Class Action Alleges Sinemia Charges Subscribers Undisclosed Processing Fees for Movie Tickets

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Sinemia Inc. is staring down a proposed class action lawsuit filed by a consumer who claims the subscription-based movie ticket provider employs a bait-and-switch scheme when it comes to gaining subscribers. Launched as a service similar to MoviePass but with the goal of “being more sustainable,” Sinemia, according to the 31-page suit, “fleeces” consumers by luring customers in with purportedly affordable services before adding an undisclosed processing fee each time a subscriber goes to the movies using the defendant’s product.

The complaint explains Sinemia’s website and marketing materials lead consumers to believe that a single monthly “all-in” price covers what they have to pay in order to see a certain number of movies every month. This price—e.g., $8.99 per month for three movies, $23.99 for “a movie every weekday”—is positioned by Sinemia as significantly less than the cost of buying tickets for each movie from a theater, the case adds. What subscribers are not aware of upon sign-up, according to the lawsuit, is that Sinemia charges a processing fee of $1.80 per movie ticket, an added cost the plaintiffs argue “dramatically changes the value proposition that customers thought they were getting from Sinemia.”