A proposal by an American cinema to allow viewers to use their mobile phones when certain films are shown has been criticized so much that the company quickly withdrew the proposal. But is it really that bad to allow audiences to text in theaters?

 

Adam Aron, chairman of AMC Entertainment, started with the idea of making cinemas more comfortable in a "text messaging and mobile environment", but fans around the world are very resistant to the idea.

 

"The worst proposal ever," many fans said on social media, "You just do it to attract rude viewers and make more money," wrote one fan on Twitter. "I don't spend money to let people around me mess with me by texting on my cell phone."

 

Should Mobile Phone be Banned for Movie Watching and Cinema Experience

 

Should Mobile Phone be Banned for Movie Watching and Cinema Experience

 

Two days after Aaron's interview was published, the company had to withdraw the idea.

 

"Mobile phones can't be used to send text messages in the auditorium of AMC Theatre," the company said in a statement. "Not today, not tomorrow, not in the foreseeable future."

 

Many people welcomed AMC's change of chord, including Hollywood blogger Alex Billington. "Texting in the theatre completely destroyed the movie," he said. "There are some things we have to oppose from a social and cultural perspective."

 

In 2014, at a movie theater in Florida, two men fought over texting on their mobile phones, which eventually led to a deadly shooting. Although this may be an extreme case, most people find the glowing screen and finger clicks annoying.

 

"In the cinema, your senses are only visual and auditory," says Ann Hornaday, chief film critic of the Washington Post. "Any act that interferes with sensory experience can be justified as an inappropriate interference. When we walk into the cinema, the audience at the same time seems to have signed an agreement - so when someone behaves badly, we feel betrayed.

 

At the same time, Honaday understands the challenges that cinemas face in attracting young audiences.

 

"We need to reshape our products in a specific way so that the Millennials can be as enthusiastic and behave as appropriately as the baby boomers for their entire lives in going to the cinema," Aaron told Variety magazine.

 

"When you tell a 22-year-old to turn off his cell phone and not to spoil the atmosphere of the movie, it sounds like: Please excise the part below your left wrist."

 

A 2012 survey found that the vast majority of people aged 18 to 34 believe that using social media to watch a movie can enrich their viewing experience.

 

"Young people value the value of being online," says sociologist Julie Albright. "Millennials are good at doing many things at the same time, so they don't see much in doing other things while watching mobile phones -- such as watching movies, watching TV and contacting other media. "

 

Chuck Tyron, author of On Demand Culture: Digital Delivery and Films, points out that although it is difficult for some young people to put down their mobile phones, it is not common.

 

"It's a derogation of the whole generation," he said. "As a film professor, I know many millennials don't want to be disturbed when they go to the movies."

 

"Most of the time, people who use mobile phones to send text messages in cinemas are actually a little older, and their behavior is the most annoying - maybe they leave their children in the custody of their nannies, so they need to keep abreast of the situation from time to time."

 

But he also realized that cinemas were "trying to explore new possibilities" to expand their business.