MoviePass has gained half a million new subscribers in less than thirty days, following a price drop. The movie subscription service launched back in 2012, but it only started to really take off over the past year, thanks to some changes made to the pricing. MoviePass originally offered a few different price plans; with the cheapest being $15 a month for only two movies. That's still a savings, but not one that was significant enough for many fans to sign up. Other options (including $50 and $100 plans) existed, offering more movies, 3D movies, and other perks. However, by December of 2016, MoviePass had only around 20,000 subscribers.

All that changed last year, when MoviePass made the bold move to drop the prices significantly: the cheapest plan is now only $9.95 a month, and allows subscribers to watch up to one film per day. That's up to 31 movies in a month, for less than it often costs to buy a ticket to one. The change caused uproar with theaters, as AMC attempted to back out of the program, and is taking steps to prevent MoviePass being used in their theaters. Despite this, MoviePass has experienced a massive boost in sales, passing the one million mark in December. Now, their exponential growth continues, as less than thirty days later MoviePass membership has swelled to over 1.5 million.

Related: MoviePass $10 Subscription Deal Explained

MoviePass announced their latest milestone with a press release that focused on the way that the price drop has encouraged people to sign up, calling the subscription service "transformational" for the industry:

MoviePass is attracting people back to the movie theaters by lowering their cost, which we believe is transformational for the industry. Based on the dramatic increase in the number of MoviePass subscribers over such a short period of time, we believe MoviePass will continue to grow its subscriber base significantly. We’re giving people a reason to go back to the movie theaters and they’re going in droves.

This huge increase in memberships isn't too surprising, even as theaters attempt to back out of their deals with MoviePass. Dedicated cinephiles can make sure to see every movie they want, with the exception of marathons and 3D/IMAX screenings, for an incredibly low price. MoviePass even lowered the price further, to $6.95, for a limited time, which also boosted sales. CEO Mitch Lowe has said that their main aim at the moment is to build their customer base, and that MoviePass is "discovering there’s much more interest and demand than we ever imagined".

The massive growth in MoviePass's subscribers hasn't been without issue, however. The huge jump in subscribers has led to a delivery delay, with subscribers waiting 2-3 weeks longer than promised to receive their cards in the mail. MoviePass apologized for the delay and has increased production, but has been finding it difficult to cope with the sheer demand for their new, cheaper service. This latest jump in subscribers shows that they may need to increase production even more, to cope with the increasing demand as more people hear about the MoviePass program. Of course, with AMC already attempting to pull out of the deal, there is a possibility that MoviePass will buckle without theater support, but the huge demand clearly shows that audiences are sick of the high prices of going to the movies - and with a former Netflix exec at the helm, it seems likely that MoviePass's claim that they are going to transform the industry is accurate.

MORE: Why Theaters Don't Want MoviePass To Succeed

Source: MoviePass