MoviePass will start to surge prices for popular movies in July

MoviePass, the cheap movie ticket subscription service that has taken the film industry by storm, is about to introduce a controversial change to its service. Previously, you could pay a flat price to see any movie you want, but starting in July, getting tickets for high-demand movies will incur an additional fee.

MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe told Business Insider that the surge pricing will only happen under certain conditions.

“At certain times for certain films — on opening weekend — there could be an additional charge for films,” Lowe said. The added fee will start at two dollars, but Lowe did not specify how high the pricing can go. Fortunately, MoviePass users who pay for the annual subscription won’t have to worry about surge pricing, as it will only apply to users who are on a month-to-month subscription.

Business Insider reports that the company will also introduce the option to let subscribers get tickets for friends who aren’t on the service for around the retail price of another ticket. MoviePass will also soon allow users to pay extra to see movies in IMAX or 3D, but premium movie pricing won’t be combinable with the adding a friend option.

The MoviePass announcement comes one day after AMC announced its own subscription service that, for $19.95 a month, will let users see up to three movies a week. While more expensive than MoviePass, AMC’s option applies to IMAX and 3D, will give users a discount on concessions, and allows for online reservations.