Bengaluru consumer court fines PVR, INOX for excessive ads before movie screening

Bengaluru’s consumer court has ruled in favor of a moviegoer who sued multiplex chain PVR INOX for delaying a film’s start with prolonged advertisements. The court directed the company to ensure movie tickets mention the actual start time of the film, excluding ads.

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The complaint was filed by Abhishek MR after he attended a screening of Sam Bahadur on December 26, 2023, at a PVR theatre. Although the film was scheduled to start at 4:05 PM, it commenced only at 4:30 PM due to 25 minutes of advertisements. This disrupted Abhishek’s plans, prompting him to take legal action against PVR, INOX, and ticketing platform BookMyShow.

In its ruling, the court condemned the practice, calling it an unfair trade practice. It emphasized that time is valuable and that audiences should not be forced to watch excessive ads. While cinemas are required to screen public service announcements (PSAs), the court noted that government guidelines cap these at 10 minutes. In this case, 95% of the ads were commercial.

The court fined PVR INOX ₹1 lakh for unfair practices and ordered a ₹20,000 compensation to Abhishek for mental distress, along with ₹8,000 for legal expenses. It also instructed the multiplex chain to discontinue advertisements beyond the film’s scheduled start time.