In the years since the pandemic reshaped how Malaysians consume entertainment, cinema chains like GSC have arrived at a quiet but consequential crossroads: the old covenant between audience and screen—show up, watch, leave—can no longer sustain the business. With attendance still trailing pre-2020 levels by a fifth, operators are reimagining the cinema not as a place to watch films, but as a place to gather, celebrate, and feel something that a home screen cannot manufacture. The question they are answering is ancient: what draws people out of their private comfort and into shared space?
Malaysian cinemas pivot beyond movies with premium experiences as streaming reshapes viewing habits
Audiences still love watching great movies on the big screen, but they're also seeking additional social and memorable experiences.
Mark
So GSC is basically saying the movie theater as we knew it is dead?
Mimi
Not dead, but transformed. They're saying audiences still love watching films on the big screen, but they won't make the trip just for that anymore. The trip has to include something else—an event, a community, something you can't get at home.
Luke
But let's be precise about the numbers. Attendance is down 20 percent. That's significant, but it's not a collapse. And GSC itself grew box office revenue by 3 percent after the tax cut. So is the problem the pandemic and streaming, or is it the tax structure?
Mimi
Both. The tax relief helped GSC specifically, but the broader industry still contracted. So the tax matters, but it's not the whole story.
Mark
What are these events actually like? Are people really going to a midnight horror screening instead of watching horror at home?
Mimi
Apparently, yes. They're selling out ScareFest events, World Cup viewing parties, 24-hour marathons. The idea is that you're there with other fans, with live energy, with merchandise and themed food. It's social in a way streaming isn't.
Luke
But we don't have attendance numbers for those events. We know GSC is running them, but we don't know if they're actually moving the needle on the 20 percent gap or if they're just a small revenue stream on top of traditional screenings.
Mimi
Fair point. The reporting tells us GSC is doing these things and believes they matter. It doesn't tell us the scale yet.
Mark
And the streaming platforms—are they actually the enemy here, or is this just normal market evolution?
Luke
The source says audiences now reserve cinema visits for major blockbusters and premium formats. That's a real behavioral shift. But it's also rational. Why pay for a theater ticket for a mid-budget drama when you can watch it at home? The question is whether premium experiences and events can actually replace the volume of regular moviegoing.
Mimi
That's the bet GSC is making. They're saying the cinema of the future is not about volume—it's about creating experiences that justify the cost and the trip.
Mark
And if they're wrong?
Luke
Then the 20 percent gap stays, the tax relief expires in 2028, and the industry keeps shrinking. But we don't have enough data yet to know if this pivot is working.
O Pulso
- Six years of streaming competition and a pandemic that nearly collapsed the sector have left Malaysian cinemas operating with a structural wound—attendance is still 20 percent below where it stood before 2020.
- The old revenue logic has broken down: audiences now leave home only for spectacle or occasion, forcing operators to rethink every square metre of their spaces.
- GSC has responded by turning cinemas into event venues—midnight horror marathons, World Cup viewing parties, wine festivals, and 24-hour film runs—betting that community and atmosphere can do what ticket sales alone cannot.
- Heavy investment in premium formats like IMAX with Laser and 4DX raises the stakes further, as high fixed costs demand both strong attendance and policy support to remain viable.
- A 2024 government cut to the Entertainment Duty in the Federal Territory gave GSC measurable breathing room—3 percent box office growth and 30 percent more screens—while the broader national industry shrank sharply, exposing how thin the margins truly are.
- Industry leaders are now pressing for the full abolition of the Entertainment Duty Act, arguing that without structural tax relief, the capital needed to modernise and attract younger audiences will simply not materialise.
In the years since the pandemic reshaped how Malaysians consume entertainment, cinema chains like GSC have arrived at a quiet but consequential crossroads: the old covenant between audience and screen—show up, watch, leave—can no longer sustain the business. With attendance still trailing pre-2020 levels by a fifth, operators are reimagining the cinema not as a place to watch films, but as a place to gather, celebrate, and feel something that a home screen cannot manufacture. The question they are answering is ancient: what draws people out of their private comfort and into shared space?
Malaysia's cinema operators have stopped betting their survival on movies alone. After a pandemic that nearly shuttered the sector and years of streaming platforms eroding ticket sales, chains like GSC—505 screens across 53 locations—have begun a fundamental reckoning with what a cinema actually is.
Attendance has recovered, but remains roughly 20 percent below pre-2020 levels. That gap has broken the old model. GSC's chief executive, Koh Mei Lee, describes audiences as more selective than ever—willing to leave home only for major releases or premium formats, and expecting something that cannot be replicated on a home screen when they do.
GSC's response has been to build exactly that. The company now stages midnight horror marathons, live concert screenings, World Cup viewing parties, and 24-hour film runs. A wine festival was held inside cinema spaces. These events come with interactive elements, themed food, merchandise, and community—designed, in Koh's words, to create shared moments that can only come to life within the cinema itself.
Technology is part of the answer too. GSC has invested in large-format experiences—IMAX with Laser, 4DX, ScreenX—with two new IMAX halls recently opened in Johor and the Damansara area. But premium infrastructure is expensive to build and maintain, which is where government policy has become unexpectedly decisive.
In 2024, the federal government reduced the Entertainment Duty in the Federal Territory from 25 percent to 10 percent through 2028. The effect was visible: GSC grew box office revenue by 3 percent and expanded its screen count by 30 percent, while the national cinema industry contracted by 18 percent in revenue and 32 percent in screens. That single policy shift created a clear divergence between one operator's trajectory and the sector's broader decline.
Koh and other industry leaders are now pushing for the complete abolition of the Entertainment Duty Act, arguing the tax structure is incompatible with recovery. Without relief, she contends, operators cannot fund the modernisation that audiences now demand. What is taking shape is a cinema industry no longer competing with streaming on streaming's terms—but trying to become something Netflix cannot be: a physical gathering place where technology, community, and event are woven into an experience worth leaving home for.
Malaysia's cinema operators are no longer betting their survival on movies alone. After six years of streaming platforms eating into ticket sales and a pandemic that nearly shuttered the entire sector, chains like GSC—which runs 505 screens across 53 locations nationwide—have begun a fundamental reckoning with what a cinema actually is.
Attendance has crept back, but it remains roughly 20 percent below where it was before 2020. That gap matters. It means the old model—people showing up to watch films, buying popcorn, leaving—no longer sustains the business. GSC's chief executive, Koh Mei Lee, describes the shift plainly: audiences have become more selective, willing to venture out only for major releases or premium formats, and when they do come, they want something that cannot be replicated on a home screen.
So GSC has begun building that something. The company now stages midnight horror marathons, live concert screenings, and 24-hour film marathons that run until dawn. They hosted a wine festival in their cinema spaces. They organized a live viewing party for the World Cup Finals. These are not afterthoughts or marketing gimmicks—they are the new core of the business model. The events come with interactive elements, merchandise, themed food, and community. They are designed to create what Koh calls "shared moments and immersive experiences that can only truly come to life within the cinema."
Technology has become part of the answer too. GSC has invested heavily in large-format screens—IMAX with laser projection, 4DX, ScreenX—formats that justify the trip and the ticket price. Two new IMAX with Laser halls opened recently, one in Johor and one in the Damansara area. These are not cheap to build or maintain, which brings the second half of the equation into focus: money.
Running a cinema chain is expensive. Technology maintenance, utilities, staffing, rent—the fixed costs are substantial and do not shrink when attendance lags. This is why government policy has become unexpectedly crucial. In 2024, the federal government reduced the Entertainment Duty in the Federal Territory from 25 percent to 10 percent, a relief set to last until the end of 2028. The effect was measurable: GSC's box office revenue grew by 3 percent and its screen count by 30 percent in the period that followed, while the national cinema industry contracted by 18 percent in revenue and 32 percent in screens. That single policy change created a visible gap between one operator's trajectory and the sector's overall decline.
Koh and other industry leaders are pushing for the complete abolishment of the Entertainment Duty Act, arguing that the tax structure itself is incompatible with the industry's recovery. Without relief, she says, operators cannot invest in the modernization and premium upgrades that audiences now demand. The argument is straightforward: survival requires capital, and capital requires margins that current tax rates do not permit.
What emerges from this moment is a cinema industry in transition, no longer competing with streaming on streaming's terms. GSC is not trying to be Netflix. Instead, it is trying to be something Netflix cannot be—a physical gathering place where fans celebrate films together, where technology creates sensations that a television cannot deliver, where food and community and event are woven into the experience. Whether that is enough to close the 20 percent attendance gap remains an open question. But the company is betting that audiences will keep coming if the cinema becomes something worth the trip.
Citações Notáveis
Audiences still love watching great movies on the big screen, but they're also seeking additional social and memorable experiences.— Koh Mei Lee, GSC Chief Executive Officer
This makes it increasingly important for GSC to create experiences that cannot be replicated through home entertainment.— Koh Mei Lee, on how streaming has changed audience behavior
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Leia o original em Malay Mail ↗