Today’s (20 May 2005) Straits Times featured an article where the HK boss of Golden Screen (subsidiary of Golden Harvest) and partner to Golden Village cinemas seeks to pull out of the Golden Village partnership.
In a writ to HK courts, Golden Screen singled out MD Kenneth Tan for criticism, citing gungho tactics. Apparently Tan went ahead with the 1st May 2005 cinema ticket hikes even after the board of directors voted unanimously NOT to go with the price hike. Another accusation was an alleged wrongful dismissal of a senior marketing executive.
Reading between the lines of the article, it completely and utterly galls me that Kenneth Tan, MD of Golden Village and at the same time chairman of the Singapore Film Society went ahead with a price hike! Allow me to quote the reason for the price hike to $9.50:
“… the hike was to cover the increase in GST and higher utility costs.”
That was what was said then. This is what Tan said in today’s article,
“… our business has never been stronger. It’s thriving.”
Thriving! If so, why the need for a price hike? Being in control of a major cinema operator, while at the same time being able to manipulate the gears running in the Singapore Film Society, allows one man to assert power over the population’s ability to watch movies in the cinema.
This article also brings to light the organisation known as the Singapore Film Society, which appears to be a marketing and management organisation for films in Singapore, in general. Being chairman of the SFS, which appears to serve the whole country, while as the same time being MD of GV cinemas, presents a premise of a single man running a cartel which runs the entire Singapore cinema industry, in the guise of a conglomerate (the Cinematograph Film Exhibitors Association).
If GV itself wants to milk additional profits from films, it is able to pressure the other chains (Eng Wah et al) into submission through the SFS vehicle and position any decision as a unanimous one.
Tan needs to explain to the country his motivations for pushing for a price hike even after the decision not to go for the price hike was made.
