Drive-In Motion Picture Theaters
Description
Establishments classified under this industry code are dedicated to providing live motion picture screenings to audiences at outdoor locations equipped with vehicle parking and overhead projection structures. These venues rely on specialized lighting and sound systems designed specifically for projecting high-quality films while accommodating cars positioned in rows or loops. Typical business activities involve scheduling daily showings of current releases, maintaining complex projection and audio equipment, managing concession operations, and ensuring the security and cleanliness of the lot. The operations are heavily dependent on seasonal weather patterns and local demographics, with many facilities operating primarily during warm months. A significant portion of these theaters are owned and managed by large corporate chains that operate multiple sites across various regions. While some are independent family-owned businesses or locally operated parks, the scale often extends from small community units serving a few hundred visitors to large commercial complexes catering to thousands annually. The industry encompasses a wide geographic scope, ranging from rural outdoor settings to urban suburbs. Success relies on strategic location selection, effective marketing to attract families and young adults, and the ability to adapt programming to suit local interests alongside standard blockbuster releases.
Hierarchy
| Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 51 | Information 2-digit sector | The Sector as a Whole The Information sector comprises establishments engaged in the following processes: (a) producing and distributing information and cultural products, (b) providing the means to transmit or distribute these products as well as data or communications, and (c) processing data. The main components of this sector are motion picture and sound recording industries; publishing industries, including software publishing; broadcasting and content providers; telecommunications industries; computing infrastructure providers, data processing, Web hosting, and related services; and Web search portals, libraries, archives, and other information services. The unique characteristics of information and cultural products, and of the processes involved in their production and distribution, distinguish the Information sector from the goods-producing and service-producing sectors. Some of these characteristics are: 1. Unlike traditional goods, an ''information or cultural product,'' such as an online newspaper or a television program, does not necessarily have tangible qualities, nor is it necessarily associated with a particular form. A movie can be viewed at a movie theater or through television broadcast, video-on-demand, or streaming services. A sound recording can be aired on radio, embedded in multimedia products, streamed, or sold at a record store. 2. Unlike traditional services, the delivery of these products does not require direct contact between the supplier and the consumer. 3. The value of these products to the consumer lies in their informational, educational, cultural, or entertainment content, not in the format in which they are distributed. Most of these products are protected from unlawful reproduction by copyright laws. 4. The intangible property aspect of information and cultural products makes the processes involved in their production and distribution very different from goods and services. Only those possessing the rights to these works are authorized to reproduce, alter, improve, and distribute them. Acquiring and using these rights often involves significant costs. In addition, technology has revolutionized the distribution of these products. It is possible to distribute them in a physical form, via broadcast, or online. 5. Distributors of information and cultural products can easily add value to the products they distribute. For instance, broadcasters add advertising not contained in the original product. This capacity means that unlike traditional goods distributors, they derive revenue not from sale of the distributed product to the final consumer, but from those who pay for the privilege of adding information to the original product. Similarly, a directory and mailing list publisher can acquire the rights to thousands of previously published newspaper and periodical articles and add new value by providing search and software and organizing the information in a way that facilitates research and retrieval. These products often command a much higher price than the original information. Excluded from this sector are establishments primarily engaged in custom design of software; mass reproducing software or other prerecorded audio and video material on magnetic or optical media; producing live artistic and cultural works or productions; and performing in or creating artistic and cultural works or productions as independent (i.e., freelance) individuals. |
| 512 | Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries 3-digit subsector | Industries in the Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries subsector group establishments involved in the production and distribution of motion pictures and sound recordings. While producers and distributors of motion pictures and sound recordings issue works for sale as traditional publishers do, the processes are sufficiently different to warrant placing establishments engaged in these activities in a separate subsector. Production is typically a complex process that involves several distinct types of establishments that are engaged in activities, such as contracting with performers, creating the film or sound content, and providing technical postproduction services. Film distribution is often to exhibitors, such as theaters and broadcasters, rather than through the wholesale and retail distribution chain. When the product is in a mass-produced form, NAICS treats production and distribution as the major economic activity as it does in the Publishing Industries subsector, rather than as a subsidiary activity to the manufacture of such products. This subsector does not include establishments primarily engaged in the wholesale distribution of video and sound recordings, such as compact discs and audio tapes; these establishments are included in the Wholesale Trade sector. Reproduction of video and sound recordings that is carried out separately from establishments engaged in production and distribution is treated in NAICS as a manufacturing activity. Establishments that primarily acquire the rights to distribute video and sound recordings to the public via television or radio broadcast or streaming distribution services are classified in Subsector 516, Broadcasting and Content Providers. Establishments using facilities and infrastructure that they operate to distribute cable and satellite television subscription programming are included in Subsector 517, Telecommunications. |
| 5121 | Motion Picture and Video Industries 4-digit industry group | This industry group comprises establishments primarily engaged in the production and/or distribution of motion pictures, videos, television programs, or commercials; in the exhibition of motion pictures; or in the provision of postproduction and related services. |
| 51213 | Motion Picture and Video Exhibition 5-digit NAICS industry | This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in operating motion picture theaters and/or exhibiting motion pictures or videos at film festivals, and so forth. |
| 512132 | Drive-In Motion Picture Theaters 6-digit U.S. detail | Establishments classified under this industry code are dedicated to providing live motion picture screenings to audiences at outdoor locations equipped with vehicle parking and overhead projection structures. These venues rely on specialized lighting and sound systems designed specifically for projecting high-quality films while accommodating cars positioned in rows or loops. Typical business activities involve scheduling daily showings of current releases, maintaining complex projection and audio equipment, managing concession operations, and ensuring the security and cleanliness of the lot. The operations are heavily dependent on seasonal weather patterns and local demographics, with many facilities operating primarily during warm months. A significant portion of these theaters are owned and managed by large corporate chains that operate multiple sites across various regions. While some are independent family-owned businesses or locally operated parks, the scale often extends from small community units serving a few hundred visitors to large commercial complexes catering to thousands annually. The industry encompasses a wide geographic scope, ranging from rural outdoor settings to urban suburbs. Success relies on strategic location selection, effective marketing to attract families and young adults, and the ability to adapt programming to suit local interests alongside standard blockbuster releases. |
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Index Items
Drive-in motion picture theaters
Motion picture theaters, drive-in
Movie theaters, drive-in
Open air motion picture theaters
Theaters, motion picture, drive-in
Theaters, outdoor motion picture
How Item Can Help
Optimizes inventory flow for movie reels and concession items by scanning high‑speed digital assets and managing fragile physical stock across multiple regional theaters.
Synchronizes real‑time ticket sales and concession orders to prevent overselling and streamline checkout processing during peak summer showtimes.
Coordinates the last‑mile delivery of special event merchandise and oversized props to remote drive‑in locations while tracking refrigerated concession shipments.
External Resources
Census.gov NAICS Detail
Official US Census Bureau definition and scope for NAICS 512132.
National Association of Drive-In Movie Theaters
The primary trade association representing drive-in cinema operators and providing industry news.
U.S. Census Bureau Drive-In Theaters Database
Official government resource listing all registered drive-in movie theaters by state and municipality.
IMAX Drive-In Theaters Directory
Industry directory maintained by IMAX identifying drive-in locations offering large-format digital screening technology.
