Keep Off the Grass

Not only is there no competition from the independent theatres; the two chains even limit the areas of competition between themselves. Each chain has its own distributors, and they don't therefore compete for the same films (this is the 'Keep off the grass' policy). However, if one chain turns a film down it may be offered to the other.

The film industry is therefore essentially monopolistic. Kerridge-Odean and Amalgamated can inflict on the public whatever they like, even to the extent of determining the films that the independent theatres show.

This monopoly is protected by act of parliament. This might sound like an odd claim to make, but it is literally the case. Since 1932 a system of licensing of theatres has existed in New Zealand, designed to protect the smaller operators. It can't have been very effective because by 1948 when the Committee of Inquiry was set up, the industry was under monopoly control.

This was one of the things that the Committee was set up to examine; it decided that some degree of monopoly was inevitable and perhaps even desirable. However it didn't want to see the two chains get any bigger, but comforted it-self with the thought that the licensing system could cope with the situation.

Up to a point it was right. The two chains didn't grow any bigger, and after the advent of television they actually got smaller. But they already owned most of the city cinemas and already had first rights to all the films. The limitation on their size merely meant that up to 1960 they had to cram bigger audiences into the same number of cinemas. After the advent of television this limitation became irrelevant.