REDyPLAY: Gaming Fun in Cinema Pre-Show

After a testing phase, Weischer.Cinema is now rolling out the REDyPLAY app nationwide in Germany. The app can now be used in all UCI cinemas, turning the cinema-goer into an active part of the pre-show. Advertisers gain a new way to connect with their target audience, and cinema operators have a new revenue source.

Hamburg, February 24, 2022 –

Weischer.Cinema is taking new paths and expanding its portfolio with interactive gaming elements. Visitors in 21 UCI cinema locations can now use the REDyPLAY app, accessing a gamification offering during the pre-show. For advertisers, this means they can offer visitors the opportunity to interact with advertising formats as they would in video games. Weischer.Cinema expects to attract customers, who have previously focused their communication on gaming environments or digital advertising, to the cinema medium. This has become evident from experiences in Scandinavian countries, as well as in Ireland and Australia, where the app has been successfully used in cinema advertising for some time.

The REDyPLAY app, available for free download on Google Play and the Apple App Store, has been tested at the Cinedom in Cologne since October 2020. Now it is being implemented nationwide in 188 theaters. “Our initial experiences have shown that cinema-goers quickly embraced this new form of entertainment,” says Franziska Knoefel, Director Product Development, Weischer.Cinema. “With the addition of the UCI cinema chain, we have taken an important step toward national coverage and can now offer gaming as a new form of brand interaction at the cinema to our advertising partners.”

For cinema operators, this innovative advertising format is also lucrative, as it represents an additional source of revenue. Weischer.Cinema therefore expects that more cinemas will soon follow suit and also install REDyPLAY. “We are very pleased that we can launch with UCI Cinemas in Germany,” says Mikkel Hagedorn, CEO and Co-Founder of Cinemataztic, the Product Owner of the app. “We expect that soon more cinemas in Germany, together with Weischer.Cinema, will offer the new gaming and advertising format.” The necessary technical equipment can be set up within a few days. “It’s great that cultural institutions like UCI Cinemas are taking the next step in digital transformation with us,” says Carlo Dannies, CEO of HAFN IT, which builds the IT infrastructure. “In this project, we have learned a lot and at the same time recognized the great potential in the cinema environment.”

The REDyPLAY app not only adds another authentic component to the cinema experience but also opens up the possibility of re-engaging with advertisers. As users register, data-based re-targeting of the cinema audience will be possible in the future.