PVR Cinemas has launched vkaao.com, an online platform that will let users choose the films that play in their local PVR Cinemas. A user selected film is screened if enough number of tickets are booked, and in case of inadequate reservations, all users are refunded the ticket amount. The platform works by letting any user book a screening of a film from the website’s library. The show is then listed on Vkaao where other users can pay for tickets and sign up to watch the film. To book a screening, users need to first select an available film, after which the platform recommends a specific date for the show, although users can select their own dates. Thereafter, the platform displays a calendar to select the time and location of the show, which also lists the minimum number of tickets to be booked for the show to be confirmed and the per ticket price of the slot. The minimum number of people varies from time to time - 5 people for a Thursday morning show to 121 people for a Sunday afternoon show. Vkaao also lets users book for ‘special occasions’ like birthday parties, etc., which lets users select a movie and book the entire screen, by paying upfront, for the duration of the selected movie. These prices range between Rs 5,000 to Rs 75,000 and upward. PVR recently raised Rs 820 crore in exchange for 14% stake from Warburg Pincus. The company said then that it would use the funds…
