{"id":404576,"date":"2022-02-11T01:18:44","date_gmt":"2022-02-10T22:18:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/moviepass-returns-as-a-crypto-fueled-privacy-nightmare-review-geek\/"},"modified":"2022-02-11T01:18:44","modified_gmt":"2022-02-10T22:18:44","slug":"moviepass-returns-as-a-crypto-fueled-privacy-nightmare-review-geek","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/moviepass-returns-as-a-crypto-fueled-privacy-nightmare-review-geek\/","title":{"rendered":"#MoviePass Returns As a Crypto-Fueled Privacy Nightmare \u2013 Review Geek"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4113ce32651\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a4113ce32651\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/moviepass-returns-as-a-crypto-fueled-privacy-nightmare-review-geek\/#No_Word_On_Pricing_Or_Launch_Date\" >No Word On Pricing Or Launch Date<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/moviepass-returns-as-a-crypto-fueled-privacy-nightmare-review-geek\/#Is_This_Crypto\" >Is This Crypto?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/moviepass-returns-as-a-crypto-fueled-privacy-nightmare-review-geek\/#Earning_Virtual_Currency_Means_Giving_Up_Your_Face_and_Location\" >Earning Virtual Currency Means Giving Up Your Face and Location<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p><strong>&#8220;#MoviePass Returns As a Crypto-Fueled Privacy Nightmare \u2013 Review Geek&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"article-content-area\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"type:primaryImage alignnone size-full wp-image-109625\" data-pagespeed-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/p\/uploads\/2022\/02\/b545cc5e.png?width=400 400w, https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/p\/uploads\/2022\/02\/b545cc5e.png?width=1200 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, 400w, 1200w\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/p\/uploads\/2022\/02\/b545cc5e.png?width=1200\" alt=\"A phone displaying the MoviePass logo\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Do you remember <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/326158\/is-moviepass-the-9.95-movie-theater-subscription-worth-it\/\">MoviePass<\/a>? The failed \u201cmovie sub<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">script<\/a>ion service\u201d all but burned to the ground when it made a promise no company could keep: all the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">movies<\/a> you ever want to see for less than a price of a ticket. And now <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.moviepass.com\/\">it\u2019s back<\/a>! This time with virtual currency and privacy nightmares.<\/p>\n<p>MoviePass really was a deal too good to be true. For $10 a month, you could see all the movies you wanted at any theater. Even if the theaters didn\u2019t like it. MoviePass sent you a debit card, and you\u2019d buy your ticket. You couldn\u2019t share with a friend, but hey, just get two subscriptions! There was no way it could last, and the company quickly started losing money. Then altering the deal\u00a0and dropping theater support until it finally came crashing down.<\/p>\n<lite-youtube videoid=\"xffsK7A4O2A\" style=\"background-image: url('https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/xffsK7A4O2A\/hqdefault.jpg');\">\n<button type=\"button\" class=\"lty-playbtn\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"lyt-visually-hidden\">Play Video<\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/lite-youtube>\n<p>A lot of that happened after one of the original co-founders,\u00a0Stacy Spikes, was fired. Since then, he managed to repurchase the rights to the company through the bankruptcy process, and now he\u2019s (almost) ready to re-launch MoviePass. In a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/xffsK7A4O2A\">nearly hour-long presentation<\/a> (with multiple technical and human glitches), he provided \u2026 well, some detail of the plan. But we\u2019re left with more questions and fears than certainty.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"No_Word_On_Pricing_Or_Launch_Date\"><\/span>No Word On Pricing Or Launch Date<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-109629 size-full\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/p\/uploads\/2022\/02\/81ded19a.jpg\" alt=\"The MovePass website with a signup offer\" width=\"1919\" height=\"1080\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><\/p>\n<p>So let\u2019s get some of what we don\u2019t know out of the way. Nowhere in the presentation did Spikes give us an indication of how much MoviePass 2.0 will cost. Nor did he provide an exact launch date, just a vague \u201cSummer\u201d promise. He did imply that the subscription service would have a tiered offering, but not what differed in those tiers.<\/p>\n<p>I think we can assume, though, that the \u201call you can watch for just $10 a month\u201d offering won\u2019t make a return. That led to the company\u2019s demise after all, and Spikes spent a while poking fun of that history. But some of his comments did suggest the direction MoviePass will look towards.<\/p>\n<p>In a rather honest moment, Spikes admitted that even at its height, MovePass subscribers didn\u2019t bump the numbers on large tentpole movies like\u00a0<em>Spider-Man<\/em> with all their visits. It was the smaller movies, the kind you might see nominated for an Oscar but never actually watched yourself, that saw benefits. MoviePass subscribers, according to Spikes, used the service as a chance not to save money so much as give movies they might have otherwise passed on a chance.<\/p>\n<p>It sounds like MoviePass will use that data as a starting point for its new subscription service. It all sounded sensible until the pseudo crypto and privacy nightmare details slipped out.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Is_This_Crypto\"><\/span>Is This Crypto?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure style=\"width: 1920px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-109626 size-full\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/p\/uploads\/2022\/02\/319ec978.jpg\" alt=\"Several MoviePass logos explaining virtual currency\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" data-credittext=\"MoviePass\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\">MoviePass<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Let\u2019s get one thing straight right out of the gate: at no time did Spikes utter the words \u201ccrypto\u201d or \u201ccryptocurrency.\u201d I\u2019d be remiss if I didn\u2019t mention that. MoviePass isn\u2019t claiming that it\u2019s creating a crypto service. But I will call this an \u201cif it looks, swings, and quacks like a duck\u201d moment.<\/p>\n<p>The MovePass looks like crypto due to several details. First, there\u2019s a vague promise that what MoviePass is building will be an \u201cEnd to End Cinematic Marketplace powered by Web3 <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology<\/a>.\u201d If you\u2019re not familiar with the term Web3, don\u2019t feel bad because it\u2019s not well defined at this point. As our sister-site <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/779970\/what-is-web3%c2%a0\/\">How-To Geek explains<\/a>, it\u2019s a proposed third evolution of the internet, powered by the blockchain and therefore decentralized. A little bit like the NFT marketplace.<\/p>\n<p>But just because something\u2019s decentralized and powered by blockchain doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s cryptocurrency. But the next part is telling. You see, rather than paying a certain amount of money each month and then getting \u201csix movie tickets\u201d or some such, MoviePass 2.0 will instead rely on \u201cvirtual currency.\u201d You\u2019ll have a digital wallet filled with virtual currency, and you\u2019ll spend it on movie tickets or concessions. Currency rolls over from month to month (though it wasn\u2019t clear how much or for how long), and you can use it to bring a friend to the movie.<\/p>\n<p>You can even trade your MoviePass tokens if you want, though how exactly isn\u2019t clear. MoviePass stopped just short of calling this MoviePassCoin, but you can see the resemblance. Movie theaters will charge differents for tickets and concessions depending on the time of day, so much like most cryptocurrencies, the value will fluctuate. You can even earn more of the \u201cvirtual currency\u201d through actions, which acts similar to crypto\u2019s \u201cproof of work\u201d scheme. Oh, but earning the currency is somewhat scary from a privacy standpoint.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Earning_Virtual_Currency_Means_Giving_Up_Your_Face_and_Location\"><\/span>Earning Virtual Currency Means Giving Up Your Face and Location<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<figure style=\"width: 1920px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-109627 size-full\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/p\/uploads\/2022\/02\/e00ae92f.jpg\" alt=\"The MoviePass app with various movie options\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" data-credittext=\"MoviePass\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\">MoviePass<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Towards the end of the presentation,\u00a0Spikes showed off a little bit of the upcoming MoviePass app and hero feature called PreShow. PreShow will let you earn virtual currency without having to buy more. Though presumably there will be multiple ways to do this, one of the initial methods is watching ads. As you\u2019re browsing movie options, you\u2019ll see a PreShow feature. Click on that, watch an ad, and you\u2019ll see currency deposited into your virtual wallet.<\/p>\n<p>Spikes hinted that the offers could go beyond video and suggested during the demonstration that an ad for a self-driving taxi could then offer even more virtual currency if you booked a ride to the theater. If any of this sounds familiar, you\u2019re probably an eagle-eyed reader who remembers <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kickstarter.com\/projects\/454129649\/preshow-attend-first-run-movies-in-theaters-free\/\">Stacy Spikes\u2019 Kickstarter<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>That Kickstarter promised an upcoming app dubbed PreShow that would let you see \u201cfirst-run movies for free\u201d simply by watching ads on your phone. The updates and comments in the Kickstarter suggest that despite raising $56,721, the app never delivered as promised, and at one point pivoted to a gaming solution instead of ads.<\/p>\n<figure style=\"width: 1920px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-109628 size-full\" data-pagespeed-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/p\/uploads\/2022\/02\/c0f4c86f.jpg\" alt=\"The MovePass app with a PreShow offer\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" data-credittext=\"MoviePass\" src=\"\/pagespeed_static\/1.JiBnMqyl6S.gif\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\">MoviePass<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Now it seems PreShow will find new life as a part of MoviePass. Watching ads isn\u2019t much a privacy issue unless you count how frequently they track us, that is. But in this case, you\u2019re giving up more data than usual. The last thing MoviePass or its ad partners want is for you to start an ad video, set down your phone, and walk away. You\u2019d still get the virtual currency, but the ad-makers lose out on eyeballs.<\/p>\n<p>The solution MoviePass employs is facial recognition. Your phone will fire up its cameras to ensure you\u2019re paying attention when you start the movie. Look away, and the ad pauses. What methods does MoviePass use to determine you\u2019re looking at the phone? Does it store face data on the phone or in the cloud? Does it transmit data to the cloud about your viewing habit? We don\u2019t know because Spikes didn\u2019t tell us.<\/p>\n<p>But we can say with certainty that MoviePass will know where you are. That\u2019s necessary to offer movie ticket prices to the theater of your choice. And to help a robotaxi deliver an offer to pick you up from wherever you are. The ad service would need to know you live in an area that makes sense for the ad. After all, there is no sense in promoting a taxi service that doesn\u2019t exist near you.<\/p>\n<p>So that leaves us with sizeable scary privacy implications: how secure is the MoviePass app? How much data does it have about you? How does it determine you\u2019re looking at the phone? What information is stored where? And will MoviePass sell any of that data? If it does, will it anonymize that data? Right now, we just don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n<p>Over time we might get answers, and they may even satisfy and quell any privacy fears involved. But until that happens, having more questions than answers isn\u2019t a great place to be. We\u2019ll let you know when MoviePass tells us more.\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script>\nsetTimeout(function(){\n  !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n  {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n  n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n  if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n  n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n  t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n  s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',\n  'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n  fbq('init', '1137093656460433');\n  fbq('track', 'PageView');\n  },3000);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/109613\/moviepass-returns-as-a-crypto-fueled-privacy-nightmare\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#MoviePass Returns As a Crypto-Fueled Privacy Nightmare \u2013 Review Geek&#8221; Do you remember MoviePass? The failed \u201cmovie subscription service\u201d all but burned to the ground when it made a promise no company could keep: all the movies you ever want to see for less than a price of a ticket. And now it\u2019s back! This&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":404577,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.reviewgeek.com\/p\/uploads\/2022\/02\/b545cc5e.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-404576","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/404576","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=404576"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/404576\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/404577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=404576"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=404576"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=404576"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}