Cobb Theatres selects Barco for conversion of its circuit

http://www.barco.com/digitalcinema/pressrelease/2672/

 

Cobb Theatres will complete the digital conversion of its entire circuit with the purchase of an additional 100+ Barco digital cinema projectors for eight of its theatres serving Florida, Alabama and the Southeast.

 

Rancho Cordova, CA — 27 January 2011 — Digital cinema pioneer Barco announced today that Cobb Theatres of Birmingham, Alabama has purchased an additional 105 digital cinema projectors to complete the digital conversion of its entire 19-theatre chain with Barco's Series 2 projectors. Cobb already has over 60 Barco Series 1 and Series 2 projectors installed throughout its circuit, and the proven reliability has cemented Barco's standing as Cobb's projector of choice. Cobb is planning to install a Barco projector in every auditorium and every theatre throughout the circuit, with many venues featuring Cobb's innovative new “CineBistro” concept, a rapidly emerging trend in digital cinema entertainment.

As a “leader in providing the ultimate entertainment experience,” Cobb has fully embraced the concept of a “destination theatre,” offering specialty cocktails and gourmet restaurant-quality fare, with an emphasis on plush comfort and elite-class customer service. The cornerstone attraction is its “CineBistro,” an intimate lounge and restaurant area in a boutique setting surrounded by multiple theatres seating 80-100 customers. After dining, tables are retracted and patrons enjoy a movie in true “private Hollywood movie screening” style.

“Cobb is building a premium brand targeted to the sophisticated moviegoer who looks beyond merely catching a quick movie to seek a richer, multi-faceted cinema experience. Barco projectors are a natural part of this equation, perfectly complimenting our offering with unparalleled quality, high efficiency and proven reliability,” commented Jeremy Welman, COO of Cobb Theatres. “Moreover, we can count on Barco to stand behind their products with excellent service, making a 'Barco exclusive' the natural and easy choice for us.”

Cobb installed Barco's DP-1500 and DP-2000 projectors in its first three CineBistro venues, attracted by the crystal-clear images displayed by the combination of Barco's superior optics and Texas Instrument's DLP Cinema® technology. Additionally, for the Hyde Park (Tampa, FL) CineBistro, a Barco ACS-2048 alternative content switcher was installed to expand the theatre's display capabilities, enabling input and scaling of alternative content formats such as DVDs and satellite feeds directly into the projector. With this innovative and inexpensive addition, the CineBistro venue is a viable option for showcasing private corporate events and screening live telecasts such as sports and musical entertainment. The new deployments will include an additional 105 Barco projectors spanning the full gamut of Barco's extensive suite of DCI-compliant 2K projectors, including the brightest digital cinema projector in the world – the DP2K-32B.

“We are honored that Cobb has chosen to partner with Barco for this innovative CineBistro concept and to deploy our projectors throughout Cobb's entire circuit. They clearly recognize the importance that supreme image quality and top-notch service play in delivering an upscale entertainment experience,” commented Todd Hoddick, VP Digital Cinema for Barco North America. “Cobb's innovative spirit and attention to detail are traits that we highly value at Barco, and we share their enthusiasm for bringing this new avant-garde concept to a new genre of moviegoers.”


About Cobb Theatres
Cobb Theatres, based in Birmingham, Ala., is a progressive motion pictures exhibitor operating 222 screens at 18 locations throughout the Southeastern United States. Cobb is an innovator in out of home entertainment, offering great family venues. CineBistro, the premier dinner-and-a-movie concept, is newly created by Cobb Theatres, and is currently being developed around the country.

About Barco
Barco, a global technology company, designs and develops visualization products for a variety of selected professional markets. Barco has its own facilities for Sales & Marketing, Customer Support, R&D and Manufacturing in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Barco (NYSE Euronext Brussels: BAR) is active in more than 90 countries with about 3,300 employees worldwide. Barco posted sales of 638 million euro in 2009.