Korean movie theater sales returning to pre-pandemic levels

People are seen at a movie theater in Seoul on Sept. 12. [YONHAP]

The number of moviegoers has almost returned to pre-pandemic levels, led by the growth of VIP sales tickets.

At Lotte Cinema, totals in June were 94 percent of those in Jan. 2019, according to data released by Lotte Members, a company that manages membership services for Lotte companies, and Shinhan Card on Monday.

In June, CGV, another big multiplex movie chain, reported sales at 80 percent of pre-pandemic levels, and Megabox 70 percent.

Ticket sales declined to about 25 percent of the usual number during the pandemic, dropping to 60.53 million last year from 2019's 226.68 million.

In the first half, the number of tickets purchased at Lotte Cinema rose 178 percent on year, with the number of men customers rising 164.8 percent. Those under the age of 20 almost doubled compared to the first half of 2019.

The use of special cinemas, such as the VIP cinemas, family cinemas and private theaters, has surged compared to the pre-pandemic era.

The number of customers using general movie theaters fell 14.2 percent in the first half compared to 2019, while the use of premium cinemas rose 8.5 percent.

As eating inside theaters was permitted from April, the number of people purchasing drinks and popcorn at shops in cinemas rose 317.2 percent on year in the first half.

"With the rise of premium cinema users, sales of film merchandise sets and character sets are rising faster than sales of simple drinks and food sets at popcorn shops in cinemas," said Jung Hoon, director of data analytics and AI at Lotte Members.

The total sales of the local movie industry was 170.4 billion won ($122.5 million) in July, the third straight monthly increase, according to the Korean Film Council.

However, some say it is yet too early to say that the film industry has recovered completely.

"It is getting better, but it is hard to say that it has fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels," said a spokesperson for a film company.

"We are keeping a careful eye on the situation as it is not a too negative situation either."

BY BAEK IL-HYUN [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]