HOYTS Cinemas Mobile App – Australia & New Zealand

Off the back of launching the new HOYTS Cinemas website, Chook Digital was engaged by the HOYTS Technology Group to redesign and rebuild their native mobile app. The challenge was to take the core functionality of the existing mobile app (purchasing tickets, food and drinks, browsing session times and accessing membership details) and expanding the mobile app offering, leveraging the features and technology development for the website. The mobile app had to integrate seamlessly with the HOYTS ticketing software as well as the various APIs developed by the Chook and HOYTS team during the website project.

Chook's solution was to use Capacitor JS to transform existing website Vue components into iOS and Android apps efficiently. This approach enabled a shared codebase, reducing development time and ensuring consistency across platforms. By reusing UI components and business logic, Chook was able to minimise bugs and streamline API integration. Live updates via Appflow allowed for quick iteration without app store delays, while Azure Notification Hubs support push notifications integrated with the existing backend and CMS. This method maximised efficiency, maintains a seamless user experience across web and mobile, and ensures faster, more reliable updates for both platforms.

The HOYTS Mobile App is all about making movie nights effortless. It’s more than just a ticketing tool – it’s a personal cinema concierge. From booking your seats to ordering candy bar treats straight to your chair, it puts the full experience at your fingertips. Going digital means less paper waste and a smaller carbon footprint, while its loyalty program cuts down on plastic card clutter. By keeping the focus on convenience, sustainability, and customer delight, it turns every trip to the movies into a seamless, memorable event.

Key features of the HOYTS Mobile App include; • Browsing movies and session times at your favourite or closest cinemas based on your location. • Integration with Apple and Google for both payment and wallet to quickly checkout or save your tickets and member card. • Pre-order your food and drinks before your session or decide to enjoy a delicious Choc-Top mid movies with in-seat ordering. • Manage your bookings with Access your tickets, session information and changing your seats. • Manage your movie Watchlist and be notified when tickets are on sale.