There has been a fantastic response to cheaper movie tickets - and the number of people who have flocked to the cinema as a result - has surpassed all expectations.
Ferdi Gazendam, the chief executive of Ster-Kinekor Films, said the good news was that the new lower price of R14 (it's even cheaper at some cinemas) would continue.
"This is not a promotion: It's a long-term strategy and the future of cinema," he said.
Ster-Kinekor had spent two years working on the strategy, aimed at positioning the company for the "new" South Africa of today and tomorrow, where there was a growing pool of black middle income consumers.
"Historically, 85 percent of audiences have been white. We have done a lot of work on affordability and as well as opening movies up to black consumers. The new prices mean that people can now come more often than they used to."
Eighty percent of Ster-Kinekor cinemas have been converted to "Junction" cinemas where movies, including the latest releases, are shown for R14 (it's R10 at Chatsworth and the Wheel), while the remainder at "glamour sites" (the local one is Gateway) are now all "Classic" cinemas with ticket prices remaining at R35.
Movie Club members still get half-price rates on Tuesdays at both types of cinemas, plus other benefits, while Discovery Medical Aid "Vitality" benefit members pay R12 at a classic cinema and R6 at a junction cinema.
The two different types of cinemas enable movie-goers to choose the kind of experience they want: value or luxury.
Gazendam likened this to economy and business class on an airline. "People are prepared to pay for a better service."
The bonuses at classic cinemas include couches and plasma screens in the foyers showing how a particular movie was made to give a "better movie experience".
The plans were being kept under wraps but would be rolled out at Gateway over the next 10 months.
Ster-Kinekor introduced the R14 deal more than two weeks ago - and rivals Nu-Metro were quick to act, slashing their prices to R12.
They advertised that Edgars Club members could even get their tickets at R5. And they have been doing so in their droves.
However, Nu-Metro pointed out in their advertising that "exclusions may apply" - and movie-goers wanting to see the new releases, Miss Congeniality II and Robots (and at one Durban cinema, Meet the Fockers), have been disappointed that they could not get into these movies for R5.
A reader, Ravi Konar of Durban, complained to the Daily News that they felt they had been "ripped off".
Sanjay Seeth, operations director of Nu Metro, explained said that the R5 deal could not apply because of the cost the chain had to pay for these movies.
The normal R37 ticket price applied with Edgars Club members getting their tickets for R14 (this has just gone up to R16).
"Our pricing is determined by our dealings with distributors. The commercial reality is we had to pay more to get them," Seeth said, pointing out that new releases, Saw and Spanglish, were still R12 and R5 for Edgars members.
Ster-Kinekor movie-goers were also having to pay the full R35 (instead of R14) for Robots at Musgrave and the cinema was displaying a banner apologising, Gazendam said.
The cinema was still trying to negotiate some "middle ground" with the owner/distributor of the movie, but Gazendam said that if the chain could not afford to buy movies to show at R14, there might be some titles they would not show.
"For instance, we've not released Miss Congeniality II (which came from the same distributor as Robots) on such a wide footprint, and are only showing it where we can for R14," said Gazendam.
Both cinema groups pointed out that while audiences had been boosted by the new pricing, it had happened at a holiday time when figures were high anyway. Ster-Kinekor would probably release figures at the end of the month.
Asked if the Nu Metro Movie Madness promotion would continue, Seeth said that it would be assessed on a weekly basis in the foreseeable future.