The story
Vista Cinema (now Vista Entertainment Solutions) was founded in New Zealand in 1996. Formed through a joint venture development agreement between Village Force Cinemas Ltd (now Event Cinemas) and Madison Systems Ltd (now Fujitsu Ltd), Vista Cinema was the original company behind Vista Group. In 1997, Vista Cinema made its first overseas sales in Argentina and Fiji. Its software was adapted to handle multiple languages and accommodate the tax laws and film regulations of other countries. Vista Cinema expanded rapidly in Central and North America, Europe, and Asia. By 2003, Vista Cinema management had a direct 50% ownership of the company.
Between 2009 and 2014, Vista Cinema acquired total or partial control of technology companies focused on products for the wider film industry. The company aimed to accquire companies focused on additional sector requirements, such as film distribution management and marketing data analysis. By March 2010, Vista management had total control of the Vista Cinema and its acquisitions.
In 2014, Vista Group International had its initial public offering by the management company that owned Vista Cinema and its acquired companies. The company saw a listing on the NZX and ASX of $92.6 million, $40 million of which was new capital. Vista Group (VGL) commenced trading on the NZX Main Board on the 11th of August 2014, with a market capitalization of $191.6 million NZD.
Vista Group continued to acquire stakes in several film-focused technology companies, including a buyout of Flicks in New Zealand and a 50% stake in Powster in the United Kingdom. In August 2016, Vista Group made a deal with the movie ticket booking platform Beijing Weiying Technology (WePiao), establishing Vista China (previously a 100%-owned subsidiary of Vista Group) as a joint venture. This investment from WePiao and the extended rights from Vista Group enabled the sale of Vista's existing software (Vista Cinema, Veezi, Movio, Maccs, and Numero) and positioned Vista China to increase its footprint in the rapidly expanding Chinese film market.
In August 2017, Vista Group acquired a 60% controlling stake in its long-term Latin American business partner, Senda Dirección Tecnológica, SA de CV. The company was renamed Vista Latin America.
In April 2020, Vista Group partnered with indie theatre VOD provider ScreenPlus to launch the ScreenPlus VOD platform, making it available to major theatres in the US, Canada, and the UK.
From Wikipedia’s article on Vista Group, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4