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Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic | 9 Months Ended
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Sep. 30, 2021
Impact Of Coronavirus Nineteen Pandemic [Abstract] |
Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic | 2. Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is complex and continuously evolving, resulting in significant disruption to the Company’s business and the global economy. At various points during the pandemic, authorities around the world imposed measures intended to control the spread of COVID-19, including stay-at-home orders and restrictions on large public gatherings, which caused movie theaters in countries around the world to temporarily close, including the IMAX theaters in those countries. As a result of the theater closures, movie studios postponed the theatrical release of most films originally scheduled for release in 2020 and early 2021, including many scheduled to be shown in IMAX theaters, while several other films were released directly or concurrently to streaming platforms. More recently, stay-at-home orders and capacity restrictions have been lifted in almost all key markets and, beginning in the third quarter of 2020, movie theaters throughout the IMAX network gradually reopened. As of September 30, 2021, 93% of the theaters in the global IMAX commercial multiplex network were open at various capacities, spanning 70 countries. This included 100% of Domestic theaters (i.e., in the United States and Canada), 93% of the theaters in Greater China and 87% of the theaters in Rest of World markets. The impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic has resulted in significantly lower levels of revenues, earnings and operating cash flows for the Company during 2020 and, to a lesser extent, during the nine months ended September 30, 2021, when compared to periods prior to the onset of the pandemic, as gross box office (“GBO”) results from the Company’s theater customers declined, the installation of certain theater systems was delayed, and maintenance services were generally suspended for theaters that were closed. In response to uncertainties associated with the pandemic, the Company took significant steps to preserve cash by eliminating non-essential costs, temporarily furloughing certain employees, reducing the working hours of other employees and reducing all non-essential capital expenditures to minimum levels. The Company also implemented an active cash management process, which, among other things, required senior management approval of all outgoing payments. In addition, as a result of the financial difficulties faced by certain of the Company’s exhibition customers arising out of pandemic-related closures, although improving, the Company has experienced and may continue to experience delays in collecting payments due under existing theater sale or lease arrangements. The Company has provided temporary relief to certain exhibitor customers by waiving or reducing maintenance fees during periods when theaters are closed or operating with reduced capacities and, in certain situations, by providing extended payment terms on annual minimum payment obligations in exchange for a corresponding or longer extension of the term of the underlying sale or lease arrangement. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021, GBO receipts generated by IMAX DMR films totaled $141.9 million and $360.7 million, respectively, surpassing the totals for the same periods in 2020 by $71.7 million (102%) and $192.6 million (115%), respectively. Moreover, GBO receipts for September 2021 approximated the levels achieved prior to the onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Management is encouraged by these box office results, the return of the prevalence of exclusive theatrical windows beginning with the release of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings in September 2021, and the strong pipeline of Hollywood movies scheduled to be released for theatrical exhibition during the remainder of 2021 and in 2022. However, the impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic on the Company’s business and financial results will continue to depend on numerous evolving factors that cannot be accurately predicted and that will vary by jurisdiction and market, including the duration and scope of the pandemic, the emergence of variants of the virus, the progress made on administering vaccines, the continuing impact of the pandemic on global economic conditions and ongoing government responses to the pandemic, which could lead to further theater closures, theater capacity restrictions and/or delays in the release of films.

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