With the increase in the number of screens, he said in the next three years "people watching movies at our theatres will rise to 100 million from 75 million today".
Multiplex chain operator PVR, which acquired DT Cinemas last year, is scouting for more acquisition opportunities as it plans to add over 100 more screens by the end of next fiscal.
Realty major DLF today announced the sale of its remaining 7 screens of DT Cinemas in the national capital to Cinepolis India for nearly Rs 64 crore, thereby exiting the cinema exhibition business.
The multiplex leader is looking to add EBITDA of Rs 40-50 crore post DT Cinemas' acquisition, say PVR promotors Ajaj and Sanjeev Bijli.
In a tweet, the watchdog today said it has cleared "PVR's acquisition of DT Cinema's multiplexes/single screen theaters in Delhi NCR and Chandigarh, subject to modification".
In June, PVR announced the deal to acquire realty major DLF's DT Cinemas for Rs 500 crore - a transaction that marked a significant consolidation in the country's cinema exhibition business.
On the matter of search engine Google's alleged anti-competitive practices, Ashok Chawla, Chairman, Competition Commission of India (CCI) said that it will take quite “some time†before there is any finality on the matter.
Under the section, if the fair trade regulator is "prima facie of the opinion that the combination has, or is likely to have, an appreciable adverse effect on competition", then it can direct the parties to publish details of the combination within ten working days.
Sources say that the competition watchdog has reservations over the Rs 500 crore deal, on grounds that the merged entity will have a monopoly of cinemas in the south Delhi area. Fourteen of DT's 29 screens are located in south Delhi.
DLF, as also a host of other listed companies, have regularly been asked to provide such clarifications whenever any news report surfaces with price-sensitive information.
Film exhibition firm PVR today said it will raise Rs 350 crore from Indian private equity firm Multiple Alternate Asset Management, which will pick up 10.7 percent stake in the company.
This is PVR‘s second attempt to acquire DT cinemas. Its deal in 2010 was called off due to unknown reasons.