Beijing Weiying Technology, the China-based operator of a mobile movie booking app, has closed $105m in funding from investors including internet portal Tencent and conglomerate Wanda Group, QQ Tech reported today.
The round also featured film investment fund Wenzi Huasha, state-backed holding conglomerate Shandong Luxin Investment Holdings Group, trading conglomerate Shanghai Gangtai Group and investment bank eCapital.
Weiying is the operator of WePiao, a mobile app for cinema seat booking that operates through Tencent’s messaging apps, QQ and WeChat. The company’s service, which recently expanded to other events, also allows users to book and buy snacks for the event online.
The investment comes at a time when the online movie booking space in China is growing significantly. The percentage of Chinese cinema tickets sold online increased from 8% to 30% in 2014, and e-commerce company Alibaba acquired movie ticketing software provider Yueke Software for $134m last week.
Tencent participated in the series B round as part of an ongoing investment strategy in the mobile services space, where it has committed funds to companies including Ele.me, Guahao and Didi Dache to build the range of services with which its apps connect.
Wanda meanwhile has one of the largest chains of cinemas in China, and is one of the five investors in Wanda E-commerce, an e-commerce joint venture also backed by Tencent, social network Baidu, networking technology supplier Centec Networks and private equity firm Xude Rendao.