Number of Imax screens reaches 95 on mainland

The number of Imax screens on the Chinese mainland has reached 95, and by the end of this year the total number will be more than 100, the vice-president of Imax China said on Friday.

Imax China is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Canadian giant movie screen maker Imax Corp. Imax China was established in September 2011 to better capitalize on the opportunities in the world's second-largest economy.

Among the 95 Imax auditoriums that have come into operation, 60 are owned by Dalian Wanda Group Corp Ltd— the owner and operator of China's largest movie theater chain by box office revenue.

As many as 257 Imax-screen projects have been signed in the fastest-growing film market, including the 95 that are in operation, according to the company.

"China has become our largest market outside the North America market," Imax China Vice-President Karl Yuan said at the China Cinema Expansion Summit in Shanghai on Friday.

In 2010, when James Cameron's blockbuster Avatar was released in China, the number of Imax screens in the country was only 14, but they contributed about 11 percent of the film's total box office receipts in the market, according to the company.