After U.S. Shooting, High Cost Of More Security Vexes Movie Theaters
By Jill Serjeant, July 25, 2015 Yahoo
NEW YORK (Reuters) - American high school students walk through metal detectors each day. The Metropolitan Opera in New York searches the bags and purses of patrons each night, and air travel involves long lines and security checks.
But the nation's movie theaters are unlikely to introduce such stringent measures anytime soon despite the latest shooting inside a Louisiana multiplex, security experts said on Friday.
Cost, staffing and the turn-off factor to what is supposed to be a fun night out will likely deter movie theater chains from adopting airport-style security, especially at a time when attendance is dropping thanks to the lure of online streaming, YouTube and video on demand.
"Owners do not want the experience at their theater to be a negative one, and going through a metal detector and having their bags checked would become a big inconvenience," said Tom DeLuca, president of New York-based Global Security Services, which has provided armed security personnel to some of the biggest movie chains for 15 years.
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