Fandango claims that 50 percent of its movie fans are using its mobile ticketing after rolling out the program last year.

Fandango’s mobile ticketing is available theaters owned by Regal Entertainment Group, Hollywood Theaters and Reading Cinemas  in the United States. The quick growth of the program can be attributed to Fandango’s surge in mobile ticket sales in 2011, claiming that the company saw a 73 percent year-to-year increase in mobile ticket sales in 2011.

“More and more, moviegoers are no longer tethered to their home computers or laptops and are looking to their mobile devices for movie information on the go,” said Jessica Yi, chief product officer at Fandango, Los Angeles.

“We have seen this proven with the success of our showtime and ticketing apps on all of the major mobile platforms, and mobile ticket is the next step for moviegoers,” she said.

Paperless tickets
The mobile ticketing announcement was made at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

During the show, Fandango also revealed that the mobile ticketing program has been expanded to 1,200 movie theaters in the United States. Additionally, another 1,000 theaters will offer the program in the coming months.

Once users buy a movie ticket, they are sent an email with a link that they can use to have a mobile ticket sent to them via SMS. Consumers can also sign up for mobile ticketing by checking an option when they purchase tickets.

To redeem the mobile ticket at theaters, consumers need to tap on the link that is included in the SMS message.

The link takes users to a mobile landing page with a mobile bar code on that users show to an employee at theaters.

Mobile movies
According to Fandango, 40 percent of the company’s traffic comes from mobile devices, showing the importance that mobile plays in ticketing for small items such as movie tickets.

In addition to mobile ticketing, Fandango also has applications available for nearly every mobile device, including Apple, Android, Windows and RIM smartphones and tablets as well as a SMS program.

Fandango’s mobile ticketing growth is proof that consumers are increasingly becoming more comfortable paying for smaller ticket items, such as movie tickets, via their mobile devices.

Despite Fandango’s mobile ambitions, it is not the only movie company to dabble in mobile.

For example, software company Ticketsoft recently rolled out a mobile commerce initiative that let consumers at movie chains buy tickets via mobile and pick them up at the theater (see story).

“In addition to online and in-theater purchases, mobile is another way moviegoers are choosing to get movie information, showtimes and tickets,” Ms. Yi said.

“We have seen a remarkable increase in mobile purchases leading up to opening day, proving that it is no longer for impulse buys,” she said.

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is editorial assistant on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York