Barco Celebrates 100,000 Digital Cinema Projectors Production Milestone

September 21, 2021

Barco, the world-leading manufacturer of digital projection and innovative visualization technologies, is proud to announce a record achievement in digital cinema manufacturing. Since the first pioneering release of Barco digital cinema projectors in 1999, the company has established itself as the trusted partner and leading provider in cinema technologies resulting in the production of 100,000 digital cinema projectors today. The milestone is testament to the longevity and sustained heritage of innovation shared by Barco, its partners, and the exhibition community.

At the turn of the 21st century, the film and cinema experience underwent an unprecedented change as it moved from the traditional analog world of celluloid film into a new digital age. Barco has been a market and technology driver in these digital innovations ever since the early days.

The digitalization of cinema accelerated after the release of the ground-breaking 3D blockbuster Avatar (2009), with over 90% of the market transitioning to digital projection in the years that followed. The conversion to digital cinema has enabled a significant growth in the global cinema market doubling the number of screens from 100,000 to close to 200,000 today.

Over the last seven years, the market continued to innovate with the advent of the laser era, harnessing the leading laser technologies to power the next generation of moviegoing experiences. Today, there are more than 25,000 Barco laser projection solutions deployed around the world. With the ongoing transition to this eco-friendly and experience-enhancing technology powered by Barco and its partners.

Ignace Rombaut, Barco’s VP of Projection added, “this is not the end of the success story. Digital projection and the more recent switch from lamp to laser light sources only delivers more advantages for customers. From R&D to production, and from design to end-user, laser is embedded in everything we do as the right choice for the future of cinema. From image quality to sustainability there is still untapped potential for further growth, and I am convinced that the outlook is bright for cinema.”

The 100,000 projector production milestone was made possible by Barco’s technological and patented leadership, the trust of an industry to adopt new solutions, and the passion for cinemagoing shared with customers around the world. Nicolas Vanden Abeele, Senior VP Entertainment at Barco, concludes: “We want to thank all our loyal partners, customers and employees for their support in this joint achievement. Despite periods of challenge, cinema has always rallied as an industry to exceed expectations and continue to deliver the best experience when seeing a film. Our colleagues around the world are committed for the long-term to help elevate cinema again to the next level using our all-laser digital cinema projector portfolio for many years to come.”