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EE to end Orange Wednesdays cinema offer

Mobile phone giant EE is to stop its Orange Wednesdays promotion early next year as more people watch films at home on tablets

EE is axing its Orange Wednesdays promotion that provides free cinema tickets to its mobile phone customers.

The company said it would stop its "iconic" deal, which also lets people order free items at Pizza Express, on February 25.

Comparethemarket.com confirmed to The Telegraph that it is looking to continue to offer.

"We can confirm that we are currently exploring a mutually beneficial partnership with the cinema industry," a spokesperson said.

Orange Wednesdays allowed Orange customers to buy two cinema tickets for the price of one every Wednesday simply by texting the word "film" to 241. They would then receive a text with a unique reference number that they show at the cinema to receive their free ticket.

EE started the offer in 2003 and became a hit with film fans. However, the company said that with more people watching films on mobile devices at home, it's time to close Orange Wednesdays.

"Orange Wednesday launched over a decade ago and at its peak was a massive success and an iconic promotion.

"After 10 great years our brand has changed and our customers’ viewing habits have also evolved so it’s time to move on.

"That’s why the final credits will roll for Orange Wednesdays at the end of February 2015. We’re working on new customer entertainment rewards and we’ll provide more detail soon."

EE's decision was met with surprise and dismay by film fans.

Jack Whetton tweeted: "Can't believe Orange Wednesdays will not not exist soon."

Daniel Bettridge said: "RIP Orange Wednesday, mid-week movie/pizza night will never be the same."

Orange Wednesdays was also known for its humorous promotional adverts that were regularly shown before films at cinemas.

Film fans' viewing habits have changed since Orange Wednesday began, with streaming services such as Amazon Prime, LoveFilm and Netflix now becoming the norm in households across the UK.

Netflix now has 53.1m members worldwide, after adding 3m in the third quarter. In the first quarter, its global users streamed a total of 6.5bn hours of video.

The rising cost of seeing films at the cinema is also a factor. Figures from The Cinema Exhibitors Association showed that the average ticket price has risen from £4.40 in 2000 to £6.53 in 2013.

Perhaps the end of this thread ?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/news ... offer.html

What?! Where?!?! I don't think I've ever seen a cinema cheaper than about £7.

I needs me two codes!

Hook a brother up.