Sinemia brings back debit cards following complaints over fees

As MoviePass began to flounder amid mounting money woes, changing its model every few weeks and introducing new restrictions like surge pricing and limits on what films customers could see on any given day, rival Sinemia began to turn some heads. It offered a number of different plans, as opposed to MoviePass' one, and while it cost a little bit more, the company claimed its model supported stability, something that MoviePass customers no longer had. It even began to offer an unlimited plan just after MoviePass disbanded its own. But over the past few months Sinemia customers have begun to complain about the service's fees, discontent that even led to a lawsuit.

Now, Sinemia is making some changes that will give users the option of purchasing tickets without fees.

The fees largely became a problem when Sinemia switched to a cardless model. Without physical debit cards attached to their accounts, users had to buy the tickets online, and that meant they often had to pay convenience fees to the online ticketing service and processing fees of up to $1.80 per ticket to Sinemia. Customers felt like they had been baited into the service and some said the fees on top of the subscription itself hardly made the service worth it.

As of today, however, Sinemia users can request physical debit cards, which will do away with the convenience and processing fees when used at a theater itself. Those fees will still be applicable if customers buy tickets online. There is another catch though. Cards themselves will cost another $15 if you decide you want one.

"While our customers have been pleased that we are the only subscription service that continues to provide tickets to any movie for any showtime at any movie theater, we are constantly seeking to improve," Sinemia CEO Rifat Oguz said in a statement. "Based on customer feedback, we've brought back physical debit cards to give our customers the option to avoid all booking fees as well as choose how they want to enjoy their night out at the movies."

The company also announced some tweaks to its service and app including a different method of handling cardless accounts, a larger customer service team (poor customer service has been a common complaint with Sinemia) and the ability to check your billing date and remaining ticket level through the app. Sinemia customers can request a card through their profile page on the company's website.