With stay-at-home orders keeping many people home for much of 2020, movie theaters sat empty. Streaming content from home became more popular than ever and as a free streaming option, Pluto TV benefited from the “new normal.” So when it was looking for a way to give back, it thought about the small movie theater businesses that had been devastated by the pandemic. In the summer and fall of 2021, Pluto TV launched an initiative to support independent and family-run theaters across the nation in an effort to take its unexpected success and give back. Pluto TV played on the service’s “free” element and provided movie weekends to local theaters across America at no cost—this included free tickets to just-released movies, free popcorn and Pluto TV swag. Press included broadcast mentions, online features and online calendar listings, totaling over 1 billion UVM. Local theater owners were also included in some cities’ press, further emphasizing Pluto TV’s success in interacting with and involving the local community. “It has been a very rough couple of years but through the generosity of your company and others, we can see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Steve Schoaps, owner of Strother Cinema, said of the initiative.
