Major Movie Theater Websites Crash Amid Discount Coupon Rush

On the morning of July 25, 2025, a significant technical failure occurred on the websites and apps of major movie theaters in South Korea, including CGV, Lotte Cinema, and Megabox. This disruption coincided with the launch of a promotion offering 6,000 KRW discount coupons for movie tickets, which were available on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 10 AM. By 11 AM, users reported difficulties accessing the sites, with messages indicating that services were temporarily unavailable due to system maintenance.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced the distribution of 4.5 million coupons, leading to a surge in website traffic that likely caused the outages. Social media was flooded with complaints from users who experienced long wait times only to be met with error messages.

The ministry had previously stated that each individual could claim up to two coupons, and the offer was expected to end early depending on regional availability. The discount coupons can be combined with other promotions, such as discounts for cultural days, disabled individuals, seniors, and youth, which heightened public interest.

This initiative is part of the new government's supplementary budget of 27.1 billion KRW aimed at revitalizing the domestic economy and boosting the film industry.