Brent Sordyl's blog

We’re most impressed by the possibilities inherent in the Groupon strategy, though. The first Groupon for Ready, Set, Bag! went live in Seattle today, offering locals the opportunity to mass-purchase tickets to see the film at local theaters. It lets the filmmakers do something that would have been impossible in another era: guarantee theaters a minimum level of attendance and box office success.

We can see this as a viable strategy for future independent films with a few extra tweaks. For example, you could make a deal with a local theater that if the film doesn’t meet the minimum number of Groupon sales, it simply won’t run, alleviating any concerns the theater might have about risk as compared to running a film that might be a safer bet otherwise.
(Link: Groupon Used to Premiere Indie Documentary Film)