theatre closures.
Fok stated that whereas he believed the speed of closures was slowing down, he feared that residents would steadily cease going to the cinema to look at movies, with fewer decisions of theatres out there to them.
“The federal government ought to think about enjoyable the licensing necessities to permit cinemas to function several types of companies,” he stated, citing stay performances and stay sports activities broadcasts as different occasions that might enable extra theatres to outlive.
Fok added that field workplace revenues in Hong Kong had been largely depending on American movies, with Hollywood blockbusters taking over 70 to 80 per cent of earnings.
As such, the present downturn in the USA field workplace was additionally affecting Hong Kong, he defined. US home ticket gross sales amounted to US$8.7 billion in 2024, down 3.3 per cent from US$9.04 billion the yr earlier than.
In keeping with the Hong Kong Theatre Affiliation, solely 51 cinemas had been left working within the metropolis as of Might, a pointy drop from the 112 venues in 1994.