MoviePass may owe money to 12,000 subscribers as it files for bankruptcy liquidation
Movie ticket subscription service MoviePass and its parent company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation late Tuesday and may owe money to subscribers.
The filing means they will be sold for parts, and the proceeds will be distributed to their creditors, ending any possibility that MoviePass could be revived after the service shut down in September.
The company filed a 174-page list of more than 12,000 subscribers it may owe money, totaling about $1.2 million, which amounts to an average of nearly $100 per person.
The subscribers were listed as unsecured creditors, and it was not immediately clear whether they would get paid back. The company, which listed their claims as "disputed" in a court filing, filed a list of those subscribers matched up to their email addresses.
An attorney for the company did not immediately respond to a call and email seeking comment Wednesday morning.
MoviePass gave subscribers access to unlimited movies for $10 a month.
It was a classic too-good-to-be-true business model. The company quickly ran into financial hurdles, technical challenges and industry opposition.. Even after it shut down, some former customers accused MoviePass on social media of still charging their credit cards.
In addition to its own failures, MoviePass encountered competition from movie chains that launched their own movie ticket subscription offerings.
MoviePass is shut down: Discount service brings the curtain down
Check your bank account: Former MoviePass users say discontinued service still charges them
The company, owned by Helios and Matheson Analytics, raised prices in an effort to shore up its finances.
New York-based Helios and Matheson Analytics reported $396 million in assets and $277 million in debts in its Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition.
MoviePass' finances deteriorated quickly before its demise. In 2019, it had revenue of $24 million, down from $234 million in 2018, according to its bankruptcy petition.
Follow USA TODAY reporter Nathan Bomey on Twitter @NathanBomey.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MoviePass liquidating, may owe money to 12,000 subscribers
