New Brunswick had the lowest per capita attendance (2.3 visits) and along with Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, marked a decline in attendance.

Drive-in theatres pulled in big audiences in 2004-2005, marking an impressive increase in attendance for the first time in eight years. A drop in ticket prices likely helped propel attendance up more than 20 per cent to 1.8 million visits.

Chain-operated theatres pull in significantly more customers, and therefore more cash, than independent ones, says the study. On a per-theatre basis, chain-operated theatres had an average annual attendance of 346,200, more than four times the average attendance of independently operated theatres. Most of the chain theatres are multi-screen theatres in urban centres.