Movie subscription service Sinemia has announced that from November 1st onwards they will be going 100% cardless. Existing users with a physical card will find that that card will not work from October 30th, 2018. Sinemia is trying to frame this as good news, but they recently added a new $1.8 fee when you prepay for a movie. Unfortunately you always have to prepay when using the cardless feature, so existing users with a physical card will no longer be able to avoid this fee. Sinemia will be waiving this fee for existing users with a physical card won’t have to pay this fee for the next 90 days beginning October 30th or until the end of their current monthly/annual plans.
Sinemia has just made themselves the worst possible service. I’m finishing my term but I’ve been giving them the worst word of mouth. I’ll be trying A-list this summer. I’d reconsider movie pass if they dropped the scheduling. 10 bucks a month and only 2-3 movies a month is okay(I’d prefer 4). But the scheduling at the time made them worst than sinemia even tho sinemia is already a hassle.
Now they’re both not really worth. What’s the point of movie pass when I can’t go see the movie I want when I actually have the time.
These guys are crooks! STAY AWAY! This service and their business model are falling apart in front of us! We never got our cards and are now forced into not only the theatre convenience fee, but this RIDICULOUS $1.80 service fee? What service?!? @SinemiaApp, @Rifat_Oguz bragged about being BETTER than @MoviePass .They are no different! #SCAM #fraud
They didn’t even bother sending me a card after I signed up two months ago. But I’m getting the free movie after four movies deal from Atom and it’s still cheaper than other options.
After the new BS fee was instituted, I demanded a refund from them for the annual agreement. Initially they declined, but then they caved after I threatened chargeback action and opening a claim with my State Attorney General’s Office. Now they’re stating that the only refund they’re willing to give me is one where they subtract the full cost of the four movies that I’ve seen from the initial annual plan price that I paid, so basically only refunding just more than half the price I paid, even though I only used one month of service and 1 movie from my second month.
Chargeback their shady ass.
That’s $64.80 a year just for the processing fee and another $46.80 a year for the service fee. Not what I signed up for. Won’t be renewing. Wish I didn’t do the yearly subscription now.
You can always ask for a refund and if that does not work out, dispute the charge with your credit card company.
Wonder if this has to do with the infringement troubles they have against them with moviepass
Online ticketing “convenience” fees have always been the most asinine, unjustified, and should-be-illegal fee most people these days have to deal with. How the hell does it make any sense that a venue gets to charge you for saving them labor costs from not having to hire so many people at the box office? That’s just pure profit without benefitting anybody but the business owner but having negative effects on workers and customers. Movie theaters deserve to die out over this stupidity.
Exactly! They’re using the Ticketmaster model of service fees… And they wonder why attendance has been declining in recent years…
I thought Sinemia would be way better than MoviePass, which I canceled in September, but it’s so difficult to use cardless — it’s not at all integrated with the ticket buying services, which keep timing out while I try switching back and forth between apps — that I have successfully bought a ticket only once. The new fee was the last straw. I canceled my subscription last week. Ironically, the only company that’s gotten this right is AMC. Three movies a week, nearly seamless to use, a joy. I was keeping MoviePass and then Sinemia for the art house films, but no more.
One must ask what this new fee covers…I think they called it a payment processor fee. Sounds like the merchant fee credit cards charge the merchants (1-3%) when a merchant ACCEPTS a credit card for payment. Sinemia is a customer USING their credit card when buying tickets… They are not being charged a merchant fee. Further the $3.60 they charged me for two tickets ($25) comes out to about 15%… Something smells rotten here.
Lastly… There is no way possible to use the service without incurring this added fee. Huh? If the fee is charged 100% of the time it’s not a fee… It’s the cost of the service.
Right, they need to bundle the cost up front or not charge it at all. This is BS.
Buy tickets through facebook.com/movies and convenience fees are waived on Atom/Fandango (at least for now).
Also keep in mind, Atom is offering free ticket after 4 movies. So even if you did pay convenience fee, you’re sort of getting them back!
This fee is in addition to the fee the theatre or ticketing agent charges. You pay BOTH the ticketing agent fee AND Sinemia’s new $1.80 per ticket “convenience fee”. The Facebook promo only gets around the first.
Omg this even worst then i thought. Chargeback time.
There’s still no way to get around the $1.80 processing fee. I just got hit with it today and its already pending on my Amex. You do make a good point about Atom free ticket after 4 movies. If FB promo ends at the end of the year, for the 3 movie plan $10 plus $1.80 process fee plus convenience fee if going to non-AMC, cost is getting very close to AMC A-list. Very sad.
Aah you’re right. I didn’t realize the processing and convenience fees are separate. That sucks big time then. I might just disupute the initial transaction then with credit card company!
Hmm. I usually only able to select Fandango. How do I chose Atom instead?
What’s it got to be like to make a service that is *worse* than the new Moviepass?