In January 2023, DX began working with two Swedish cinemas to set-up their back end and online ticket sales solutions as part of a pilot project. This was our first foray into the Swedish market, and the two cinemas were Mariannelund and Söderköping, both operated by Videvox, Sweden’s oldest cinema technology company, in operation since 1978.
Videvox provides the Swedish cinema industry with digital projection and audio equipment, digital signage, and seating solutions alongside consulting, management, installs, and monitoring services. It operates six cinemas across Sweden into which DX is onboarding our solution as a first-stage of entry into this new market.
We have been partnering with Videvox since early 2023 to develop and integrate a customised version of our Norwegian solution for the Swedish market, using their cinema network as pilots - a testing ground in which to create a sustainable platform for future cinema systems.
Here’s the story of how our collaboration with Videvox is helping us create and shape a future-proofed cinema solution for the Swedish market and beyond…
How DX and Videvox first met
In 2019, Videvox CEO Ulf Hellberg contacted DX asking if we were interested in launching the solution we have in Norway in Sweden. Given our solid foothold in the Norwegian market, it seemed an obvious opportunity to introduce the DX solution with a few localised adaptations and we began investing significant resources into exploring options and requirements.
As we discovered, however, our existing solution was too heavily customised for the Norwegian market and would not prove sustainable if we were to launch it in Sweden.
We decided then that our best course of action was to create a completely new platform for future cinema systems, which would eventually replace the existing one used by Norwegian customers, but also be flexible enough to be tailored for, and integrated into, other markets like Sweden as a long term goal.
Existing cinema solutions in Sweden had not been updated for quite a while and we were keen to work initially with small cinemas that had very straightforward and basic requirements for a ticket / cinema solution, so we could begin a gradual delivery to the Swedish market.
This strategy would allow us to test initial functionalities, whilst continuously developing the solution to maturity. The added benefit to these smaller cinemas was switching to a modern solution, tailored to their individual needs, and being able to take advantage of the full focus of DX - something which would otherwise be too costly for cinemas of their size once the product was fully matured and on wider release.
Videvox was willing to let us use their six-cinema network as a pilot group during this testing phase so we would have users on the solution from the start.
Meeting Swedish compliance regulations
As we began working with the first two test pilot cinemas: Mariannelund and Söderköping, which required both backend updates and providing online ticket sales, we immediately started by adapting our solution to meet the requirements of the Swedish Film Control Bureau (Filmägarnas Kontrollbyrå- FK) and the Swedish Tax Agency (Svenska Skatteverket - SSV).
FK has a set of requirements that must be met to provide ticketing solutions to the Swedish cinema market. This includes integrations with Biogiuden (retrieval of film information and reporting of admissions), support for corporate tickets, and integration with Biopasset. We had a good dialogue with FK, who were very helpful when we had questions. We were approved by FK in November 2023.
To be approved by the SSV, we naturally needed to register with the Swedish tax office and ensure a compliant local ticketing solution, which involved us reviewing our platform infrastructure and fine-tuning our ordering logic to meet the specific cash register electronic journal requirements outlined in Sweden's SKVFS 2021:16.
DX’s advantage in the market is extensive experience of dealing with the Norwegian tax and regulatory frameworks which were tightened in 2018, meaning we came to Sweden with solid experience of conquering complex tax compliance.
For the benefit of our Swedish partners and friends we documented our journey to becoming compliant in Sweden in more detail, and shared our learnings. After a lengthy process, we were finally approved for the Swedish market in January 2024.
The pilot cinemas
DX is working with six Videvox cinemas across Sweden, each with slightly different requirements in terms of upgrade needs or installing a new solution.
These are:
- Mariannelund Bio
Mariannelunds Bio in Eksjö, was built around 1911 and has a rich history as an important gathering place for the local community, showing both new and classic films.
Before DX: The cinema had nothing when DX began working with them. All sales were made manually at the entrance.
- Söderköping Bio
The local cinema in the heart of Söderköping, they take pride in offering a high-quality cinema experience with the latest movies and the best technology, comfortable seats, and a cozy atmosphere.
Before DX: Had the Kassablanca system installed to manage sales on site, including the concession stand.
- Lerum - Bio Vågen
Bio Vågen in Lerum screens both major American blockbusters and smaller European titles, alongside children's matinees and high-quality Swedish films. Since 2011, the cinema has offered digital projection technology in 2K, and Dolby-3D for the sharpest 3D experience.
Before DX: Had the Kassablanca system installed to manage sales on site.
- Bio Göta Lejon
Bio Göta Lejon is a small cinema in Götene, showing films on Wednesdays and Sundays with a small lobby snack concession and modern seating.
Before DX: Used the Kassablanca system for both online bookings and ticket sales at box office.
- Park Bio Hjo
Park Bio Hjo was formed in 20120 and is run by a non-profit association. It is part of the Hjo Cultural and Educational quarter and boasts modern digital screening equipment including 3D.
Before DX: Uses the Veezi ticket system for online and walk-in tickets at box office.
- Bio Casablanca Karlsborg
A small cinema with a beautiful view and wide range of offerings including live broadcasts such as Opera, alongside art films.
Before DX: Uses the Kassablanca ticket system for online and walk-in tickets at box office.
What was the DX implementation timeline for these updates?
- January 2023 - We started with back office and online sales for Mariannelund and Söderköping. They did the movie scheduling for both cinemas. We integrated online sales with their website homepages.
- January 2024 - Next we included POS systems. Mariannelund sells tickets via POS. Söderköping sells tickets and concessions via POS.
- February 2024 - Lerum Bio Vågen started selling tickets via POS and online.
- May 2024 - The next two cinemas will be onboarded to DX.
- June 2024 - The last cinema (Hjo) will be onboarded.
Early-stage insights we’ve gained so far…
Christian Jonsson, support manager at Videvox has been working closely with the DX team implementing changes at the cinemas.
“Working together with DX has been both an exciting and fun experience. I feel quite proud that they entrusted me in assisting their development team. The team at DX has been very kind and supportive during beta testing and always quick to respond when help is needed.
The system keeps on evolving, which will result in it becoming one of the best ticketing solutions on the market. First feedback is that cinema employees are all very grateful to the new ticketing system, finding it much easier to handle than their old one. Our customers also appreciate it, since it's fully integrated with the cinema websites, making it much easier to purchase tickets online. We have also seen a very definite upturn in ticket sales since we made the decision to use the DX ticket solution.”
Looking to the future…
The collaboration Videvox has really helped us develop and grow as we build with them. We speak with Videvox weekly to explore how to take the partnership further, and Videvox already support us with:
- Sending out hardware in Sweden
- Managing onsite installations
- Contributing to sales
We’ll continue sharing future successes and learnings from our growth in Sweden on the blog.
If you want to learn more about how DX can help you simplify cinema management and power great experiences, reach out to us!
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