TAIPEI: Taiwan-listed Brogent Technologies Inc is set to advance in the global entertainment scene with its i-Ride flying theatres, as it plans to expand in Europe and to the Middle East. The group currently has nine i-Ride theatres globally, spread out across China, Canada, Japan, the US, Germany, Spain, and Taiwan, where it calls home.
In an i-Ride theatre, riders get to experience what flying is like, with the help an eight-minute cinematic clip and a suspended seat platform that swings towards a giant dome screen. Special effects like wind, sound, light, mist and even scent are added to enhance the experience.
Brogent senior marketing specialist Stefan Rothaug said the group plans to open its 10th i-Ride theatre in Amsterdam, Europe, this month. Next year, the group will be expanding to the Middle East, with an i-Ride theatre in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.
“We are at the point where we have marked our reputation in the industry to accelerate further, globally,” he told a group of international reporters during a recent visit to Brogent’s headquarters in Kaohsiung, organised by Taiwan’s ministry of foreign affairs. The product is offered either as a stand-alone attraction in malls and tourist centres, or installed as part of the rides offered at a theme park.
Brogent’s name became known outside of Taiwan after it installed the FlyOver Canada flying theatre at Canada Place, Vancouver, in 2013. The ride, which provides an eight-minute virtual tour through Canada, was voted as the top attraction in Vancouver by travel website TripAdvisor in 2016.
Following the success of FlyOver Canada, Brogent expanded its i-Ride technology to the US with the installation of FlyOver America in the Mall of America, Minnesota, in 2016. On whether Brogent has plans to expand to Malaysia, Rothaug said it is possible.
“This industry is so small; everybody who wants to install a flying theatre comes to us,” he quipped.
“We are offering our products worldwide. Normally, we sell the rights to our product, so if there is a client that approaches us, they would buy the rights from us to operate the product. For example, for the [FlyOver] Canada project, they bought the rights from us for US$16 million,” added Rothaug.
Other international projects which the group has undertaken include the “Fuji Airways” i-Ride flight theatre in the Fuji-Q Highland amusement park in Fujiyoshida, Japan, which has an annual ridership of 400,000.
In June this year, the group expanded to Germany, with an i-Ride attraction at Europa Park, the country’s largest theme park. The i-Ride there posted a million in ridership in the three months since its installation.
